Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has backed India to beat Pakistan in the high-octane Asia Cup match in Dubai. India has their wood on Pakistan in major tournaments and Ponting feels the Men in Blue will outgun the Men in Green.
However, when both of these teams last faced each other in the 2021 T20 World Cup Super 12 match, Pakistan convincingly won by 10 wickets, with 13 balls to spare.
Meanwhile, India and Pakistan have taken on each other on 14 occasions in the Asia Cup. India has an upper hand in the head-to-head battle as they have won eight matches while Pakistan has won five whereas one match has ended in no result.
Ponting said in the latest edition of the ICC Review: “I’ll stick with India to win that clash against Pakistan. That’s taking nothing away from Pakistan because they are an incredible cricket nation that continues to present out-and-out superstar players.”
It is well known that India and Pakistan only lock horns with each other in major ICC tournaments due to political tension between the two countries. Ponting added that cricket fans starve of such rivalries, which have been missing between India and Pakistan.
“To be totally honest, it’s one that we’ve been starved of, haven’t we… looking back the last 15 or 20 years. As a cricket lover like I am and a cricket observer, any time those sorts of battles come up it’s almost always nice to sit back and watch because everything just goes up a notch, doesn’t it?”
Furthermore, Ricky Ponting backed India to win the Asia Cup. India has won the Asia Cup on seven occasions while Pakistan has won the tournament twice.
Meanwhile, India and Pakistan will face each other in Asia Cup at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai on 28th August.
India will look to avenge their 2021 T20 World Cup loss against their neighbors while the Babar Azam-led team will also aim to get off to a good start in the tournament.
