Asia Cup 2025: Pakistan hit the nets to prepare for India showdown

Dubai: Pakistan’s men’s cricket team hit the ground running after arriving in Dubai on Wednesday, with intentions clear from the start. The team bus rolled into the ICC Academy at 7.25pm for a 7.30pm session, and within minutes the players were split into focused groups to begin their Asia Cup build-up.

Under cooler evening skies, the session was sharp and purposeful. One group worked on fielding and catching, while senior players moved to the nets under Australian bowling coach Ashley Noffke. Haris Rauf bowled with trademark aggression, testing batters with pace and bounce, while Shaheen Shah Afridi delivered precision bowling, repeatedly hitting the top of off stump and producing yorkers that uprooted middle stumps, even without going at full speed.

The squad will have another week to train before starting the Tri-Nation series against hosts UAE and Afghanistan on August 29 in Sharjah. The Asia Cup begins on September 9, with Pakistan opening their Group A campaign against Oman on September 12 in Dubai, before facing arch-rivals India in a high-profile clash two days later.

From playing on the pitch to analysing it from the press box, Satish has spent over three decades living and breathing sport. A cricketer-turned-journalist, he has covered three Cricket World Cups, the 2025 Champions Trophy, countless IPL seasons, F1 races, horse racing classics, and tennis in Dubai. Cricket is his home ground, but he sees himself as an all-rounder - breaking stories, building pages, going live on podcasts, and interviewing legends across every corner of the sporting world. Satish started on the back pages, and earned his way to the front, now leading the sports team at Gulf News, where he has spent 25 years navigating the fast-evolving game of journalism. Whether it’s a Super-Over thriller or a behind-the-scenes story, he aims to bring insight, energy, and a fan’s heart to every piece. Because like sport, journalism is about showing up, learning every day, and giving it everything.

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