India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak shared that the team is completely focused on the Asia Cup match against Pakistan which is set to be played on September 14 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Though there has been a lot of scrutiny towards BCCI ever since the match got announced, the game is expected to go ahead as planned.
Many people are against the idea of India and Pakistan facing-off in the continental tournament as political relations between the two countries deteriorated to an all-time low earlier this year. It all began with the Pahalgam terrorist attack in April which saw 26 innocent Indian people lose their lives. Then, India launched Operation Sindoor as a retaliation and unleashed attacks on terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan.
Kotak remarked that the players aren't thinking much about the outside noise and are completely focused on playing good cricket.
“Once the BCCI aligned with the government’s decision, our focus was always on the match. It’s India versus Pakistan, and it will be an interesting game," Kotak said during a media interaction ahead of India vs Pakistan clash.
“India versus Pakistan is always a competitive game. Players are focused on the ground and nothing else is on their minds," he added.
India destroyed UAE in their Asia Cup opener
Meanwhile, India made a strong start to their Asia Cup campaign and defeated UAE comprehensively by 9 wickets. The Men in Blue were completely dominant in both the batting and bowling fronts as they first bundled out the opposition for just 57 runs before chasing down the modest target in just 4.3 overs. On the other hand, Pakistan also won their opening match of the tournament and defeated Oman by 93 runs. If Suryakumar Yadav & Co. do end up winning the upcoming clash against their arch-rivals, then they are likely to qualify for the Super 4 stage.