"We pray that India wins": Abhishek Sharma's father on clash with Pak in Asia Cup final

Amritsar (Punjab) [India], September 28 (ANI): Indian opening batter Abhishek Sharma's father, Raj Kumar Sharma, expressed pride and optimism ahead of the Asia Cup final against Pakistan.

He believes that whoever plays better will win and prays for India's victory. India will face arch-rivals Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final, scheduled to take place at the Dubai International Stadium on September 28.

While speaking to ANI, Raj Kumar Sharma said, "Whoever plays better will win. We pray that India wins and everyone performs well. Abhishek will put his best foot forward. It is a matter of pride for us that our son is playing for the country. He is serving the country. We have taught him that the nation comes first, and to play for the country first."

This will be the first-ever Asia Cup final between India and Pakistan in the tournament's 41-year history, adding an extra layer of excitement to the clash. India has defeated Pakistan twice in this year's Asia Cup.

Abhishek Sharma has been the best batter of the tournament so far. Abhishek notched his third successive fifty during the Asia Cup, bashing Sri Lanka all over the park in their final Super Four clash on Friday, scoring an eye-catching 61 in 31 balls, with eight fours and two sixes. He struck at the rate of 196.77.

Janardan Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav's uncle, has expressed his confidence in India's chances of winning the Asia Cup 2025 final against Pakistan. He praised India's performance throughout the tournament, saying they've played well.

"Best wishes to the Team. India played well throughout the tournament. They will definitely win today. They have to be careful, though, as Pakistan lost two matches, so it could be better prepared this time. No matter the number of wickets (Kuldeep Yadav) takes, we just pray that it will be effective for the team... We will speak to him after the match," Janardan Yadav told ANI.

Kuldeep Yadav has been impressive, leveraging his variations to outsmart batters. He currently tops the wicket-takers' list with 13 wickets in six matches at an economy rate of 6.05.

Masooduz-Zafar Amini, Rinku Singh's coach, while speaking to ANI, said, "This will be a high-voltage match. Indian players have been giving a good performance. India will win for sure... The gestures made by Pakistanis during the last match were wrong."

India dominated Pakistan in the group stage match, cruising to a seven-wicket victory, thanks to Kuldeep Yadav's match-winning spell of 3/18. In the Super 4s showdown, Abhishek Sharma's explosive 74 off 39 balls dismantled Pakistan's bowling attack, paving the way for a convincing six-wicket win for India.

Indian squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh. (ANI)

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