Credits: UAE Cricket Official/X

Among all the buzz around the handshake saga and the heated atmosphere post Pakistan's defeat to India, it is time for Pakistan to take the field in Dubai for a must-win game against the UAE in a must-win game in order to qualify for the next round. There have been a lot of media reports suggesting that Pakistan would pull out of the remainder of the Asia Cup if the match referee Andy Pycroft is not removed from the Asia Cup, although that possibility seems highly unlikely, and a middle ground would probably be reached with Richie Richardson replacing Pycroft as referee for all of Pakistan's matches. Pakistan did cancel their pre-match media conference, although the reason for that could be that the questions would be around the handshake situation, the boycott calls and all of this scenario instead of tomorrow's match, which is again scheduled at 7:30 PM Pakistan time (6:30 local). Pakistan have undergone a practice session at the ICC Academy in Dubai, which indicates that they will take the field tomorrow. In the unlikely event that Pakistan do not take the field tomorrow, UAE would qualify for the Super 4s with the 2 points.

Update 16/09/25 11:48 pm: Various reports have claimed that the matter has been resolved and Pakistan will play against UAE tomorrow, including a tweet from journalist Sardar Aurangzaib in Dubai, he claims that Andy Pycroft will not be the referee for Pakistan's matches.

How did UAE fare against Pakistan in the tri series?

They did pretty well for an associate side and did not look flat in any of the two matches, especially the second one where they had Pakistan 80-5 at one stage and could have actually given themselves a better chance if not for dropping a couple of catches paired with a very bad showing at the death in the last couple of overs. Their batsmen had some good outings, with Asif Khan scoring a blistering 77  in the first game followed by 68 from opener Alishan Sharafu in the second one. Haider Ali, the left arm off spinner also had impressive outings, particularly in the second game where he picked up 2 wickets at a miserly economy rate. It's a golden opportunity for UAE to cause the biggest shock of the year and register their name in the headlines of the cricketing world. That being said, Pakistan should still feel confident coming into this game despite their highly disappointing performance against India in the last game, having a potent spin attack consisting of the likes of Abrar, who dominated with 4-9 in the second game against UAE.

How's the form of these two teams?

Pakistan obviously have been given a crushing defeat by India, which they have to put behind themselves. It was a performance that lacked spirit and intensity, they showed no rotation of strike, whereas the Indian batters looked very comfortable in their chase. UAE, on the other hand are coming off a 42-run win against Oman after scoring 172 in the first innings, which is actually more than what Pakistan achieved against the same opposition, although the victory margin is obviously much smaller as compared to Pakistan's 93-run win against Oman.

Pakistan's last 5 T20Is (most recent first): L W W W L
UAE's last 5 T20Is (most recent first): W L L L L

Credits: Associated Press

Head-to-head and history between the two teams

In T20Is: Pakistan 3-0 UAE
In T20 Asia Cups: Pakistan 1-0 UAE

Pakistan has played only one game against UAE in Asia Cups, which was in Mirpur as Pakistan despite an early scare losing 3 early wickets chasing 130, won by 7 wickets thanks to an unbeaten 114-run partnership between Shoaib Malik and Umar Akmal.

In the recent tri series in Sharjah which also featured Afghanistan, Pakistan defeated UAE in both the matches, by 31 runs on both the occasions.

Players to watch out for

Saim Ayub, one of the most exciting talents that Pakistan has had in recent times, is going through an extremely poor run of form with both the opening games in the Asia Cup seeing him registering a golden duck. Even in the tri series, he failed to score anything of substance except for the first game against the UAE where he scored 69 from 38 balls. With qualification on the line and bigger matches to come in the Super 4 stage, the left handed opener might just find his rhythm against a familiar opposition in recent times.

Interestingly, he has taken 5 wickets in the tournament, including a 3-fer against India, making him the joint-second highest wicket taker so far in the tournament with UAE's Junaid Siddique, behind Kuldeep Yadav's 7. Although Pakistan would want more from him with the bat rather than just with the ball.

UAE didn't include him in the first two games of the tri series, but ever since he has come in, opening batsman Alishan Sharafu has made life easier for captain Muhammad Wasim at the top of the order. He played a vital role in UAE's win against Oman with 51 off 38 balls, and also played a lone hand of 68 against Pakistan in his only tri series outing against them. UAE will be reliant on him to provide a solid start in this big game.

Pitch and conditions

The weather, as one can expect in Dubai, is hot and humid. The pitches in Dubai so far have had alot to offer for the spinners, and that is what is most likely going to be seen again tomorrow.

Probable Playing XIs

Haris Rauf, who is Pakistan's highest wicket taker in T20Is hasn't featured in any of Pakistan's last 4 games, and after the loss in the India game there surely is a chance of him featuring again especially considering his high pace and wicket taking ability. Hussain Talat is also a good player of spin and may add some stability in Pakistan's lineup which has at times struggled to counter spin, which was especially on display against India. Having said all that, one wouldn't put it beyond this management under Mike Hesson to go unchanged despite the big loss, as he said that Pakistan only bowled 2 overs of seam and didn't need more, and also brushed off the game as a "bad day".

Pakistan XI (probable): Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Muhammad Haris (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Ali Agha (c), Hassan Nawaz, Muhammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Muqeem/Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed

UAE had a good outing against Oman in Abu Dhabi on a decent surface for batting, and coming back to Dubai they could replace Jawadullah with a spinner in Simarjeet Singh, or they might stick with the same combination which already features Parashar and Haider Ali as spin options.

UAE XI (probable): Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Wasim (c), Muhammad Zohaib, Asif Khan, Harshit Kauhsik, Rahul Chopra (wk), Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Muhammad Rohid, Muhammad Jawadullah/Simarjeet Singh, Junaid Siddique

Pakistan's complete schedule in Group A