“There will be no contest in front of him” - Saba Karim’s massive praise for Indian star ahead of IND vs PAK Asia Cup 2025 match

Former wicketkeeper Saba Karim heaped praise on star India pacer Jasprit Bumrah ahead of the Asia Cup 2025 fixture against Pakistan. The two teams will face off in Dubai on Sunday, September 14.

Saba Karim mentioned some battles he would like to see, such as that between Shaheen Shah Afridi and openers Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill. Talking about Bumrah, he reckoned that there would be no contest against the ace pacer.

He added that given the quality of the team, the Men In Blue are expected to win the game with ease.

"The first battle I am looking forward to is Shaheen Shah Afridi versus Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill. Then how Kuldeep bowls in the middle overs. I will not talk about Bumrah because there will be no contest in front of him. Pakistan will at least want to compete. It is a given that India should win and we are expecting to see a large gap. Because India have a lot of quality, we hope they will win this," he said on Sony Sports Network. (0:53)

In the same conversation, former all-rounder Irfan Pathan posed a slightly different view. While Saba Karim reckoned the defending champions would win by a big margin, Irfan called for a close battle.

"Close encounter. Because the last two encounters that have happened, the 2022 World Cup was close and it went to the last ball. The encounter at the last World Cup was also close. Bumrah was the hero there. I hope India wins a close contest," he stated. (1:49)

The Men In Blue won their opening game of the tournament against the UAE with ease. They trashed them by nine wickets and will look to carry the momentum forward against Pakistan.

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"India is a way superior side" - Ajay Jadeja ahead of clash against Pakistan

Further, former batter Ajay Jadeja believed that Suryakumar Yadav's team is far superior. He reflected that there may be some surprises in the game, but the result would be in favor of Suryakumar Yadav and Co.

"We don't know what the new players from Pakistan will do. But we know the level of our players and the way they play. There maybe some surprise. Surprise only in the game, I am not talking about the result. India is a way superior side," he said. (2:39) (via the aforementioned source)

Notably, Pakistan also won their first game of the Asia Cup 2025. They beat Oman by 93 runs. However, it will be a different ball game altogether when they will be up against the Indian team.

The two teams have faced off 19 times in the tournament previously. The Men In Blue have emerged victorious on 10 occasions. Pakistan have won six times, with three matches ending without a result.

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Edited by Rishab Vm