Kandy clash on the cards for Pakistan, India

Pakistan and India will meet in Sri Lanka on Sept. 2 for their first one-day international clash in four years, according to the Asia Cup schedule.

The six-nation tournament starts Aug. 30 with four matches in Pakistan and the remaining nine in Sri Lanka —including the highly anticipated Indo-Pak match in Kandy.

Colombo will host five Super Four stage games, as well as the final on Sept. 19, AFP reported.

Pakistan, India and Nepal are in Group A while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are in Group B.

The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super Four stage, and if both Pakistan and India qualify, they will meet again in Colombo on Sep. 10.

The top two teams from Super Four stage will play the final.

The Asia Cup will be played to 50-overs to allow five of the six teams — excluding Nepal — to tune up for the ODI World Cup from Oct. 5 to Nov. 19.

The Asia Cup fixture announcement ends a year-long stand-off after India refused to tour the host country Pakistan because of political tensions, raising doubts over the holding of the event.

Earlier this month, a hybrid model was agreed upon, with four matches in Pakistan and the remaining nine in Sri Lanka.

The Asia Cup, first played in 1984, was also victim to strained relations after India withdrew from the event in 1986, and Pakistan did not participate four years later.

30 Aug – Pakistan v Nepal, Multan

31 Aug – Bangladesh v Sri Lanka, Kandy

2 Sep – Pakistan v India, Kandy

3 Sep – Bangladesh v Afghanistan, Lahore

4 Sep – India v Nepal, Kandy

5 Sep – Afghanistan v Sri Lanka, Lahore

6 Sep – A1 v B2 (Super-4), Lahore

9 Sep – B1 v B2 (Super-4), Colombo

10 Sep – A1 v A2 (Super-4), Colombo

12 Sep – A2 v B1 (Super-4), Colombo

14 Sep – A1 v B1 (Super-4), Colombo

15 Sep – A2 v B2, (Super-4), Colombo

17 Sep – Final – 1 v 2, Colombo

18 Sep – Reserve day for the final