India to face Pakistan in 13th major final:Recap of all 12 previous finals, PAK won last 2 titles; a 17-year winless streak for IND

Pakistan secured a place in the Asia Cup 2025 final by defeating Bangladesh. India had already qualified for the title match on Wednesday. Both teams will now face each other for the first time in an Asia Cup final in Dubai on September 28. Team India had won both times in the Group and Super-4 rounds. This will be the 13th time India and Pakistan meet in a tournament or tri-series final in international cricket. Of the previous 12 matches, Pakistan won 8 times while India won only 4 times. The last time both teams clashed for a title was in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy final, which Pakistan won. India’s last victory came in the 2007 T20 World Cup. The story of 12 finals between India and Pakistan Final-1: India won the World Championship
On March 10, 1985, the first tournament final between India and Pakistan was played. This World Championship of Cricket final was played at the MCG Stadium in Melbourne. Batting first, Pakistan could only score 176 runs. In response, India’s Krishnamachari Srikkanth and Ravi Shastri scored fifties to help the team win by 8 wickets in 47.1 overs. Seven teams participated in the tournament. India had also defeated Pakistan by 6 wickets in the group stage. India captured the title while remaining undefeated. Final-2: Miandad’s winning six on the last ball
The Austral-Asia Cup final was played between India and Pakistan in Sharjah on April 18, 1986. India batted first and scored 245 runs for 7 wickets. Srikant, Gavaskar and Vengsarkar scored fifties. Pakistan made 242 runs for 9 wickets till 49.5 overs. They needed 4 runs on the last ball. Miandad hit a six on Chetan Sharma’s ball and won the final for Pakistan. He scored 116 runs, for which he also received the Player of the Match award. Final-3: Aaqib Javed takes 7 wickets in Wills Trophy
On October 25, 1991, both teams clashed in the Wills Trophy final. Pakistan batted first and scored 262 runs for 6 wickets. Zahid Fazal scored 98 runs, and Saleem Malik scored 87 runs. In response, Team India was bowled out for 190 runs. Pakistan’s fast bowler Aaqib Javed took 7 wickets for just 37 runs. Wills Trophy was a tri-series. West Indies also participated in it. In the group stage, India and Pakistan played 2 matches. India won the first match by 60 runs, while Pakistan registered a 4-run victory in the second match. Final-4: Aamer Sohail shines in Austral-Asia Cup
On April 22, 1994, India and Pakistan played the Austral-Asia Cup final in Sharjah. Pakistan scored 250 runs on the back of fifties from Aamer Sohail and Basit Ali. In response, Team India was bowled out for 211 runs. Sohail also took 2 wickets with the ball. India had defeated Pakistan by 6 wickets in the group stage. In the semifinals, India defeated Australia, and Pakistan beat New Zealand. Amir Sohail was also chosen as the Player of the Tournament. Final-5: 3 Finals of Tri-series, India won 2-1
In January 1998, the Silver Jubilee Independence Cup Tri-series was held between India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. In the group stage, India defeated Bangladesh by 4 wickets and Pakistan by 18 runs. Pakistan secured their place in the final by defeating Bangladesh by 9 wickets. Three finals were played between the teams in the tournament. India won the trophy by winning the first final by 8 wickets and the third final by 3 wickets. Pakistan defeated India by 6 wickets in the second final. Sachin Tendulkar was the Player of the Series. He scored 258 runs and also took 5 wickets. Final-6: Pepsi Cup – Azhar Mahmood takes 5 wickets
The Pepsi Cup final was played between the two teams in Bengaluru on April 4, 1999. Pakistan batted first and scored 291 runs. In response, Team India was bowled out for 168 runs. Pakistan’s fast bowler Azhar Mahmood took 5 wickets, giving away just 38 runs. The Pepsi Cup was also a tri-series, in which Sri Lanka also participated. Final-7: Pakistan wins Coca-Cola Cup
The two teams met in the Coca-Cola Cup final on April 16, 1999. Batting first, Team India was bowled out for just 125 runs. Pakistan achieved the target in 28 overs, losing only 2 wickets. Wasim Akram from the team took 3 wickets giving away just 11 runs. The Coca-Cola Cup was also a tri-series. England also participated in it. In the group stage, both India and Pakistan defeated each other once. Team India secured a place in the final by defeating England in both matches, but the team couldn’t win the title. Final-8: India won the first T20 World Cup
On September 24, 2007, the final of the first-ever T20 World Cup was played between the two teams in Johannesburg. India batted first. Gautam Gambhir scored 75 runs and the team posted 157 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. In response, Pakistan was bowled out for 152 runs with 3 balls remaining. 12 teams participated in the tournament. The group stage match between India and Pakistan ended in a tie, where Team India won through a bowl-out. In the semifinals, India defeated Australia and Pakistan defeated New Zealand to secure their places in the title match. Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi was chosen as the Player of the Tournament. Final-9: Younis Khan’s century in Kitply Cup
On June 14, 2008, both teams clashed in the Kitply Cup final in Mirpur. Pakistan, batting first, scored 315 runs, losing just 3 wickets. Younis Khan scored 108, and Salman Butt scored 129 runs. In response, India showed fight but could only manage 290 runs. MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh scored fifties. Kitply Cup was a tri-series. Bangladesh also participated in it. Final-10: Pakistan settled the score in ICC Champions Trophy
On June 18, 2017, the ICC Champions Trophy final was played between India and Pakistan at The Oval Stadium in London. In the group stage, India had defeated Pakistan by 124 runs. In the semifinals, India defeated Bangladesh and Pakistan defeated England to secure a place in the final. In London, India won the toss and chose to bowl. Pakistan’s Fakhar Zaman scored a century, and the team scored 338 runs for 4 wickets. In response, Team India lost the wickets of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Shikhar Dhawan in the powerplay itself. Hardik Pandya scored 76 runs, but the team was bowled out for just 158 runs. Fakhar was the Player of the Match. Hassan Ali, who took 13 wickets, was chosen as the Player of the Tournament. First India-Pakistan Asia Cup final The 17th edition of the Asia Cup is being played in the UAE. Both India and Pakistan boycotted the tournament once each in its 16 previous editions. Out of 15 tournaments, India won 8 times and was runner-up 3 times. This means India failed to reach the final only 4 times. Pakistan played the title match in all of these instances. Pakistan has won the title only 2 times in 15 editions. The team won the championship by defeating Sri Lanka in 2000 and Bangladesh in 2012 in the finals. The team was also runner-up in 2022, 2014 and 1986, but never managed to face India in a title clash. In the 48-year-old tournament, 8 teams participated this time, and for the first time, both arch-rival teams have made it to the title match together.