NEW DELHI: Fierce rivals India and Pakistan will clash on October 24 at this year’s Twenty20 World Cup, the International Cricket Council said Tuesday as the delayed tournament’s fixtures were announced.
The 16-nation tournament — to be held in the United Arab Emirates and Oman — will begin on October 17 with Oman taking on Papua New Guinea in the opener followed by an evening match between Scotland and Bangladesh in round one of the competition.
The top two teams from both group A and group B in the first round will advance to the so-called Super 12 stage, where the game’s heavyweight nations join the tournament.
Australia will play South Africa and holders West Indies meet England in Group 1 matches on October 23 at the start of the Super 12, which will eventually decide the four semifinalists.
But the spotlight will be on the Group 2 India-Pakistan contest in Dubai, with the two rival nations only meeting in multi-nation events due to tensions over Kashmir, a disputed Himalayan territory.
The two Asian giants last met at the 2019 50-over World Cup in England, where India won — maintaining their unbeaten record against Pakistan in World Cups.
England, the 2009 winners, will take on Australia in another key clash on October 30 in Dubai.
The tournament, which will be hosted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), was originally meant to take place in Australia at the end of 2020.
But it was called off as the coronavirus pandemic swept across the globe.
It was meant to be held in India this year, but was moved to the United Arab Emirates and Oman after the South Asian giant was hit by a massive surge in virus cases in April and May.
The matches will be held across four venues — the Dubai International Stadium, the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, the Sharjah Stadium, and the Oman Cricket Academy Ground.
The final will be in Dubai on November 14 with a reserve day kept aside on November 15.
India-Pakistan set for Oct 24 clash in T20 World Cup in Dubai
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India-Pakistan set for Oct 24 clash in T20 World Cup in Dubai
- The two rival nations only meet in multi-nation events due to tensions over disputed Kashmir territory
- The two Asian giants last met at the 2019 50-over World Cup in England, where India won
Pakistan vaccinates over 44 million children as nationwide anti-polio drive enters last day
- Pakistan kicked off seven-day nationwide anti-polio campaign on Feb. 2 to vaccinate over 45 million children
- Pakistan reported 31 polio cases in 2025, a significant drop from the alarming 74 cases it reported in 2024
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani health volunteers have vaccinated over 44.1 million children against poliovirus in six days so far, the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) said on Sunday as the nationwide campaign entered its last day.
Pakistan kicked off the seven-day anti-polio campaign on Feb. 2 to vaccinate over 45 million children under the age of five against poliovirus.
In Punjab, health workers have vaccinated over 22.9 million children, in Sindh 10.4 million, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 7.1 million, in Balochistan 2.324 million, in Islamabad over 455,000, in Gilgit-Baltistan over 261,000 and in Azad Kashmir over 673,000 in the last six days, the NEOC said.
“In six days, vaccination of more than 44.1 million children has been completed across the country,” the NEOC said in a statement.
It said over 400,000 trained polio workers are going door-to-door to administer polio drops to children.
“Open your doors for polio workers and ensure your children receive polio drops,” the NEOC said. “Parents and communities are urged to fully cooperate with polio workers.”
Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the only two countries worldwide where polio remains endemic. The NEOC said the anti-polio drive was being conducted simultaneously in both countries.
Last year, Pakistan reported 31 polio cases, a significant drop from the alarming 74 cases reported in the country in 2024. The South Asian nation reported six cases in 2023 and only one in 2021, but saw a sharp resurgence in 2024.
Pakistan’s polio program began in 1994, but efforts to eradicate the virus have been repeatedly undermined by vaccine misinformation and resistance from some religious hard-liners who claim that immunization is a foreign plot to sterilize Muslim children or a cover for Western espionage.
Militant groups have also frequently targeted polio vaccination teams and the security personnel assigned to protect them, often resulting in deadly attacks, particularly in KP and Balochistan.
