ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan cricket captain Sarfaraz Ahmed advised the green shirts to head into their highly anticipated Champions Trophy clash against India by keeping their nerves in check and avoiding the added pressure, the International Cricket Council (ICC) reported on Thursday. 

India and Pakistan will take the field against each other in Dubai on Feb. 23 for their Champions Trophy Group A clash. One of the fiercest rivalries in sport, cricket matches between the two countries draw thousands to stadiums across the world, and millions to TV sets. 

Pakistan will begin their title defense against New Zealand on Feb. 19 in Karachi. Under Ahmed’s leadership in 2017, Pakistan beat India to lift the Champions Trophy that year in a one-sided clash. 

“Whenever we meet, it is a special occasion and there is so much hype and pressure around it,” Ahmed wrote in a column for the ICC.

“But as players, you need to stay calm, try and block that noise out, and just play with the same intensity as you would play Australia or any other team.”

Ahmed said Pakistan have a strong team and a really good chance of successfully defending the trophy. 

“Some of the boys from 2017 are still there and we’re talking about some of the best – especially Babar Azam,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s most prolific ODI batter. 

Ahmed noted that Azam was more mature and formidable than he was in 2017. 

“His batting will be so important for Pakistan and so will Fakhar Zaman’s,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s left-handed aggressive opening batter. 

He said left-armer Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf are both “brilliant bowlers.”

“The captain, Mohammad Rizwan, is also a wicketkeeper-batter, which worked pretty well for me back in 2017!” he said. 

The green shirts will face New Zealand in the final of an ongoing tri-nation series involving South Africa on Friday in Karachi. 

The tri-nation series is a warm-up before the Champions Trophy kicks off next week.