India-Pakistan Rivalry Rekindles: November 16 ACC Rising Stars Showdown Awaits

New Delhi:

Asian Cricket Council’s (ACC) Rising Stars T20 tournament is set to get underway on November 14 with the match between Pakistan and Oman. The tournament will be played in Doha, Qatar, even as the marquee India vs Pakistan will get underway on November 16. The organizers also announced two groups on Friday (October 31), with Oman andthe  UAE accompanying India and Pakistan in Group B while Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka constitute Group A.

For the unversed, the tournament was earlier known as the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup and will take place in the T20 format. The tournament will also pit the ‘A’ teams from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and the three Associate teams – Hong Kong, UAE and Oman – will be fielding their main teams.

Two matches will be played on each day from November 14 to November 19, before the semifinals take place on November 21 and the final on November 23.

No handshakes in IND vs PAK match again?

All eyes will be on the India vs Pakistan clash after the drama that unfolded during the Asia Cup when the senior teams locked horns three times in 15 days. There were no handshakes or any sort of greetings between the players from both teams and the Asia Cup ended with India, the eventual champions, leaving Dubai without the trophy as they refused to take it from ACC Chief Mohsin Naqvi, who is also an interior minister in Pakistan.

Interestingly, the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup began in 2013 and in six editions since then, India and Afghanistan have won only once. Pakistan and Sri Lanka have won the tournament twice, even as Afghanistan won the previous edition in Oman, beating Sri Lanka in the final by seven wickets.

ACC Rising Stars tournament schedule

November 14 – Oman vs Pakistan, India vs UAE

November 15 – Bangladesh vs Hong Kong, Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka

November 16 – Oman vs UAE, India vs Pakistan

November 17 – Hong Kong vs Sri Lanka, Afghanistan vs Bangladesh

November 18 – Pakistan vs UAE, India vs Oman

November 19 – Afghanistan vs Hong Kong, Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka

November 21 – Semi-finals

November 23 – Final

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