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ISLAMABAD: The Asia Cup 2025 final between Pakistan and India has become the biggest television event in Pakistan&rsquo;s history, with PTV Sports recording unprecedented viewership ratings.&nbsp;Official data released Wednesday showed that 80&ndash;100 million people tuned in to the live telecast, with ratings peaking at 42%, the highest ever for any program in the country. The record shattered the previous benchmark of 32% set by ARY Digital&rsquo;s hit drama Meray Paas Tum Ho.&nbsp;&ldquo;This performance confirms the Asia Cup final was not only a sporting triumph but also the biggest television event in Pakistan&rsquo;s broadcast history,&rdquo; said Pakistan Television Corporation Manager Corporate Research Arshad Hussain. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/6d2bbf0b-5051-4708-9759-a38dffba6c21-asia cup whatzapp image.jpg" alt="asia cup whatzapp image.jpg" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">Source-PTV</figcaption></figure> The match carried special significance as it marked the first-ever Asia Cup final between Pakistan and India, intensifying interest on both sides of the border. Cricket has long dominated TV viewership in Pakistan, but never before had a sports event surpassed the nation&rsquo;s top-rated drama serials.&nbsp;The milestone underlines cricket&rsquo;s unrivaled grip on Pakistani audiences and cements PTV Sports&rsquo; place as the home of historic live broadcasts.

Film & TV

The state broadcaster made history as the Asia Cup 2025 final between Pakistan and India drew 80–100 million viewers, hitting a record 42% peak rating and surpassing all previous television viewership benchmarks in Pakistan.

PTV Sports sets historic record with Asia Cup final broadcast

DUBAI: Tilak Varma hit an unbeaten 69 as India defeated Pakistan by five wickets for a record-extending ninth Asia Cup title on Sunday. Chasing 147 for victory, India depended on Varma&#39;s 53-ball knock and a key 60-run stand with fellow left-hander Shivam Dube to reach their target with two balls to spare in Dubai. Dube got out for 33 at the end of the 19th over and, with India needing 10 off the last six deliveries, Varma struck a six and Rinku Singh hit the winning boundary as the pair ran off to celebrate with their team. India&rsquo;s third victory&nbsp;Kuldeep Yadav set up India&#39;s third victory over their rivals in the regional tournament played under the T20 format as his figures of 4-30 helped bowl out Pakistan for 146. India were in trouble at 3-20 and 4-77, but Varma kept calm to anchor the chase as he hit three fours and four sixes in his knock. Wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson&#39;s 24 and then a supporting knock by Dube took India home at a nearly packed stadium.&nbsp; Pakistan started strongly as openers Sahibzada Farhan, who made 57, and Fakhar Zaman, who made 46, put on 84 runs but the team slipped from 113-1 to be bowled out in 19.1 overs. Farhan&rsquo;s second fifty&nbsp;Farhan fell after his second fifty in this edition of the Asia Cup after the batter attempted a second successive six off spinner Varun Chakravarthy. Zaman took charge and along with Saim Ayub kept up the attack with regular boundaries until Kuldeep struck in the 13th over. Ayub fell to Kuldeep&#39;s left-arm wrist spin as Pakistan lost six wickets for 21 runs. Zaman fell short of his fifty and Kuldeep struck with three wickets in the 17th over, including skipper Salman Agha for eight. The Asia Cup was widely seen as a dress rehearsal for the T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka in February-March of next year.

Cricket

Tilak Varma’s unbeaten 69 led India to a five-wicket win over Pakistan in the Asia Cup final, securing their ninth title. Kuldeep Yadav’s 4-30 bowling helped restrict Pakistan to 146, with key partnerships guiding India home.

Varma guides India to Asia Cup final win over Pakistan

DUBAI: Pakistan will face India in the Asia Cup final for the first time after their bowlers made amends for batting to upstage Bangladesh in an 11-run victory on Thursday.&nbsp;Bangladesh fast bowler Taskin Ahmed grabbed 3-28 as Pakistan batters were sloppy on a sticky Dubai stadium pitch in their last Super Four match, managing a modest 135-8 in 20 overs.&nbsp;But Pakistan staged a fightback through pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi (3-17) and Haris Rauf (3-33) to keep Bangladesh down to 124-9 in 20 overs and book their place in Sunday&#39;s showpiece against India.&nbsp;Shamim Hossain top-scored for Bangladesh with a 25-ball 30 and Saif Hassan scored 18.&nbsp;Pakistan&#39;s second win in the Super Four stage set them up for a third encounter against archrivals India.&nbsp;They lost both previous meetings with their neighbours so far in the tournament, with the two matches marred by a no-handshake controversy.&nbsp;India players refused to shake hands with Pakistan after the first game and the two sides also did not shake hands after the second.&nbsp;Earlier, Taskin was well supported by spinners Rishad Hossain (2-18) and Mahedi Hasan (2-28) to keep Pakistan in check after they were sent in to bat.&nbsp;Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals as Taskin removed opener Sahibzada Farhan off the fourth ball of the match for four while Hasan had Saim Ayub for his fourth duck of the tournament.&nbsp;Fakhar Zaman scored 13 and captain Salman Agha 19 as Pakistan tottered at 49-5.&nbsp;It was a seventh-wicket stand of 38 between Mohammad Haris (31) and Mohammad Nawaz (25) that helped Pakistan add 52 in the last five overs.&nbsp;Haris hit two boundaries and a six while Nawaz&#39;s 15-ball knock had two sixes and a boundary.&nbsp;Shaheen, dropped twice by Bangladesh fielders, hit two sixes in his rapid 13-ball 19.

Pakistan defended 135 with Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf sharing six wickets, sealing an 11-run win over Bangladesh in Dubai to book an Asia Cup final clash against India.

Pakistan down Bangladesh to set up Asia Cup final with India

ISLAMABAD: India and Pakistan will face off in the 14th match of the Men&rsquo;s T20 Asia Cup 2025 Super Four stage on Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.&nbsp;&nbsp;The match will start at 7:30 p.m. local time.&nbsp;Recent resultsIndia is leading Group A after winning all three group matches, earning six points with a net run rate of 3.547, including defeating the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, and Pakistan.&nbsp; Meanwhile, Pakistan holds second place with four points, winning two of three games; their only loss was to India. Pakistan won against the UAE and Oman.&nbsp;Possible squadIndia&rsquo;s squad is captained by Suryakumar Yadav, with vice-captain Shubman Gill. Batters include Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, and Rinku Singh while bowlers include Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, and Kuldeep Yadav.&nbsp; Axar Patel is part of the squad but may miss the game due to a recent head injury. The Pakistani side will be captained by Salman Agha, supported by batters Fakhar Zaman and Sahibzada Farhan. The bowling line-up features Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed, and Hasan Nawaz.&nbsp;VenueUmpires Asif Yaqoob and Rohan Pandit will officiate, with Virender Sharma as TV umpire. Andy Pycroft will serve as match referee.&nbsp;The game will be played under floodlights in a 20-over format, with an interval between innings.&nbsp;Political context and rivalry Historically, India-Pakistan cricket matches carry political and emotional significance beyond the sport. The rivalry has been marked by tension in recent years, with incidents such as India&rsquo;s players not shaking hands with Pakistan&rsquo;s team after their group match this tournament.&nbsp;&nbsp;The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spoke about breaches in conduct and governance by the Indian side. However, the International Cricket Council (ICC) found no protocol violations in the disputed incidents.&nbsp;Group A points table<table id="isPasted"><thead><tr><td style="width: 30.5383%;">Team</td><td style="width: 22.2561%;">Matches Played</td><td style="width: 8.6877%;">Wins</td><td style="width: 10.428%;">Losses</td><td style="width: 9.6581%;">Points</td><td style="width: 18.3812%;">Net Run Rate</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td style="width: 30.5383%;">India</td><td style="width: 22.2561%;">3</td><td style="width: 8.6877%;">3</td><td style="width: 10.428%;">0</td><td style="width: 9.6581%;">6</td><td style="width: 18.3812%;">3.547</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 30.5383%;">Pakistan</td><td style="width: 22.2561%;">3</td><td style="width: 8.6877%;">2</td><td style="width: 10.428%;">1</td><td style="width: 9.6581%;">4</td><td style="width: 18.3812%;">1.790</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 30.5383%;">United Arab Emirates</td><td style="width: 22.2561%;">3</td><td style="width: 8.6877%;">1</td><td style="width: 10.428%;">2</td><td style="width: 9.6581%;">2</td><td style="width: 18.3812%;">-1.984</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 30.5383%;">Oman</td><td style="width: 22.2561%;">3</td><td style="width: 8.6877%;">0</td><td style="width: 10.428%;">3</td><td style="width: 9.6581%;">0</td><td style="width: 18.3812%;">-2.600</td></tr></tbody></table>&nbsp;The Asia Cup final is scheduled for September 28.

The Asia Cup final is scheduled for September 28.

Articles tagged with "India vs Pakistan"

PTV Sports sets historic record with Asia Cup final broadcast

Varma guides India to Asia Cup final win over Pakistan

Pakistan down Bangladesh to set up Asia Cup final with India

India-Pakistan Asia Cup showdown: Politics fuels drama