ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Will Pakistan get eliminated if they lose to India?

Pakistan lost their first match of the tournament against New Zealand.

The most-awaited clash of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, between arch-rivals India and Pakistan, will be held in Dubai on Sunday.

This is the second game of the group stage for both these teams. They have kicked off their respective campaigns with contrasting results.

In the tournament opener on February 19, Pakistan, the hosts and defending champions, lost by 60 runs to New Zealand in Karachi.

A day later, India, who will be playing all their games in Dubai, defeated Bangladesh by six wickets with Mohammed Shami and Shubman Gill starring with a five-for and a century respectively.

These are two Group A matches that have been played so far, and the IND vs PAK contest will be the third game of this group.

Could this game be decisive in knocking out one team and the other qualifying for the semi-finals? Is this a must-win clash for Pakistan? Will India seal their semi-final spot if they win? Let’s find out.

Will Pakistan get eliminated if they lose to India?

No, Pakistan will not be directly eliminated even if they lose to India. But their chances of reaching the semi-finals will dip significantly, and they will then have to pray for India and Bangladesh both to beat New Zealand.

Pakistan already have a poor net run rate of -1.200. And if they lose to India, it will dent further. Plus, it’s highly unlikely that Bangladesh will beat New Zealand. Therefore, while mathematically, Pakistan will still remain alive in the semi-finals race even if they lose to India, it would be impractical for other results to fall in their favor to them to reach the semis.

New Zealand’s next game is against Bangladesh on Monday. If India and New Zealand win their matches against Pakistan and Bangladesh, they would qualify for the semi-finals, rendering the remaining two Group A matches dead rubbers.

If Pakistan beat India or Bangladesh beat New Zealand, it would throw the group wide open.

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