India-Pakistan will finally meet on the cricket field on September 19 in the fifth league game of the Asia Cup 2018 after ICC announced the complete schedule on Tuesday.
The Asia Cup, which will be an ODI affair as it precedes the ODI World Cup in 2019, will begin from September 15 in Dubai with Bangladesh locking horns with Sri Lanka.
Defending champions India open their campaigns against a qualifier amongst UAE, Singapore, Oman, Nepal, Malaysia and Hong Kong.
India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are all confirmed participants while the remaining spots are still up for grabs.
Watch the Episode 3 of Cricket Ka VRS
Group A consists of India, Pakistan and the qualifier while Group B comprises Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.
The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super 4 and two teams will then play the final on 28 September in Dubai.
Notably, the Asia Cup was supposed to be held in India but due to the Pakistan Cricket Board’s reservation of touring India following a dispute with BCCI, the Asia Cup was shifted to UAE.
Asia Cup Schedule:
Group Stage
15 September - Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka (Dubai)
16 September - Pakistan vs Qualifier (Dubai)
17 September - Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi)
18 September - India vs Qualifier (Dubai)
19 September - India vs Pakistan (Dubai)
20 September - Bangladesh vs Afghanistan (Abu
Super Four
21 September - Group A Winner vs Group B Runner-up (Dubai)
21 September - Group B Winner vs Group A Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
23 September - Group A Winner vs Group A Runner-up (Dubai)
23 September - Group B Winner vs Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
25 September - Group A Winner vs Group B Winner (Dubai)
26 September - Group A Runner-up vs Group B Runner-up (Abu
Final
28 September - Asia Cup 2018 Final (Dubai).