Doha

Indian and Pakistani expatriates in Dubai and Qatar have braced themselves for the vaunted Asia Cup cricket match between the two rivals scheduled for Sunday.

The two sides will meet at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in their opening match in the Asia Cup T20I championship which starts on Saturday.

The Indian team will be looking to get even for their T20 World Cup defeat at the same venue in 2021.

Pumped up fans in Gulf countries are keenly looking forward to the encounter as match tickets have been lapped up much in advance with people from UAE's neighbouring countries like Qatar and Bahrain planning to travel to watch the spectacle.

Pakistani fans have been somewhat disappointed due to the absence of left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi from the squad since a knee injury sustained in July.

Amna Pervaiz Rao, a diehard fan is despondent that Afridi is not part of the team. "The outcome of the match is unpredictable. However, I would have really liked it if our star pacer Afridi were playing," said Doha-based Rao, who works as an editor in the Communications Department of Qatar University.

Another Pakistani fast bowler Mohammad Wasim Jr. was ruled out of the Asia Cup due to a left side strain.

“Since an encounter between India and Pakistan is always something a little bit more than cricket, we will get to see a top-notch faceoff,” added an Indian cricket buff.

Tickets for the match were sold out within minutes of being put out on sale, leaving many fans disappointed.

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 "As Dubai residents, we always look forward to such an event. Even though we are not going to the stadium, we will watch it on a giant projector screen at home with family and friends," said Debasish Barua, who is head of commercial at GTS FZCO in Dubai.