Hesson targets India showdown after Pakistan’s difficult recent record

Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson says his team will aim to put India under pressure if the rivals meet at the Asian Games in Japan, while conceding that Pakistan still have ground to cover against the leading white-ball side.

India have won consecutive men’s T20 World Cups and will defend their Asian Games title. Since Hesson took charge in May last year, Pakistan have lost to India three times in the 2025 Asia Cup and once at this year’s Twenty20 World Cup.

“India are the benchmark in terms of white ball cricket at the moment and our challenge is to catch up to that,” Hesson said in Karachi before Pakistan’s departure for Japan.

The men’s cricket competition begins on Thursday. India and Pakistan have never faced each other at the Asian Games, but a semifinal meeting could take place in Nagoya on October 1.

Pakistan’s route to the knockout stage

Pakistan will open their campaign in the quarterfinal on September 28 against the winner of Pool B, which features Hong Kong, Oman and Malaysia. Hesson stressed that his side must first negotiate the early rounds before considering a possible semifinal against India.

“We are certainly preparing as best we can and if we get an opportunity to play (India) we will certainly put them under pressure like we did in the final of the Asia Cup,” he said, referring to last year’s final in Dubai.

He added: “There is a lot of cricket to be played between now and being able to play in the semi-final for both sides (Pakistan and India), so we are not getting too far ahead of ourselves.”

Pakistan are still seeking their first Asian Games cricket medal. They lost the bronze-medal match in 2010 and 2023 and did not participate in the 2014 edition.