The Indian cricket team will prepare for the 2025 Champions Trophy by playing a warm-up match in Dubai to acclimatize to the conditions ahead of their tournament opener against Bangladesh on February 20 at the Dubai International Stadium before a blockbuster clash against Pakistan on February 23.

For those unversed, Pakistan is scheduled to host the competition but India will play all their matches in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first semi-final of the tournament is also scheduled to take place in India. If India qualifies for the knockout stages, they will play their last four clash in the Gulf Tiger. While Lahore is the designated host for the final, Dubai will host the summit clash if India is part of it.

According to a report by Dainik Jagran, India are likely to play Bangladesh in their warm-up as all other teams will be in Pakistan before the tournament begins. However, there remains a complication to this possibility as the two teams are set to face each other.

The publication further reported that if a consensus is not reached, the Men in Blue could face UAE. The association nation is not part of the eight-team tournament as they have not qualified but will be available to play a match on home soil.

It is worth pointing out that India has not played ODI cricket in Dubai since the 2018 Asia Cup. While most players have experience of the conditions, it has come in the T20 format with the 2020 and 2021 IPL held in the country. India's last two international assignments in the Emirates proved to be disasters as they failed to qualify for the semi-final of the 2021 T20 World Cup and could not make the final of the 2022 T20 World Cup.

The date of India's warm-up match is yet to be decided. The Men in Blue will host England in a three-match ODI series from February 6 to 12.

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