DUBAI – Team Green will wear black armbands in their opening match againstarch-rivals India to express solidarity towards the flood victims.

The much-awaited encounter between Asian cricket giants comes as deaths inravaging monsoon floods in Pakistan crossed 1,000 in wake of a destructivedeluge that has been described as a humanitarian disaster.

In a statement, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said Babar XI will wear blackarmbands in their Asia Cup 2022 campaign opener against India to expresstheir solidarity and support for flood-affected people across the country.

The two neighboring sides will take on each other today. The 15th Asia Cupwas to be held in Sri Lanka but moved to the UAE owing to the economic andpolitical situation in the Island nation.

On the other hand, casualties in floods surpassed 1,000 as rains continueto pour in parts of the country. The recent floods are comparable to 2010,the worst when over 2,000 people died and nearly a fifth of the country wasunder water.

Balochistan, KP, and Sindh remained the worst affected areas as thetorrential rains bring a wave of destruction in the cash-strapped nation.

Reports suggest that flooding has affected more than 33 million people,destroying harvests, cattle, and millions of homes.

The Pakistani government has declared the devastating floods a nationalemergency and is seeking aid from foreign countries.