The eyes of more than a billion cricket fans will be fixed on Dubai this weekend when neighbours and traditional rivals India and Pakstan square-off on Sunday in a Super 12 match of the ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup here at Dubai International Stadium.

India and Pakistan will take centre-stage a day after England, the reigning 50-over world champions, and West Indies, the reigning and two-time T20 World champions, get the Dubai-leg of the World Cup started on Saturday.

Tickets for the India and Pakistan match, which has become a rarity due to a halt in the bilateral cricketing ties between the two sides, have long been sold-out and organisers are expecting a never-seen-before atmosphere at the stadium.

The Dubai International Stadium, which hosted the final of the 2021 Indian Premier League on October 15, will host 12 matches of the ICC Men’s Twenty20 World Cup, including the final on November 14.

Tennis fans, meanwhile, can enjoy the exciting new format of their sport when the Tie Break Tens Dubai Presented by Zone takes place at the Coca Cola Arena on Friday. Fans will see world tennis’ top entertainers like Frenchman Gael Monfils, British No2 Dan Evans, US star Taylor Fritz, and German Dustin ‘Dreddie’ Brown compete for the prize purse of AED 500,000.

The Hamdan Sports Complex, meanwhile, is hosting the American Swimming Coaches Association’s first training course in the Middle East and North Africa region. The 1st ASCA Middle East Swimming Coaches Conference, which is taking place from October 20 to 25, is supported by Dubai Sports Council and organised under the patronage of UAE Swimming Federation.

The six-day conference, which is being described as the strongest and most important course for swimming trainers in the region, will cover all five levels of ASCA’s courses for swimming coaches. Chad Onken, ASCA’s Director of International Clinics and CEO and Co-Owner of Virginia-based Quest Swimming, will be sharing 20 years of experience at the conference and providing participants with his insights.

Hamdan Sports Complex will also host the Hamilton Aquatics Short Course championship on October 22-23. The championships will feature competitions in seven different age categories for male and female : Under-9, 10yrs, 11yrs, 12yrs, 13yrs, 14-15yrs and 16-Above.

The GEC Tech+ Championship 2021, the IT industry’s first corporate multi-sports challenge, will also continue this weekend, for its second week of competition. The Championship, which is seeking to challenge participating corporates to excel as a team, will see more than 3,000 participants compete in 15 different sports activities. The men will compete in football, Cricket, golf, tug of war, team building, athletics, cycling, swimming, badminton, table tennis, tennis, fitness challenge, bowling, volleyball, and basketball, while the women will compete in golf, tug of war, team building, athletic, cycling, swimming, badminton, table tennis, tennis, fitness challenge, bowling, volleyball, and basketball.

More than 1,000 runners are expected to take part in Friday’s Dubai Festival City Half Marathon, which offers participants four distances to choose from: 21.1km, 10km, 5km and 1km. Similar numbers of participants are also expected for the Grit+Tonic Triathlon, which takes place on Friday in Al Mamzar.

The World Corporate Champions Cup 2021, International Federation of Corporate Football’s global annual championship that brings together champion corporate teams from around the world, will take place at Inspiratus Sports District in Dubai Sports City, from October 22-24.

The other sports events taking place in Dubai this weekend are the Stryx Padel Tournament at Swiss International Scientific School in Al Jaddaf; Aqua Yoga, which requires participants to perform asanas in water, at India Club; the AED 25,000 UAE Badminton Tournament 2021, which is being organised jointly by The Racqueters badminton club and Cosmos Badminton Academy at the Towheed Iranian School on Meydan Road, Al Quoz 1; Bad’Oween 2021, the Badminton Halloween Challenge, which is taking place at the Phoenix Sports Academy in Al Quoz, the Emaar Marina Table Tennis Tournament on the Marina Promenade’s squash courts.

Erada Center for Treatment and Rehabilitation will celebrate World Mental Health Day with the Erada Cycling Race on Friday on Deira Island; Seven, the premium holistic facility in Al Quoz, will host a CrossFit Throwdown for ladies on Friday; Dubai Offshore sailing club will host Heat 1 of the 43ft Dubai Traditional Dhow Race on Saturday. The Salsa Boxing Night, meanwhile, will take place at Conrad Hotel on Saturday night.