INDIA and Pakistan are arguably world cricket’s most vibrant teams - and they both visit Emerald Headingley next summer.

And the exciting cricket they play - with Pakistan certainly more Jekyll and Hyde - make them a must-watch in all formats.

England host India in a Test starting Wednesday, August 25, having faced Pakistan in Headingley’s very first international T20 on Sunday, July 18.

The England-India battle - the third in a five-match series - pits the world’s third- and fourth-ranked teams together, while England v Pakistan sees the second- and fourth-ranked teams face off in what promises to be a highly competitive affair as the warm-up for next October’s T20 World Cup in India heads towards a climax.

The Pakistan clash is the second in a three-match series.

When talking about the vibrancy of both Asian nations, it is not just the brand of cricket they play but what follows them off the field. Both teams played at Headingley in the 2019 World Cup, and the atmosphere was electric.

Given current world events, we are all desperate to see that again in God’s own county.

For England, a Test against India is the next best thing to the Ashes. The two nations are due to face each other home and away over the next few months.

Joe Root’s side face an away series this winter, though the venue is yet to be confirmed due to coronavirus complications in India. The UAE is the favoured destination.

While watching Virat Kohli would be worth the entrance fee alone at LS6, there is an abundance of talent on show in both sides. Root, Stokes, Anderson and Archer versus Kohli, Sharma, Ashwin and Bumrah - the list goes on.

India have won their last two Tests at Headingley, in 2002 and 1986, when Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Anil Kumble, Roger Binny and Dilip Vengsarkar all shone.

In 2002, 10 years after signing on as Yorkshire’s first overseas, Little Master Tendulkar was one of three first-innings centurions alongside Dravid and Ganguly in a memorable batting masterclass.

Next summer will see both sides continue their quest to return to number one in the world.

Headingley has never hosted a T20 international. It would have happened this summer, only for England clashes with Australia and Pakistan to be cancelled because of coronavirus.

Pakistan have been regular visitors to Headingley. While they will not be favourites to win next year’s T20 World Cup, they cannot be ruled out, as proved when they won the one-day Champions Trophy in England in 2017.

A mercurial side with firepower with bat and ball, they will hope to go one better than the 1-1 series draw against England at Old Trafford in late August/early September.

In captain and opening batsman Babar Azam, they have one of the hottest and most watchable players in world cricket at the moment and rivalling Yorkshire’s Dawid Malan to be classed as the best in the business.

Their dangerous bowling is led by explosive seam trio Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi, the latter who broke through against the White Rose in the Abu Dhabi T20 competition a couple of Octobers ago.

Both visitors promise to give England one heck of a test and provide full houses with incredible entertainment.