AUSTRALIA: The most anticipated match day has arrived; what could be better than an India (Ind) vs. Pakistan (Pak) T20 world cup match on Sunday?
The entire world is waiting to watch the match, not just the two teams’ supporters. After all, a World Cup match between India and Pakistan cannot end without some drama.
Due to their rarity and exclusivity in international competitions, Ind-Paki encounters frequently bring out the worst in both sets of fans.
Just over a month ago, in two Asia Cup matches, the two teams reminded everyone of the electricity their clashes could generate.
Both matches were tight tactical contests that came down to the final ball, with Pakistan winning the second with one ball left and India winning the first with two balls left.
It became apparent at that point that these were two outstanding T20 teams with different strengths that roughly fit national preconceptions that weren’t always true in the past.
India have a strong batting unit at the moment, but they have some flaws in their bowling department, especially due to the absence of a fast bowler, Jasprit Bumrah.
Players to watch out for
Surya Kumar Yadav: He is undoubtedly the best T20 batter in the world right now. But he didn’t get a chance to demonstrate his abilities in a World Cup game because he only batted three times during the previous edition of the competition, twice in the dying stages of modest chases.
He can hit boundaries all over the ground and is at ease playing against pace and spin. He is equally adept at using a straight bat as he is at sweeping and slicing.
Babar Azam: This man is undoubtedly Pakistan’s best batsman and he will be really hungry to score runs as it is a world cup match against India. In the warm-up match against the England team, we saw how much Pakistan is dependent on their top 2 batsmen, Rizwan and Babar, to score the bulk of runs, and hence it became almost mandatory for both Babar and Rizwan to take some stands.
Squad status
India: Rohit Sharma (capt), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Axar Patel, Harshal Patel/Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal/R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (capt), Shan Masood, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf
Also Read: England vs Australia In-depth Match Preview
