Abu Dhabi : India is about to kick off their Asia Cup title defence towards arch-rivals Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday and revenge can be on the thoughts of gamers after struggling a humiliating defeat the final time these Asian giants collided on cricket pitch.
Up to now, each side have locked horns on 9 events in T20I matches. India has an edge general, with wins in seven matches out of those. Pakistan has received solely two. However the final time these two met was throughout the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, during which India suffered a humiliating ten-wicket defeat.
Left-arm pacer Shaheen Afridi destroyed the Indian high order with two fast strikes. Contributions from then-skipper Virat Kohli (57) and Rishabh Pant (39) took India to 151/7 of their 20 overs, however knocks from Mohammed Rizwan (79*) and Pakistani skipper Babar Azam (68*) meant that Males in Blue succumbed to a surprising defeat.
India can be wanting ahead to placing up a giant combat this time round. They’ve been in unbelievable kind as of late, having defeated England and West Indies of their respective territories in ODI and T20I sequence. They’re additionally the primary facet in T20Is.
For this, it is going to be extraordinarily very important for skipper Rohit Sharma, star batters Virat Kohli and KL Rahul to be at peak of their powers and showcase the brutality with their willow that has earned them thousands and thousands of followers. All eyes can be on Rohit and Virat to regain their finest kind and play a match-winning knock.
India’s center order has been seeing an increase of latest stars. Suryakumar Yadav and Deepak Hooda are two thrilling strikers who can assault from ball one. These two hitters have their likelihood to etch their names in historical past on this match towards their arch-rivals. Skilled middle-order batters/all-rounders like Hardik Pandya and Rishabh Pant may also be wanting ahead to carrying on the fantastic kind they’re in.
Indian bowling assault has quite a lot of depth. In absence of lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah, all eyes can be on Bhuvneshwar Kumar to steer the assault. He has been very good for India in T20Is this 12 months, particularly throughout powerplays, a part during which India will look as much as him for early strikes. Kids Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan could have their likelihood to make an influence as effectively.
Within the spin division, veterans Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja can be main the assault. They together with Yuzvnedra Chahal and teen Ravi Bishnoi should complement the tempo assault effectively and bamboozle Pakistanis with their deliveries.
Coming to Pakistan, they’re the third-ranked facet in ICC T20I rankings and are to not be taken flippantly. Their high order has two in-form batters in Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan. These two are Pakistan’s finest so far as T20Is are involved however the facet has to ensure that they don’t seem to be dependable simply on them and collapse if these two underwhelm with the bat.
Different batters/all-rounders like Fakhar Zaman, Asif Ali, Haider Ali and many others should contribute with the bat with the identical power and effectivity as their high batters if they’re to pose a giant problem to the Males in Blue.
In absence of left-arm pacer Shaheen Afridi, Pakistani tempo assault has taken a giant dent. One more pacer Mohammed Wasim was additionally dominated out as a result of harm on Friday.
Accidents have put stress on younger pacers like Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf. Veteran Hasan Ali can also be again within the combine. Mohammed Hasnain has additionally been dropped at the squad as a alternative for Shaheen. Pakistan, reputed over time of manufacturing a few of the most interesting bowlers ever, has its likelihood to provide a proof of its tempo greatness right here in absence of its chief.
Spinners Usman Qadir may also must ship one thing actually sensible to lure the world-class Indian batting lineup.
Regardless of what the result’s, followers are assured a high-voltage cricket conflict between these two Asian giants and they’re going to absolutely be glued to their TV units. Indian and Pakistan flags and jersey colors all around the stadium will embellish the stands and the sounds of nationwide anthems, Bollywood songs, followers chanting will ring by means of Dubai and can create an setting becoming for a conflict as massive as this one.
India: Rohit Sharma (captain), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Hasan Ali, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, Mohammad Hasnain.