Team India will land with the intention of defeating Pakistan and giving the gift of Diwali to the country.
After breaking the record of never losing against Pakistan in the ICC World Cup last time, the Indian cricket team will look to give a Diwali gift to the country by defeating arch-rivals in their first Super 12 stage match of the T20 World Cup on Sunday. There is a possibility of rain falling on this match, but according to the weather experts here, the possibility of cancellation of the entire match is less.
Thousands of cricket lovers from both the countries have gathered here to watch this match. All tickets for the stadium are sold out. It is a common match for the teams of Rohit Sharma and Babar Azam but for millions of cricket lovers from both the countries, it is the match. Under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian team has never lost to Pakistan in ICC tournaments and Dhoni has been saying time and again that there is no word like revenge on the cricket field. But a lot has changed in the past year.
On the basis of the dangerous bowling of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Pakistan defeated India for the first time in a World Cup match. Afridi took three wickets for 31 runs and not only led Pakistan to victory but also neutralized the great batsmen of modern cricket. Rohit, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul will not forget last year’s defeat in Dubai. BCCI’s statement on him not going to Pakistan to play the Asia Cup and Pakistan Cricket Board’s threat to withdraw from the ODI World Cup to be held in India next year has added fuel to the fire. The cause of concern for the Indian team is the team composition.
Also read: Challenge to win against Pakistan, team change is possible in every match by looking at statistics: Rohit
India has not been able to get a stable team combination for some time now. India may have to drop specialist wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant to field an additional bowler. Apart from Afridi, the batting order will also have to face Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf. How India’s top three batsmen play Afridi in the powerplay will decide the condition and direction of the match. In such a situation, a lot will depend on Suryakumar Yadav, India’s number one batsman in the T20 format, who is known for showing his natural game in every situation. If it rains, Rohit will like to bowl after winning the toss. India has three specialist spinners but the decision to field them will be taken depending on the season. If it rains, Harshal Patel can get a chance, who is also an expert in batting.
Pakistan have three brilliant batsmen Shan Masood, Mohammad Nawaz and Khushdil Shah, so the possibility of Ravichandran Ashwin playing cannot be ruled out. In this match of equalization, Pakistan’s edge seems a bit heavy, then the only reason for that is Shaheen Shah Afridi. India and Pakistan are facing each other after 37 years at the MCG. The last time both teams played was at the 1985 Benson & Hedges World Championship. It was Sunil Gavaskar’s last match as India captain and Ravi Shastri won the Audi car with his brilliant performance.
Teams: India: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, Rishabh Pant, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Harshal Patel, Deepak Hooda. Pakistan: Babar Azam (Captain), Mohammad Rizwan, Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, Mohammad Nawaz, Khushdil Shah, Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Hasnain . Match Time: 1 pm. From 30.
