INTRODUCTION:
The stage is set for possibly the biggest game of this World Cup (unless both teams play each other in the knockouts) at the world’s biggest stadium. This is such a big game as the BCCI have decided to conduct a pre-match ceremony which was not there for the tournament opener. When it comes to IND-PAK games at the World Cups, one might think that the team which is under pressure is Pakistan as they are yet to win a game, but it is the Indian team will be under huge pressure to maintain the perfect record and have the pride for 4 more years. Both India and Pakistan are coming off from a confidence/NRR boosting win against fellow Asian teams and sitting comfortably in the top of the points table (3rd & 4th respectively). A win here would strengthen their Semi-Final hopes as they would need just 3 wins out their remaining 6 games.
INDIA:
India had a near perfect game against Afghanistan as all the batters who failed in their previous game scored runs and looked good. Losing the toss, they bowled well in the initial stages and had Afghanistan 3 down for not too many. But despite a big partnership in the middle, they again pulled things back in the death. And Afghanistan’s medium pacers were no match to Rohit’s onslaught as he was breaking records for fun. India not only topped Afghanistan on the field, but their off-field tactics also worked. After a decent performance in the previous game, Ashwin was replaced by Shardul Thakur, and he returned with figures of 6-0-31-1. Shardul going under 6 an over is rare considering he bowled in the powerplay. Siraj was the only bowler who failed to make an impact in both the games, he was expensive and conceded runs in the process of trying get more swing and making the batter play every ball. Even though India have won 2 out 2, they will be keen on winning this game and maintain their unbeaten streak against their arch-rivals. Shubman Gill has started practicing after recovering from fever which he had for the past week and stated 99% available by Rohit. The only change we might expect is Gill coming in place of Kishan (only if Gill is declared fit).
PAKISTAN:
Pakistan are coming into this game with the huge confidence of their previous chase of 344 runs against Sri Lanka. They did this without the contributions of Babar Azam & Imam ul Haq. Muhammed Rizwan and World Cup debutant Abdullah Shafique was their stars in the chase and Iftikhar applied the finishing touches. The decision to leave out Fakhar Zaman and select Abdullah has paid them huge dividends. By scoring a match winning ton, he might have shut the door for Fakhar for the rest of the tournament. The disappointing thing though was their bowling against Sri Lanka. Both Shaheen & Haris looked in no rhythm until the last 5 overs. Shaheen Afridi hasn’t been as lethal as they would’ve liked so far in this tournament. With 2 wickets in as many games and an economy of more than 6, Shaheen is slightly struggling for form. The conditions at Ahmedabad might help him as we have seen Shami and Hardik swinging the ball wildly in the IPL. On contrary to this, Shadab khan is still not at his best and will get only less help from the track. With Shaheen not picking up wickets in the Powerplay and Shadab not containing, it’s their bowling now which looks a bit scratchy. They have conceded 340 totals on 4 of their last 6 games (2 warm-ups). Overall, this Pakistan team is far stronger and more competitive than their last 2 meetings against India.
PROBABLE PLAYING XI:
INDIA: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill/Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
PAKISTAN: Abdullah Shafique, Imam Ul Haq, Babar Azam (C), Muhammed Rizwan (WK), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Muhammed Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf.
INTERESTING MATCH-UPS:
- Even though Shaheen Afridi is struggling a bit, the battle between him and the Indian top-order will be an exciting contest.
- Kuldeep Yadav vs Babar Azam & Fakhar Zaman will be another tight contest.
INTERESTING FACTS & STATS:
- India have defeated Pakistan 7 times in World Cups in 4 different Countries and 4 different continents. (2 in Australia 1992 & 2015, 2 in India, Asia 1996 & 2011, 2 in England, Europe 1999 & 2019 and 1 in South Africa 2003)
- Virat Kohli needs 93 runs to reach 26,000 International runs and become the fastest.
- Rohit Sharma needs 17 runs to enter top 20 all-time leading run scorers list in International Cricket.
- Hasan Ali needs 3 wickets to reach 100 wickets on ODIs.
- Muhammed Rizwan needs 108 runs to reach 2000 ODI runs.
VENUE DETAILS:
DATE: 14th October 2023
TIME: 2.00 PM (IST)
VENUE: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
PREDICTIONS:
WEATHER: The temperature will vary from 28 to 34 degrees during the day and 27 to 28 degrees during night. Minimal chances of rain expected.
WINNING CHANCES: INDIA 70% PAKISTAN 30%.
DREAM 11 FANTASY TEAM:
