Arch-rivals India and Pakistan will renew their rivalry in the shortest form of cricket, as the two nations are set to clash in match 16 of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 at Dubai International Cricket Stadium today.
Both India and Pakistan are former champions of the T20 World Cup. India won the inaugural edition of the World Cup in 2007 while Pakistan claimed their first World T20 title two years later.
Heading into the T20 World Cup, India are ranked second in the ICC men’s T20I rankings. Pakistan are ranked third.
India’s strengths:
Every member of the Indian squad was involved in IPL 2021. So, it is safe to assume, that the whole squad has already been playing in the T20 mode for more than a month now.
India’s weaknesses:
The form of batters Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav will cause grave concern for Virat Kohli. Kishan scored 241 runs from 10 outings averaging just 26.77 in IPL 2021. Kishan’s Mumbai Indian teammate Suryakumar managed 317 runs from 12 innings at an average of 22.64. The two were expected to form the core of the middle order. Considering their form it would be risky to play both of them together
Pakistan’s strengths:
Pakistan players are used to playing in the UAE. No team has played more T20I cricket in the UAE than Pakistan. So, Pakistan cricketers will be accustomed to the pitches and conditions of the UAE. The team also boasts of a well-rounded pace attack. Pakistan have form by their side. The team has won four of the last five T20I bilateral series
Pakistan’s weaknesses:
The Pakistan team doesn’t have an experienced all-rounder who could bowl medium pace. The only medium pace bowler who can bat like an all-rounder is Mohammad Wasim. But 20-year-old Wasim doesn’t have much experience and is unlikely to get regular starts in the team.
Head-to-head
Matches played: 8
India wins: 7
Pakistan wins: 1
Form Guide:
India: L-L-W-W-W
Pakistan: NR-NR-W-NR-NR
Pitch and conditions
The pitches at Dubai International cricket stadium is conducive for batting. Chasing is easier at this venue. If the second-half IPL 2021 is taken into account, then the average first innings total of the 13 IPL games played at this venue was 156.23.
The evening will be clear and warm. The temperature is expected to be around 30°C. The humidity level will be around 62%.
Team News
Pakistan announced its Playing 12 for the match. The team announced is as follows: Babar Azam (c), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Imad Wasim, Mohammed Hafeez, Shadab Khan, Shoaib Malik, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali and Shaheen Shah Afridi. It remains to be seen which is the one player that captain Babar Azam leaves out for the match.
India have not announced the team, but there are no injury concerns in the team.
Deccan Herald’s Dream XI
KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammed Hafeez, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Varun Chakravarthy
Impact player for India
Varun Chakravarthy: Varun Chakravarthy comes into the World Cup on the back of a successful IPL season which saw him pick 18 wickets for Kolkata Knight Riders from 17 matches. Moreover, none of the Pakistan batters have played Chakravarthy before. So Chakravarthy’s ‘mystery’ balls could really trouble the Pakistani batters.
Impact player for Pakistan
Babar Azam: Babar Azam is the best batter in Pakistan’s line-up. Azam ranks second in the ICC Men’s T20I rankings. Azam’s T20I record is great. The right-hand batter has played 61 T20I matches for Pakistan and scored 2204 runs averaging 46.89. No batter has scored 2,000 T20I runs quicker that Azam. The Pakistan captain reached the feat in just 52 innings. If Pakistan are to end India’s dominance, the Azam has to bring his A+ game on the table.