Preview: It’s time for the marquee contest of the 2023 Asia Cup —India vs Pakistan in Pallekele. This group match will act as a dress rehearsal of what’s to come — The two teams face off against each other again in the ODI World Cup on 14 October in Ahmedabad.
But between now and then, the arch-rivals could meet thrice in the Asia Cup. Should both India and Pakistan qualify for the Super Fours, they will lock horns in Colombo on 10 September, and could meet once again if the two teams make the Asia Cup final on 17 September.
India will be without the services of KL Rahul, who is out of the first two games with a niggle. However, India are ready to welcome back Shreyas Iyer, who has missed almost six months of competitive cricket due to a back injury he suffered in March.
Also returning to the ODI side is Jasprit Bumrah, who had missed almost a year’s action of cricket due to a recurring back injury.
Bumrah recently made his India comeback in the three-match T20I series against Ireland in Dublin, captaining the side to a 2-0 series win. Bumrah picked four wickets in that series, and would be raring to go once again, in the Asia Cup.
With Rahul not fit yet, that gives Ishan Kishan another chance to shine. Kishan scored three successive half-centuries in the ODIs against West Indies, and would be looking to continue that run of form and maybe even amass a century.
Kishan and Shreyas Iyer could very well fit in that middle-order, with skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill most likely to open.
Shaheen Shah Afridi remains Pakistan’s X-factor especially thanks to his ability to strike with the new ball.
Another pacer in form is Haris Rauf, who took two wickets against Nepal. Shadab Khan, however stood out against Nepal with four wickets, but will face a different challenge against India altogether.
Babar Azam, the Pakistan skipper, remains the team’s most valuable batter and with Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed’s presence, that adds stability to the middle-order batting.
What could spoil all the fun on Saturday is the weather. Rain is predicted for Saturday, with 76 per cent chance of it during the day, while overnight thunderstorms are also predicted.
But, nevertheless, let’s hope the rain Gods stay away and we witness a full-fledged cricket match.
Squads:
India:Â Rohit Sharma (captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson (travelling reserve).
Pakistan:Â Babar Azam (captain), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Haris, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir (travelling reserve).
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