India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup: 5 players to watch and a big comeback
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What are you doing Sunday evening? Any plans to go out maybe? For the benefit of public, here is letting you know on that day India is coming to halt, and so is Pakistan. The biggest big ticket game is arriving on October 24 in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 – India vs Pakistan!
Call it delectable, heated, passionate, emotional or simply the mother of all ties in our sport. Every adjective, phrase and platitude will fall short of representing what this one match truly means to every fan and indeed any individual who belongs from either of these neighbourly rival nations.
In a world when fans were visible within sporting stadiums and masks not, this match would be sold out within seconds. And that is not even an exaggeration. World cricket’s most passionate and colourful game, every second is an incident and every incident dissected. Loved and worshipped or despised and condemned. There is never ever a dull moment.
If there is one occasion in cricket that constantly transcends the sport into something more than sport itself – personal glory, self identification and pride – India vs Pakistan is that. And the T20 World Cup opening India vs Pakistan duel promises to be every bit the same. For once, both teams are as closely matched as they have been in the last one and a half decades.
Secondly, the shortest format negates quality based advantages to a great extent. Individual brilliance can often decide these games and here are five players to watch out for on Sunday.
India vs Pakistan – KL Rahul
When KL Rahul gets into gear, there is very little else worth watching. Not just in cricket, in all of sport. The opening batsman is just so easy on the eye and makes stroke making look ridiculously simple. In fact, he is India’s most dangerous top order batsman and he is sandwiched between two bona fide modern day greats.
Rahul, in a recently concluded IPL match for Punjab Kings against CSK showed exactly why he is so highly revered. If the shackles are off, he can very swiftly run away with a game. Rahul is a natural six hitter and in games of such intensity, as India vs Pakistan tend to be, a top order blast from Rahul may just be the difference.
The Karnataka boy is coming into the T20 World Cup in good form too. In the warm up game against England, he elegantly blasted his way to an expedited half century. And thus, Pakistan must be wary of him.
India vs Pakistan – Babar Azam
The Pakistani captain is among the most established T20 batsmen going around in world cricket. And he has been excellent for a while in the shortest format. He will also be fired up to perform against an opposition he flattered to deceived in the fifty over ICC World Cup in 2019.
Thus, India must pick his wicket early, else they would be made to pay courtesy of Azam’s run filled blade. Babar Azam is a classy batsman and a weakness in his T20 game is yet to be figured, let alone exposed.
Azam’s numbers in T20 cricket also make for spectacular reading. The top order batsman averages 46.9 with a strike rate just under 131. And as captain his average goes up further to nearly 50. Azam further has the ability to switch gears and play as both, an anchor and an aggressor.
India vs Pakistan – Varun Chakravarthy
India had initially picked five spinners and then reduced it to four. That is a big number, especially when in comparison to other teams given the dew factor that is coming into effect. And in those four spinners, perhaps the most left field is Varun Chakravarthy. Once an architect, then a movie struggler and finally a cricketer who got his break by virtue of being a net bowler.
A great story of a person with such a unique skill that he has been fast tracked after one international series after missing two earlier ones to injury and still not matching the high fitness standard the captain himself has made into a team culture.
Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, thus, will play and much will depend on his ability to mystify and fox the opposition batsmen in the upcoming India vs Pakistan tie. The KKR spinner also possesses the rare ability to bowl across all phases of an innings. If Chakravarthy can carry forward his IPL form from the UAE leg into the T20 World Cup, India will go very deep into the tournament.
India vs Pakistan – Shaheen Shah Afridi
Left arm pacers from Pakistan tend to trouble India in ICC and multination events. Those who can recall even the recent past of India vs Pakistan matches will remember the spells of Mohammad Amir in the Asia Cup and the Champions Trophy. And now Pakistan’s star left armer is the young and sprightly Shaheen Shah Afridi.
The 21 year old pacer has experience playing in the UAE despite his early years. As do the rest of the Pakistan team, given the fact that the Pakistan Super League used to happen in this part of the world. The threat of Shaheen Shah is augmented by the fact that in the IPL the ball has been seen swinging early on in Dubai, the venue of Sunday’s India vs Pakistan match.
The big advantage of Shaheen Shah is that he has pace to burn and given his height, he becomes very potent on any wicket. If it is a true pitch, he will get bounce and if the pitch is slow, the ball keeping low from the height he delivers makes it a very dangerous situation for the opposition batsmen. The Pakistani fast bowler also possesses a deceptive slower ball making him a near complete bowler.
India vs Pakistan – Virat Kohli
Irrespective of form, land or reality, Virat Kohli remains the magnum opus of modern day white ball cricket. And he is coming into this tournament with potential liberation from increasing pressure in the horizon. This, on top of being the man of the tournament in the last two T20 World Cups.
There is no denying that Kohli is not enjoying the best phase of his life in terms of batting at the moment, but players of quality find occasions to set things back on track. In fact, Kohli’s legend grew on the back of India vs Pakistan games. His proper star turn was all the way back in 2012 when he scored 183 in a tall and improbable match winning chase of 330 runs against Pakistan.
Since then, Kohli has starred in T20 World Cups and Asia Cups, taking India through from difficult and tricky situations. A big innings from Kohli is anyway overdue and one would not put it past the Indian captain from announcing his comeback to the top after a brief break.
Sunday, October 24, India vs Pakistan – whatever happens, there is a blockbuster game waiting to happen!
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Arinjay Ghosh
(77 Articles Published)