India vs Pak: Key player battles to look forward to in the Asia Cup

It is that time of the year when arch-rivals India and Pakistan will be up against each other in the 14th edition of the Asia Cup. The last time these two teams met was at the finals of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 in England where Pakistan outplayed India in all three aspects.

Owing to their recent success and familiar conditions, Pakistan will be favourites when they are up against India who will be led by Rohit Sharma in the absence of Virat Kohli.

In the UAE, Pakistan has been undefeated in the last 16 encounters (ODIs and T20Is) as it has been their adopted home since 2009. India, on the other hand, will be returning to the UAE after a gap of more than 10 years.

While both the Asian giants would love to get the better of the other team, what makes these matches intriguing are the player battles. Remember Amir Sohail and Venkatesh Prasad’s encounter or Gautam Gambhir and Shahid Afridi’s verbal spat?

The list of Indian and Pakistani players going up against each other to prove their mettle is endless. Here are 5 player battles to look forward to when India-Pakistan take the field on Wednesday.

Mohammad Amir vs Rohit Sharma

With Virat Kohli being rested for the tournament, the onus of getting India to a good start would rely heavily on Rohit Sharma.

When Mohammad Amir returned to the international scene after being banned for match-fixing, Sharma commented that “he is just a normal bowler.”

Amir proved his worth in the finals where he not only dismissed Sharma for a duck but also bagged Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli’s wickets. In the six overs he bowled, his figures were 16/3. He destroyed the backbone of Indian batting and the team couldn’t recover from that setback.

However, Amir has been struggling with form lately. In 8 previous encounters, he has just picked up 3 wickets. Sharma, on the other hand, averages 59.68 with 1313 runs in the last 25 games. While Sharma’s prowess with the bat is not hidden to anyone, it is the left-armer’s ability to swing the ball back in that bothers the Mumbaikar the most.

Will the Hit-Man be able to negate Amir’s swing or fall prey, would make for an interesting clash.

Hardik Pandya vs Shadab Khan

Shadab Khan would look to restrict Hardik Pandya as his hard-hitting can change the course of the game

When all hope was lost during the finals, a ray of hope was provided by Hardik Pandya when he took Shadab Khan’s bowling apart by smashing him for sixes at will. While he couldn’t see India through in that game, Pandya would be looking to avenge the loss of the finals.

The Pakistani bowling attack lacks depth in the spin department and would be relying heavily on Shadab Khan. Khan, who has bagged 26 wickets in the last 16 games, would find it challenging to pose a threat against Pandya as the pitches have little assistance to offer to spinners.

On the other hand, the Indian all-rounder will probably be used in a floating position where he will have to go hard in the end overs. Given his prowess against the spinners, it will be interesting to see how and when both the captains use their trump cards.

MS Dhoni vs Hasan Ali

Hasan Ali's spell in the middle overs will play a crucial role in the outcome of the game

One of Pakistan’s most consistent wicket-takers in the middle overs, Hasan Ali has been in superb form. In 13 games post the Champions Trophy clash, Ali has taken 28 wickets that have come in crucial stages of the game.

With Ali’s reputation to dent the middle order of any batting line-up, it would be interesting to see how he fares against MS Dhoni. While he got the better of Dhoni on the previous occasion, Dhoni has the ability to hold the fort at any given situation.

Dhoni has a healthy average of 58.66 with 704 runs in 23 appearances post the last encounter. Given the scheme of things, it is highly likely that Dhoni will bat at number 4 so that he can strengthen India’s middle order and let Kedar Jadhav and Hardik Pandya play their natural game at the depth.

If Dhoni is able to negate Ali’s spell without losing wickets, it will give freedom to the lower-order batsman to slog.

Babar Azam vs Kuldeep Yadav

Babar Azam has been Pakistan's most consistent batsman in the last two years

In-form Pakistani top-order batsman Babar Azam has been impressive with his clinical performances. His crucial knock of 46 and his partnership with Zaman in the last clash made it difficult for India to achieve the target.

Since then, he has scored 551 runs in 14 games at an average of 55.1. Pakistan’s most consistent batsman will be up against India’s most consistent wicket-taker, Kuldeep Yadav.

The left-arm chinaman has been a regular in the Indian side and has impressed with 48 wickets in 23 matches. The highlight of his bowling has been that he has been very economical and been successful in building pressure on the opponents.

Since cricketers from the sub-continent are good players of spin and the tracks aren’t that spin friendly, it would be interesting to see whether Yadav is able to deceive Azam with his bag of tricks or the latter dominates the proceedings.

Fakhar Zaman vs Jasprit Bumrah

Fakhar Zaman's century helped Pakistan lift the Champions Trophy in 2017

It was Fakhar Zaman’s first game against India in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017. Zaman was on 3 when he edged one of Bumrah’s delivery. Unfortunately for India, it was a no-ball and Zaman went on to score a match-winning 114.

Since then, Zaman has gone on to become a consistent match winner for Pakistan. In 14 matches post the Champions Trophy, he has scored 827 runs at an average of 75.18. He also became the fastest batsman to score 1000 ODI runs in just 18 games.

Zaman’s ability to play the shots freely on both sides of the ground makes him a difficult proposition to bowl against. Bumrah, on the other hand, would be eager to prove his worth by dismissing the Pakistani southpaw.

Post the finals, Bumrah has been India’s most consistent wicket-taker in the limited overs game. He has 38 wickets in 24 games to his credit. Will the number 1 bowler in ODIs be able to deceive Zaman or will the latter continue to dominate? The winner of this contest will give his team a massive advantage.