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India. Pakistan. Countless hopefuls on either side of the border and across the globe. Anticipation. Exhilaration. Excitement. Goosebumps!
Name it and it defines this marquee contest which continues to captivate the attention of fans worldwide. Of course, the build-up towards this rivalry is just a lot more intense in today's era because bilateral contests between the two seem a thing of the past. Multi-nation tournaments such as an ICC competition or the Asia Cup are the only means of witnessing this battle and given that both teams have produced a few classics in both white ball formats in the last couple of years, the buzz is bound to be palpable!
In the context of this Champions Trophy, this is the one match Pakistan will play away from home despite being the host nation. Unless of course, both India and Pakistan qualify for the final in which case Dubai becomes the epicenter of this contest yet again but if that is to transpire into reality, the Men in Green need to produce something incredibly special with their campaign well and truly on the line.
Their bowlers started in promising fashion against New Zealand but soon after, it all came apart. The Blackcaps mounted a solid total of 320 before Pakistan never looked like they were determined to chase it down. 22/2 in the first ten overs meant that their chase was done long before the game actually drew to a close. Criticism poured in from all quarters and unsurprisingly, Pakistan find themselves under the pump.
But there's something about Pakistan that makes them a doubly dangerous outfit when pushed to a corner. By no means is this unfamiliar territory in that regard but if they are to script yet another fairytale comeback, they simply have to be on top of their A-game against a team like India no less who arrive on the back of a comprehensive win over Bangladesh in their opener. Compounding the defending champions' woes, however, is the absence of Fakhar Zaman, who is out of the tournament with an injury and has been replaced by Imam-ul-Haq.
As a like-for-like left-hander, there is a chance Imam could slot in straightaway even as he doesn't offer the same early aggression that Fakhar would have. Usman Khan is the other spare opening option on the bench and considering the desperate times Pakistan find themselves in, there's a chance he could get in too for Saud Shakeel. What it does then is allow Babar Azam, who crawled his way to a 90-ball 64 that didn't help his team's cause one bit against New Zealand, drop down to his more preferred number 3 slot but it's all up in the air right now as to which route Pakistan will tread.
Skipper Mohammad Rizwan faces a stiff test in this regard to galvanize his troops and keep them motivated. Rizwan himself has been in good form even as he too was bogged down in the powerplay before falling to a Glenn Phillips screamer. Agha Salman has been in excellent form while Khushdil Shah also arrives on the back of a blistering fifty. The duo are also tasked with sharing ten overs between them and while that's a tough ask of them, the dry nature of the Dubai deck ought to keep them interested.
All said though, Pakistan's best chance with the ball is only if they make early inroads. Shaheen Afridi has had fond memories of facing India in Dubai and while the format and the circumstances are different, Pakistan would give an arm and a leg to have him recreate those heroics. Naseem Shah is a lethal bowler on his day but consistency is what Pakistan needs from its pace unit that also includes Haris Rauf. Abrar Ahmed, the lone frontline spinner in the side, bowled nine excellent overs against New Zealand before bleeding plenty in his tenth but his mystery element is something India could find tricky to cope with.
Speaking of India, they might just look back at the game against Bangladesh and feel that they should have wrapped things up with the ball a whole lot earlier having reduced the Tigers to 35/5. That said, the manner in which Axar Patel and Harshit Rana did their bit to complement Mohammed Shami's five-wicket haul bodes extremely well for the 2013 champions. With Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav not doing badly themselves despite going wicketless, India will believe in their well-rounded bowling attack to get the job done. The key of course, remains Shami, whose rhythm seemed to be in much better health on Thursday. To ensure that Jasprit Bumrah's absence isn't tellingly felt, it is imperative that Shami continues to bowl in similar fashion.
There are a couple of question marks on the batting front though. Virat Kohli looked rusty against Bangladesh and if the surface in Dubai continues to stop and aid spin, it will put India's superstar number 3 under a bit of pressure. Skipper Rohit Sharma, while getting the team off to a superb start again, didn't middle a fair few deliveries himself. But both players know what it's like to show up in a game as big as this one and given their outstanding record against Pakistan in this format, they will be eager to better it further come Sunday.
Elsewhere, Shubman Gill continues to bat like a dream while Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul remain pivotal components of the middle-order. India remain happy to bat Axar Patel at number 5 should they require a left-hander and against Abrar and Khushdil, that could well be the case again. And then there's Hardik Pandya, who hasn't had too much of a hit out with the bat in this format off late but knows what it's like to absorb pressure and muscle the ball at the death.
While Rohit mentioned that he would have bowled first anyway had he won the toss in the previous encounter, it remains to be seen if he's given that thought some reconsideration. Given that dew stayed away and batting did not get easier under lights, this could well be the kind of tournament where batting first is the way to go in Dubai. That's probably what Pakistan will look to do themselves given that it could liberate their batters to play without having to worry about scoreboard pressure.
The crowd turnout for the India-Bangladesh game wasn't promising. But tickets sold out within minutes for this one, to nobody's surprise. Expect a jampacked crowd painted blue and green bellowing their throats out as two age-old rivals tussle it out with so much at stake. India are firm favorites to take a step closer to the semifinals but Pakistan's uncanny nature of being unpredictable means that nothing is ever certain when these two teams battle it out.
And if this one turns out to be a humdinger like the many India-Pakistan contests that history has borne witness to, you can be rest assured that this would be a Sunday worth its weight in gold!
Pakistan Probable XI: Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (c & wk), Agha Salman, Tayyab Tahir, Khushdil Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed
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Dubai International Cricket Stadium
