Cricket world’s most unique and fierce rivalry will be renewed on Saturday at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata when MS Dhoni’s India take on Shahid Afridi’s Pakistan in a Super 10 stage match of the ongoing ICC World T20 2016. The match will kick-off at 7.30pm local, 8.00pm BdST, with the toss being held 30
Some may call this clash a platform for friendship, rather than a ground to battle. But truth to be conceded, an India-Pakistan clash in the game of cricket is nothing less than a war. The two neighbours have gone to war on four occasions since their independence and now infrequent showdowns on the cricket pitch can bring both countries to a standstill.
In seven T20Is, India holds the upper hand with 5 wins. Pakistan have won 1, while the first ever game in this format between the two teams was tied. India have won 4 and lost 1 of their last 5 completed matches, while Pakistan have lost 2 and won 3. Again whille India never lost to Pakistan in an ICC event, Pakistan never lost to the hosts in limited-overs showdowns at the Eden Gardens. Given the circumstances, it is hard to pick a favourite but the stage is perfectly set for an enthralling contest which is expected to be played to a full house.
India (Playing XI)
1 Shikhar Dhawan
2 Rohit Sharma
3 Virat Kohli
4 Suresh Raina
5 Yuvraj Singh
6 Hardik Pandya
7 MS Dhoni (capt &wk)
8 Ravindra Jadeja
9 R Ashwin
10 Ashish Nehra
11 Jasprit Bumrah
On the other hand, Pakistan’s win over Bangladesh was as convincing as it could be. With the team finally finding some rhythm and opening its campaign with a big triumph, the Green Shirts may not disturb their combination either.
Pakistan (Playing XI)
1 Sharjeel Khan
2 Ahmed Shehzad
3 Mohammad Hafeez
4 Umar Akmal
5 Shoaib Malik
6 Shahid Afridi(capt)
7 Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk)
8 Imad Wasim
9 Wahab Riaz
10 Mohammad Amir
11 Mohammad Irfan
Info : bdcricteam
