There is always a big hype surrounding India vs Pakistan match and the T20 World Cup adds a cherry on top of the cake. Both of these teams had played each other in the Asia Cup with each of them winning one match apiece but the T20 World Cup is always a different kettle of fish.
However, when these two big teams faced each other in the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE, Pakistan convincingly won by 10 wickets.
India has entered into this World Cup without their gun players like Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah. Their death bowling has also been their kryptonite in recent times however the Rohit Sharma-led team will aim to tick all the right boxes and come up with a collective against a dangerous Pakistan team.
The big positive for the Men in Blue is their top order has been in solid form and it is going to hold the key. Furthermore, it will be interesting to note the kind of combination with which the team plays.
On the other hand, Shaheen Shah Afridi has returned back to the team for Pakistan, which is a big boost for them. However, their middle order has not been consistent and they are going to rely heavily on their openers.
Match Prediction: It is expected to be a thrilling contest between these two powerhouses but India might enter the contest as slight favorites against Pakistan.
India squad:
Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (VC), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dinesh Karthik (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Mohammed Shami (in for Jasprit Bumrah), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh
Reserves: Shreyas Iyer, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Siraj, and Shardul Thakur.
Pakistan squad:
Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan (vc), Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Fakhar Zaman (replaces Usman Qadir)
Reserves: Mohammad Haris, Shahnawaz Dahani