- India vs Pakistan clash will be today.
- Pakistan needs a win after losing to the USA.
- Imad Wasim has been declared fit to play for Pakistan.
Today, the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York will host the much-anticipated clash between India and Pakistan as part of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
Pakistan is in dire need of a victory following their unexpected defeat to the United States in their tournament opener on Thursday.
On the other hand, a win against Pakistan would almost secure India’s place in the Super 8, given their initial triumph over Ireland.
Babar Azam will captain Pakistan, while Rohit Sharma will lead India.
In the seven T20 World Cup encounters between India and Pakistan, India has emerged victorious five times, while Pakistan has won only once. One T20I ended in a tie, with India winning via a bowl out.
The sole T20I that Pakistan won against India in a T20 World Cup was in 2021 when Babar Azam XI faced off against the Men in Blue led by Virat Kohli.
Ahead of this critical match, Pakistan received a significant boost with all-rounder Imad Wasim declared fit to play.
Imad was absent from Pakistan’s opening match against the USA and also missed the final match of their pre-tournament series with England due to a rib injury.
However, Pakistan’s coach Gary Kirsten confirmed at the pre-match press conference that the 35-year-old left-arm spinner is fit to play on Sunday.
“He [Imad] will be available,” the South African stated.
Kirsten also expressed that Pakistan is keen to recover after the disheartening loss to the USA.
“It´s never nice not winning games of cricket for any player. They´re trying their best. It´s never nice. I don´t think I needed to motivate this team for this game,” he commented.
“I think the important thing for us is that we operate genuinely as a team. Yes, we need individuals to make good performances, but playing games like this, I think is a real team effort.
“It´s a big game, so we´re going to treat it as any other game. But certainly, give it our best shot. The team´s motivated. Two days ago is forgotten. We can´t take it back. It´s gone. So, we move on.”
The pitch at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium has been scrutinized for its inconsistent bounce, something India’s captain Rohit Sharma is well aware of after being forced to retire hurt due to an arm injury in the victory against Ireland on Wednesday.
“I think playing good cricket holds the key no matter the opposition. With the pitch, I think you know what to expect from the conditions, so you´ve got to prepare yourself in a way that you know these types of conditions are there,” Sharma advised.
“We have spoken about it, about what we need to do on these types of conditions. We have had lengthy chats with individuals about what the game plan can be for the batters and the bowlers as well. You can try to control what is in your control.
“There is a lot of experience in our changing room. So, when you come across conditions like these, I expect everyone to at least try and make good decisions. Again, we are going to approach (it) how we approached the first game. Nothing changes for us. We want to try and tick all the boxes in batting, bowling, and fielding.”
India vs Pakistan match timings
Local: 10:30am
GMT: 2:30pm
PST: 7:30pm
IST: 8:00pm
Squads
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf.
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj.
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