Asia Cup 2018: Match 5 - Pakistan vs India - Preview

Finally, the much-awaited contest between the two arch-rivals India and Pakistan is going to greet us. It is always a high octane match and both the teams will aim to give their best shot. Meanwhile, Pakistan side will be the happier of the two sides before the match. They had rolled over Hong Kong in their first match and has had a couple of days off after their triumph.

On the other hand, India had to toil hard for their win against Hong Kong and will need to play back to back matches. There will be some tiring bodies in the Indian camp after they were put in the field for the whole of 100 overs by the Associate nation. Furthermore, Men in Blue were given a run for their money.

Pakistan plays most of its cricket in the UAE.

Meanwhile, Pakistan is more familiar with the pitches as well as the conditions it plays most of the cricket in the UAE. Moreover, Pakistan players also participate in the Pakistan Super League which is also hosted at the same venues.

India was able to get over the line against Hong Kong by just 26 runs. So, it would be interesting to note what kind of playing combination they will go with. Will they give another chance to Khaleel Ahmed who impressed on his debut by scalping three wickets? Or will they get back to Hardik Pandya who can provide some quick runs while batting down the order?

First of all, Indian players need to take some proper rest before they hit the ground once again. There isn’t much time to recharge themselves. However, they will like to keep themselves fresh.

Meanwhile, Pakistan had ticked all the right boxes against Hong Kong. Their bowling has always been right on the money. In fact, their young batting brigade has shown a good promise. Imam-Ul-Haq and Fakhar Zaman are in fine form with the bat. Furthermore, the likes of Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik and Asif Ali provides the depth in the middle order.

Indian players will be tired after the Hong Kong match.

On the other hand, there is inexperience in the middle order of India. Thus, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan will like to provide a solid foundation. Dhawan had scored a fine hundred against Hong Kong. Therefore, it must have done him the world of good after a mundane performance in England.

The middle order will have to bat with more responsibility. India could not apply the finishing touches to their batting innings against Hong Kong as they scored only 49 runs in the last ten overs. Thus, they might look to get in Hardik Pandya who can score runs in a jiffy.

Meanwhile, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal looked ineffective in their first spell against Hong Kong. In fact, Rohit Sharma’s captaincy was also under the scanner. Rohit didn’t try to execute anything different and was hoping for wickets rather than creating chances. He didn’t make any changes to the field and thus the Hong Kong batsmen were able to play with the long handle.

Some changes expected.

The fast bowlers were disappointing too. They didn’t hit the right lengths and were taken to cleaners by Anshuman Raht and Nizakat Khan. Thus, Shardul Thakur will make way for Jasprit Bumrah who has been in fine form.

On the other hand, Usman Khan had scalped three wickets in Pakistan’s first match. The right-handed pacer will like to repeat a similar performance against India.

In fact, both these teams have qualified for the Super Four stage. However, there is no denying the fact that India-Pakistan is always a heated battle. Each team will not like to give a sniff to the other and they are going to put all their energy into the contest.

Date and Time: 19 September 2018, 5:00 PM IST.

Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai.

Weather Conditions: Another hot day is going to greet the players as well as the millions of fans of both the nations. It is expected to be a jam-packed coliseum and the hot conditions are going to take the toll on the players.

Pitch Conditions: The pitches have been on the slower side thus far in the tourney. Thus, the high-pressure match is expected to have the same conditions. There won’t be much swing on offer, however, the spinners will be once again licking their lips.

India’s Predicted Playing XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma (c), Ambati Rayudu, KL Rahul, MS Dhoni (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah.

Pakistan Predicted Playing XI: Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Sarfraz Khan (c and wk), Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, Usman Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Amir.

Stats:

Yuzvendra Chahal (27 matches) needs two more scalps to become the third fastest to get to 50 ODI wickets. His spin partner Kuldeep Yadav (24 ODIs) had become the second fastest to the landmark after Ajit Agarkar (23 ODIs).