Match Day: Pakistan takes on India in Asia Cup 2010
Team Pakistan will be meeting their arch rivals India at the Rangiri Dambulla in Sri Lanka as both teams are looking forwards to a win. The stakes are quite high as any team winning today’s match will make it to the finals of the Asia cup 2010. Pakistan will be meeting India on the fields of cricket after eight months and the atmosphere in both the dressing rooms, the stands and the ground itself is expected to be a historically proven intense one.
When Shahid Afridi’s men in green step into the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium today against Mahindra Singh Dhoni’s men in blue, it is assured that the entire world will be watching. Today’s game is expected to be the prime focus in Pakistan nd India despite the football World Cup running in South Africa.
Both the teams last met at the Champions Trophy in September and in that instance the Pakistanis had the better of India. Thus this time around in today’s all important match as a loss for Pakistan would mean an Asia Cup exit, Dhoni’s men would be itching to take their revenge and also in the process eliminating the men in green from the tournament.
However, Pakistan is no push overs as they can be dangerously volatile. When put in a do-or-die situation, the men in green tend to bring out their best game. A classic display of their unpredictability was evident not so long ago when Pakistan comprehensively beat the South Africans and had a very close match with the Australians in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup.
Also to make matter worse for the Indians, a determined and aggressive Afridi, the twin power of the Akmal brothers, who are single-handedly capable of turning around matches when the chips are down. Combining the batting prowess of Salman Butt and Shoaib Malik will make it a touch difficult for the struggling Indian bowlers to curb Pakistan’s run flow.
With every said on paper, India still have a superior batting unit. Their batting runs down deep with even Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan capable of pulling their side out of a crisis like situation if the match demands so. Then they also have the likes of Virender Sehwag who has a good record against the Pakistani’s and the flamboyant Gautam Gambhir who just made an excellent 82 against Bangladesh.
But what about the bowling department? This is one department where Pakistan definitely has an edge over the Indians is the pace and spin they.
Shoaib Akhtar has returned to the side and in his first game against the SriLankan team. He looked impressive which is why he will be a key bowler against India. Pakistan also has the services of Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer who could very well pose problems if they back their ability to move the ball with accuracy.
When it comes to spin, Pakistan may use Captain Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik - both of whom were brilliant against the SriLankan’s in the opening match of the Asia Cup 2010.
For India, the bowling department is not that exciting as an uncertain cloud hangs over Ashish Nehra’s fitness. If he doesn’t play today, then Zaheer Khan will be India’s main attacking bowler. Harbhajan Singh, who has been bowling well of late, can be an asset for the Indian side. However, the way Afridi dealt with Muralitharan the other day, it is assured that fireworks have been prepared for Pakistani batsmen once the spinner starts to operate.
So with all said we can now sit back and wait for the greatest moments in cricketing history to be once again be written today. Pakistan batmen Shoaib Malik has 1685 runs under his belt against India and even Salman Butt enjoys his time at the crease against the Indian as he is only 82 runs away from the 1000-run mark against them.
Historically, India and Pakistan have faced off against each other on eight different occasions in the Asia Cup, where India has won three times and Pakistan on four occasions with one match ending in a draw. So statistically, Pakistan remains the favourite team for today.
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