DUBAI: India and Pakistan renew their high-profile but one-sided cricket rivalry on Sunday in a T20 World Cup blockbuster watched by hundreds of millions of fans across the globe.
Virat Kohli’s India have beaten Pakistan in all of their 12 matches at the T20 and 50-over World Cups.
Pakistan, however, go into the contest with 10 wins in a row in the United Arab Emirates, their home away from home for most of the last decade.
It will be the first time the two nations have clashed since the 50-over World Cup in 2019.
Of the 12 World Cup losses for Pakistan, five have been at the T20 tournament.
Two were at the inaugural event in 2007 — a tied group game decided by a ‘bowl-out’ and a five-run loss in the final.
“To be honest, what has passed is beyond us,” said Pakistan captain Babar Azam on Saturday. “Records are meant to be broken.”
The tickets for the match in Dubai were sold out within hours after the UAE government allowed a 70 percent crowd for World Cup matches in a relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions.
The South Asian nuclear rivals have only played in multi-national events like World Cups and the Champions Trophy as strained relations have stalled bilateral cricket since 2007.
Pakistan did tour India in 2012 for five limited-over matches but ties were not fully resumed as the two nations continued to be at loggerheads over multiple issues, with the disputed region of Kashmir and terrorism heading the list.
“The matches between Pakistan and India are always full of intensity so we need to perform well in all three departments of the game,” said Babar, who has two T20 International centuries to his name in 2021.
Kohli, who steps down as India T20 skipper at the end of the World Cup, described Pakistan as being “very strong.”
He also shrugged off the significance of his side’s dominance.
“These things create distractions. What matters is how we prepare and execute on any particular day, regardless of the opposition,” he said.
“You have to play your best cricket against them, because they have lots of talent and players who can change the game.”
Expatriate fans of both Pakistan and India gathered at the Dubai International Stadium desperate to witness what has become a rare sporting clash.
“We should play each other more often. It is such a treat to see these two teams on the cricket field,” Mohammad Ashraf, a Pakistan national working in the United Arab Emirates, told AFP.
Pankhuri Raj Mehta, an Indian who has worked in Abu Dhabi since 2017, added: “I brought a ticket for the game as soon as it went online. I mean you look forward to these contests, especially when you are far away from home.”
Babar, Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman will be key to Pakistan’s batting hopes while quicks Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali lead a potent bowling attack.
India, who bowed out of the semifinals in the previous edition in 2016, outplayed England and Australia in their two warm-up matches in Dubai with top batsmen KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma scoring half-centuries.
The pace attack led by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah is a danger to all sides.
Premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin dismissed Australia’s David Warner and Mitchell Marsh off successive deliveries in their last warm-up game.
Kohli backed his team’s match winners including Hardik Pandya to come good in the tournament despite the all-rounder struggling with his bowling.
“He is getting better in terms of getting prepared to bowl two overs for us,” said Kohli.
India and 2009 champions Pakistan are placed in Group 2 of the Super 12 stage of the tournament along with New Zealand, Afghanistan, Scotland and Namibia.
The top two in each of the two pools progress to the semifinals.
Despite the anticipation ahead of the game, the political soundtrack is also playing in the background.
During the week, there were protests in India with calls to boycott the match in the wake of recent killings of 11 migrant workers and minority Hindus and Sikhs in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Before India took on Pakistan, the World Cup schedule on Sunday got underway with another all-South Asian clash with 2014 champions Sri Lanka facing Bangladesh.
Pakistan and India renew cricket rivalry in T20 World Cup blockbuster
https://arab.news/5zswk
Pakistan and India renew cricket rivalry in T20 World Cup blockbuster
- Virat Kohli’s India have beaten Pakistan in all of their 12 matches at the T20 and 50-over World Cups
Al-Ittihad slump to fourth defeat of season in home loss to Al-Ettifaq
- Visitors’ Khalid Al-Ghannam scores only goal of the game as the reigning Saudi Pro League champs drop more points after drawing with Damac on Tuesday
- Earlier, Al-Fateh’s five-game winning streak ends with 1-1 draw against Al-Najma, and Al-Khaleej enjoy comfortable 4-1 victory over Al-Okhdood
RIYADH: Al-Ittihad’s disappointing defense of their Saudi Pro League title continued on Friday with a 1-0 home defeat at the hands of Al-Ettifaq.
Khalid Al-Ghannam scored the decisive goal for the visitors as the hosts dropped more points after their draw with Damac on Tuesday.
In the absence of Fabinho, who was suspended after being sent off late in Tuesday’s match, Mahamadou Doumbia partnered with N’golo Kante in midfield for Al-Ittihad. The Malian showed his composure early on when he shielded the ball under pressure before unleashing a long-range shot in the 10th minute, but it was comfortably saved by Marek Rodak.
The deployment of Al-Ghannam proved pivotal, as he repeatedly tested the hosts. In the 23rd minute he burst down the left flank, beating three defenders with some clever dribbling before testing Predrag Rajkovic in goal, who parried the effort.
Al-Ghannam bothered the defense again just minutes later, threatening the Serbian goalkeeper with another attempt from a similar position. However, the game remained goalless at halftime.
The second half began with Al-Ittihad on the front foot. Within minutes, Roger Fernandes found himself in front of goal and put the ball in the net, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
Al-Ghannam’s effort and influence eventually paid off for the visitors in the 54th minute. Operating as a left-sided striker during an Al-Ettifaq counterattack, he cut inside to curl a powerful shot into the far corner.
Al-Ittihad’s attacking approach varied as they fought to get back into the game, with Fernandes patrolling the left flank, Muhannad Al-Shanqeeti cutting inside near the byline, and central contributions from the combination of Doumbia and Steven Bergwijn. But the Al-Ettifaq defense remained resolute.
Danilo Pereira, pushing up into an advanced midfield position as Al-Ittihad forced Al-Ettifaq to defend deep, unleashed a long shot in the 67th minute, urged on by the home fans, but his effort went wide.
With time running out, Sergio Conceicao made four substitutions in the space of seven minutes, bringing on Ahmed Al-Julaydan at right-back for his crossing abilities, Abdulaziz Al-Bishi and Ahmed Al-Ghamdi to play between the lines, and Saleh Al-Shehri for added impetus up front.
Despite several chances, Al-Ittihad were unable to grab the equalizer, and in the 85th minute things got even worse for them. Keeper Rajkovic tripped on his way to confront a Mohau Nkota counterattack and stuck out his hand at the edge of the box to push the ball away. A review by the video assistant referee ruled he had handled the ball outside the box and he was shown the red card.
After seven minutes of added time, and one final attempt by Doumbia to salvage something for the hosts through a free-kick, the referee blew the final whistle.
It was the fourth defeat of the season for Al-Ittihad and means they remain in sixth place in the table, three behind Al-Qadsiah who have a game in hand. Al-Ettifaq are seventh, just two points behind the defending champions.
Earlier, Al-Fateh’s five-game winning streak came to an end when they returned from a trip to Qassim to face Al-Najma with only a point. The visitors took the lead in the 12th minute but a goal for the home side by Ali Jasim in the 75th denied them all three points as the game ended 1-1.
In the Eastern Province, Greek duo Giorgos Masouras and Kostas Fortounis proved the main inspirations for Al-Khaleej in a 4-1 victory over Al-Okhdood that temporarily lifted them into seventh place in the table, until Al-Ettifaq reclaimed the spot.
On Saturday, Al-Fayha face Damac, Al-Kholood take on fourth-place Al-Ahli, and second-place Al-Nassr are in action against Al-Shabab.
