An India Vs Pakistan match is considered as the mother of all cricket battles. With heated moments on the field as players of both the team literally went toe to toe over the years. We will have to see what happens in the Asia Cup 2018 in UAE today.
India lost their last match against Pakistan in the 2017 Champions Trophy Final in London. It was a hard stroke to the Indian team as the rival won by 180 runs. Speaking of the Asia Cup 2018, Pakistan won their first league game against Hong Kong by 8 wickets. India also won with 26 runs against Hong Kong on Tuesday. Pakistani batsmen will have to stand up against wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal in the most awaited match today.
A total of 26 matches have been played between India and Pakistan between April 13, 1984 and April 19, 2006 in the UAE. Pakistan has won 19 and India just 8. While at the Asia Cup a total of 12 matches have been played between India and Pakistan in which 6 were won by India and 5 by Pakistan. While one match with no result.
You might also like: ASIA CUP 2018- Team, Schedule, Venue, Time
Both India and Pakistan have stood firm on their diplomatic views, Indian government was reluctant to allow cricket with Pakistan on Indian grounds. And so the Asia Cup was moved from India to UAE.
Imaran Khan the newly elected Prime Minister of Pakistan has shown hopes of reviving the game between the two countries. He is expected to be in the Gulf for a diplomatic tour and so as per Pakistan media he may show up during the match.
Pakistan Captain Sarfraz Ahmed in his statement said “Jo bhi achcha karta hain inn matchon mein, woh apni kaum ke liye bada ban jata hain (Whoever performs better in these India-Pakistan matches becomes big and eminent for his nation). He added that the driving force for the team during the matches is the passion to win against India. He quoted “Junoon is there, you know you have to perform against India”. This seems like the emotions running in the Pakistani Camp.
While on the other hand the Indian Captain Rohit Sharma said that “we treat all opponents equally”, He added that the match against Pakistan is important but the team will focus on it, only after their match against Hong Kong is over. Clearly Rohit Sharma does not want to ignite any rumors and is strategically working along the way. This strategy would leave the Indian team with only 16 hours, to train against the rival team. After their defeat at the Champions Trophy in June last year, it is very important that India does not lose it today.
India needs to watch out against the opener Fakhar Zaman, whose 114/116 runs destroyed India in the Champions Trophy. The team must be ready to face the world’s number 3 bowler Hasan Ali. Babar Azam and Shadab Khan are also strong opponents for the Indian cricket team.
The two teams will be playing after 15 months now. The game is going to be the most awaited one for both India and Pakistan fans. A lot of Indians and Pakistanis reside in UAE and to the stadium is expected to be packed.