India and Pakistan will lock horns in their Asia Cup 2022 opener on Sunday, August 28, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Both teams have had a few sessions in training and would hope to get the tournament underway with a win. The Men in Green underwhelmed India in their last meeting at the ICC T20 World Cup in 2021.
KL Rahul and Virat Kohli return from their respective breaks, giving the management a big call to make at the first step of this campaign. India have a 5-6-7 finishing axis of Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik and Ravindra Jadeja while Suryakumar Yadav and Rishabh Pant have served as potent floaters.
Pakistan, on the other hand, will miss their star pacer Shaheen Afridi. The fast bowling attack looks relatively weak with Shahnawaz Dahani and Naseem Shah playing only two T20Is combined. They will largely rely on the batting duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to do the bulk of the scoring for the side.
Match Details
Asia Cup 2022: Match 2 – India vs Pakistan
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Ground, Dubai
Date and Time: August 28, 2022, 7.30 pm IST
Pitch Report
The pitch in Dubai is a good one to bat on, with scores of over 170 being chased down in the last five matches with relative ease. Dew should play a factor, allowing teams to chase better.
Predicted Playing XI
India (IND): Rohit Sharma (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik/KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan and Yuzvendra Chahal.
Pakistan (PAK): Babar Azam (c), Muhammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Khushdil Shah, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Mohammed Nawaz, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah and Shahnawaz Dahani.
Match Prediction
India and Pakistan have always produced high-octane clashes with the match being watched by millions all over the globe. Babar Azam and Co. had the last laugh in their last meeting, thrashing India by 10 wickets. Pakistan are likely to start as favourites in this game. Betway has also placed their bet at 2.90 in favour of Pakistan.
Fantasy Team Suggestions
Fantasy Team 1: Mohammad Rizwan (vc), Babar Azam, Rohit Sharma (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Hardik Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf.
Fantast Team 2: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (vc), Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf.
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