It will be the clash of titans when India take on Pakistan in the group A clash in Asia Cup 2018. Pakistan will be riding high on confidence after their famous win over India in the Champions trophy final, last year. India on the other hand, will look to overshadow the England debacle and start fresh to defend their Asian crown. Also read: 2 reasons why India may not win the Asia Cup 2018
Match importance
The winner of the match will most probably top their group, considering that both the team will beat a low lying Hong Kong.
Match Details
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, UAE
Date: 19 September 2018, Wednesday
Timings: 17:00 IST, 15:30 (UAE)
Weather
The heat will allready soar up with high profile India-Pakistan clash and Dubai heat is expected to make the proceedings more heated up. The temperature will range from 39’c to 44’c with high humidity level. Rain is not expected to spoil the party.
Pitch report
Traditionally the wicket is a batsman paradise which will offer help to the spinners. Dew may be a factor so the team winning the toss should bowl first and chase the target in the second innings.
Important Player
India: The onus will be on skipper Rohit Sharma to create the impact in the match. He has struggled against the in-swinging deliveries by Mohammad Amir lately and he has to tackle this problem in-order to take his side home.
Pakistan: Mohammad Amir will be the go-to-man for Sarfraz Ahmed led team. If he manages to scalp the wickets of Indian top order, then the less tested middle-order can be well exposed which may falter in the crunch situation.
The Number game
Since 2016, Pakistan have played 8 ODIs and 5 T20s in UAE and they are yet to lose a game at their adopted home. India will have to play out of their skin to defeat the tournament favourites upfront.
Match prediction
India may be the defending champions but Pakistan have a great track record in UAE. Indian team consist of some returning faces who may take time to settle. This gives Pakistan a good chance to register a win in the high profile clash. India may have other chances to win in the Super 4 stage or maybe in the final but Pakistan clearly looks the favourite in the group stage clash.
India’s Squad
Rohit Sharma (C), Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Ambati Rayudu, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni (WK), Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur, and K Khaleel Ahmed. Also read: Asia Cup 2018: India’s predicted playing XI
Pakistan’s Squad
Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Shan Masood, Sarfraz Ahmed(C & WK), Shoaib Malik, Haris Sohail, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Junaid Khan, Usman Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Asif Ali, and Mohammad Amir.
