After the T20 world cup in 2021, India and Pakistan are again going to clash for dominance of T20 Cricket in the Asian Continent.
These two cricketing giants clash with each other only at the third-party place and during ICC tournaments.
Pakistan defeated India comprehensively in the last T20 World cup match and due to that India could not qualify for the second round and were out of the tournament.
So Pakistan will be confident as they have the upper hand last time. On the other hand, India will be looking back at their formidable Asia Cup record and feel confident.
However, the past records do not matter at all, the team that plays better cricket on the day will always win.
Asia cup is going to be started on 27th August 2022, while these two arch rivals will clash on 28th August 2022.
It will be a Sunday special for both countries.
Asia Cup 2022 Schedule
Let’s first look at the Squads of both teams.
India’s squad for Asia Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, and Avesh Khan
Pakistan’s squad for Asia Cup: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir.
As we all know, the T20 world cup is going to be played in October this year, so Asia Cup is a preparation tournament for that. So all the teams coming in Asia cup have this in mind and hence have selected their squads keeping an eye on the T20 World Cup.
As far as batting is concerned, Pakistan’s top order looks great comprising of
- Babar Azam
- Mohammed Rizwan
- Fakhar Zaman
However, their middle and lower-order batting looks slightly sluggish.
If you check the bowling unit of Pakistan, this is their strength.
- Shaheen Shah Afridi (though doubtful of playing)
- Haris Rauf
- Usman Qadir
- Naseemshah
- Shadab Khan (Leg spinner)
Their pacer bowls at 150 to 155 kmh speed. Their leg spinner, Shadab Khan is in prime form and a very good bowler.
Strengths and weaknesses of Pakistan Team
Strength: Bowling
Weakness: Middle-order and lower-middle-order batting
Players to watch
- Babar Azam, Rizwan, Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan
Now let’s look at Indian Team
The main strong point of the Indian Team is batting. The top order looks excellent, which has the likes of
- Rohit Sharma
- KL Rahul
- Virat Kohli
- Surya Kumar Yadav
Indian middle order is also pretty good and has informed players like
- Rishab Pant
- Hardik Pandya
- Ravindra Jadeja
However, if you look Indian bowling unit, there is some disappointment as far as pace is concerned.
No Jasprt Bumrah, no Mohammed Shami.
The pace battery looks a bit inexperienced as they have only 4 seamers and two of them Arshdeep Singh, and Avesh Khan literally inexperienced.
- Bhuvaneshwar Kumar
- Hardik Pandya
- Arshdeep Singh
- Avesh Khan
The spin department looks good as we have well-experienced and clever bowlers like
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Yuzvendra Chahal
- R. Ashwin
Strengths and weaknesses of the Indian Team
So looking at the Indian team, their strength and weaknesses are:
Strength: Batting
Weaknesses: Pace bowling.
There is always tension and excitement among the players and among the spectators in both countries. The match has already started between these two teams not on the ground but in the minds of each player, coach and support staff.
Don’t forget the match playing in the tea stalls, coffee shops and pan shops among the fans.
The analysts are playing the match on their laptops and drawing boards.
The match between India and Pakistan is always loved and watched by billions of viewers across the globe.
The team that plays best on the day will win.