After weeks of tumult in the cricket arena, the world is finally getting to witness another Pakistan-India blockbuster match today.
The biggest and most lucrative clash in world cricket has sold out the 35,000-capacity R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, with hundreds of millions more expected to watch on television.
As both Pakistan and India have won their first two group stage matches, the winners of Sunday’s match will be guaranteed of their berth in the Super Eights round.
The game was only confirmed as going ahead late on Monday night after the government reversed its decision to boycott the blockbuster Group A game.
The reversal followed protracted negotiations between the International Cricket Council (ICC), the cricket boards of Pakistan and Bangladesh, consultations among national leaders, and interventions by friendly nations such as Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates.
With bilateral cricket a casualty of their fraught relations, emotions run high whenever the bitter neighbours lock horns in multi-team events at neutral venues.
The hugely anticipated match could be hit by bad weather, with rain forecast for Sunday evening.
Ahead of the game, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi met with the Green Shirts and the team management in Colombo.
‘Always ready for India’
Defending champions India have a 7-1 record against Pakistan in the tournament’s history, and they underlined that dominance at last year’s Asia Cup in the UAE.
India beat Pakistan three times in that single event, including a stormy final marred by provocative gestures and snubbed handshakes.
Pakistan skipper Salman Agha said on Saturday his team had been “always ready” to face India, despite only being given the green light a few days ago.
“This is a very big game and the magnitude is huge,” Salman said ahead of the team’s practice at the stadium on Saturday.
“We were always ready for the game, whatever be the decision.”
Pakistan had a scrappy last-over three-wicket win in their first match against the Netherlands before beating the USA by 32 runs.
“We are in good momentum and I hope that being in Colombo since the start will help us in terms of conditions,” said Salman.
The Pakistan skipper believed spin would dominate, calling off-spinner Usman Tariq his trump card against India’s powerful batting line-up.
“Usman has been bowling well and I am sure the mystery element will make him our trump card,” Salman said, brushing aside doubts over the legality of Usman’s unique sling-arm action and the exaggerated pause in his delivery stride.
“He has been cleared twice so there are no worries.”
Salman hoped the players would shake hands, unlike during the Asia Cup matches.
“The game should be played in the true spirit of the game,” he said. “It has been the norm in cricket for years but whatever way they want, we will only know tomorrow.”
‘Not just another game’
Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav admitted on Saturday that no matter how much his team tried to prepare for today’s clash against Pakistan as “just another game”, it would be much more than that.
“It’s a big platform, obviously,” Suryakumar told reporters in Colombo. “No matter how much you say that it’s just another game, it is a big game.”
The Indian skipper added, “We don’t play them often, don’t even play them regularly. But at the end of the day, we try to keep things simple and try to execute our best game.
“There is pressure, but there is a big opportunity,” he continued. “According to me, when you play an India-Pakistan game, it’s more about the occasion.”
Suryakumar said opener Abhishek Sharma has recovered well from a stomach bug and was likely to play.
The Indian captain played down the hype around Usman’s bowling action.
“We have practised with similar types of bowlers and similar actions so we will try to execute what we are practising in the night sessions,” said Suryakumar.
The Indian skipper would not say whether his players would shake hands with their Pakistan counterparts in Colombo today.
“I will break the suspense tomorrow,” he said. “Wait for 24 hours, let us play the game which is more important.”
