A mouthwatering cricket series is waiting for us. The much anticipated clash between two arch-rivals will be underway in just few hours. This Indo-Pak series is a center of attraction for variety of reasons. This will be the first tour of Pakistan cricket team in five years after Mumbai attack. There were few matches between these two giants of Asia in several ICC and ACC tournaments but there was not a single case of any bilateral series.
India vs Pakistan 2012: 1st T20I – Preview
Whenever these two sides have met, the emotions of fans across the border have overflowed. It’s not a game for them it’s a WAR. There is no limit to the excitement and interest in these matches. This is the reason why we called it ‘The Mother of all Battles’. Now coming to the cricketing point, both sides have pretty much well matched side and capable of producing a gem of a match. The weakness of one side is the strong point of other and that’s makes it even more interesting. India got some dashing batsmen who can explore anytime in the game whereas Pakistan is packed with bowlers capable of turning the match from any given situation.
The main worry of India is that they are lacking a duo of quality pacer who can give them two or three early wickets. The recent dip in the form of Ashwin is also not a good sign by any means. The position of Chawla in the team is obviously under some threat and MS Dhoni might want to change the combination of his side given the kind of opposition. The bating has fired in both T20 games and only the form of Rahane is causing some concern. He actually needs self introspection of his game, throwing the wicket away when team needs you the most is not acceptable. Yuvraj’s bowling form is a real bonus for the Indians. If he can deliver an effective and economical spell of four overs then this may well reduce some burden from the broad shoulders of MS Dhoni. The player to watch out for India is Virat Kohli. He has produced some memorable knocks against Pakistan in recent past and his wicket is a definitely a priceless one for Pakistan. The way he handled Saeed Ajmal is remarkable. Going to the backfoot by judging the length early and cutting stylishly for strings of four is the main feature of his batting against Pakistan in Asia Cup 2012.
On the other hand Pakistanis are fresh and ready to go for this all important series. They have prepared hard for this tour first by playing Faysal Bank T20 Cup and then taking part in two practice matches in their training camp. The most attractive and charismatic player of their side Shahid Khan Afridi has shown some signs of returning back to his killer mode by pulling out two aggressive half centuries and is definitely not a good sign from Indian point of view. Their batting is very fragile and is same for some time. He also has a point to prove. Much will depend on the back of skipper Hafeez and young Nasir Jamshed. Bowling is always a strong point of Pakistan and the spin trio of Ajmal, Afridi and Hafeez can cause some problems for rock solid Indian batting lineup. Their lanky pace bowler Mohammad Irfan is a player to watch out for. It will be interesting to watch him bowling. So make arrangements at home if you are not going to M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. Sit back relax and enjoy!
‘The mother of all battles’ returns with a bang!
Tags: 1st T20, Bangalore, Bengaluru, Cricket, India, M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Mohammad Hafeez, MS Dhoni, Pakistan
