New York, JUN 9: Waqar Younis, the former Pakistan coach, shared his predictions for the highly anticipated match between Pakistan and India to take place today Nassau County International Stadium in New York.
Pakistan, having suffered a defeat in their first match against the US, are gearing up to take on India today.
On the contrary, the Indian team secured a victory against Ireland by eight wickets earlier this week indicating a good form since the start of the tournament.
According to Younis, the pitch conditions are likely to create an evenly contested match.
“My heart says Pakistan but from what I’ve seen so far in this tournament the pitch in New York is very much for the faster bowlers. So, it evens it out a little bit just purely because of the surface in New York,” he said.
Meanwhile, former cricketer Wasim Akram expressed that India appear to be the stronger team with a 60% chance of winning against Pakistan. However, he noted that the outcome can quickly change in T20 World Cup.
He said: “If we look at India’s form, India generally are a better team. Better team in a way that they’re favourites heading into that game. I will give 60% to India and 40% to Pakistan.
“But, it’s T20I, one good innings, one good spell, the game can change quickly. I think everybody is looking forward to the game of the tournament.”
Pakistan and India have played seven matches in the T20 World Cups against each other, with India winning five while Pakistan won only one match back in 2021. The remaining T20I resulted in a tie.
Pakistan desperately need a win after their major loss to the United States. They will be facing Canada on Tuesday at the same venue after playing against Men in Blue.
Who’s playing on both sides?
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf.
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj. Reserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan.
