Home
The day has finally arrived. More than a billion people are hyped for what promises to be a grand spectacle at the world's largest cricket stadium - Narendra Modi Stadium - in Ahmedabad where India and Pakistan will cross swords on October 14 (Saturday). Both teams arrive at the blockbuster contest on the back of consecutive wins. Whose unbeaten streak will come to an end on Saturday? Well, looking at history, it seems like the Men in Green will taste their first defeat of the campaign as the Men in Blue hold an unblemished 7-0 record against their arch-rivals in ODI World Cup.
Follow the Sports Tak channel on WhatsApp
Ahead of the India vs Pakistan ODI World Cup fixture, let's take a look at what could be the playing XI for the Men in Blue.
Openers: Captain Rohit Sharma will open the innings alongside Shubman Gill as the latter seem to have recovered well and batter for a longer period of time in the nets ahead of the marquee fixture. In case of a last-minute setback, Ishan Kishan will continue to open the innings alongside his skipper.
Middle-order: Virat Kohli will bat at his customary No.3 position followed by Shreyas Iyer and wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul at No.4 and No.5 respectively.
All-rounders: Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja are two important cogs in this Indian side that provide stability and add depth to the team. It will be a toss-up between Ravichandran Ashwin, who played in Chennai, and Shardul Thakur, who played in Delhi. As Rohit said in his pre-match press conference, the final decision will be taken after he has a closer look at the pitch.
Spinner: Kuldeep Yadav has been India's best spinner in white-ball cricket in the last couple of years and bowled a fantastic spell against Australia.
Fast bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj will be the two frontline seamers for India in the clash against Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Mohammed Shami, who has bowled exceedingly well against Pakistan, will continue to warm the bench on the sidelines.
India's predicted playing XI vs Pakistan: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
Major injury scare for Bangladesh, Shakib-Al-Hasan goes for scans after jolt against New Zealand
Just made holding the bat a little tough: Williamson reveals the extent of his injury after retiring out in comeback game
