After kicking off their World Cup 2023 campaign with two back-to-back wins, India and Pakistan will take on each other in the much-anticipated clash at Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium, Ahmedabad on October 14. After pulling off the highest-ever run chase in World Cup history, Babar Azam's Pakistan is high on confidence. On the other hand, India beat five-time World Champions Australia and then registered a near-flawless eight-wicket win over Afghanistan. India seem to have all basis covered but there is still one big question ahead of the mega clash.
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Shubman Gill reached Ahmedabad on October 11 and had his first net session on the following day after recovering from dengue which ruled him out of the first two encounters. It is not clear whether Gill will be able to regain full fitness in time or not. His return to the Indian side will be a big boost considering his record at the venue. Also, he knows the pitch inside out having played for Gujarat Titans (GT) in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
If Gill recovers in time, it will give India another headache. They will have to drop either Ishan Kishan or Shreyas Iyer. Both batters got out for a duck against Australia. In the second match, Kishan contributed with a run-a-ball 47 whereas Iyer remained not out for 25 from 23 balls.
Considering the threat Shaheen Afridi poses, India may like the comfort of having a left-handed batter. Kishan can bat at no.4 if the wickets fall early. Also, he can be pushed to no.5 so that an in-form KL Rahul can bat ahead in the middle overs. On the other hand, Iyer is a better player of spin in the middle overs. He has not been in bad form either scoring a century against Australia in the three-ODI series.
The rest of the middle order is expected to be the same until and unless there are any last-minute niggles. There will be a toss-up between Shardul Thakur and Ravichandran Ashwin. The Ahmedabad pitch is a batting-friendly one. The Pakistan batters may target the off-spinner if he does not get much purchase from the wicket. Thakur has the knack of breaking partnerships even though he is not often relied upon to bowl his full quota of 10 overs.
India Predicted Playing XI: Shubman Gill/Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
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