India head into their high-stakes clash against Pakistan on June 9 with momentum on their side. Their dominant 8-wicket victory over Ireland put them in a strong position to qualify for the Super 8s. Meanwhile, Pakistan is reeling from a major upset - a Super Over loss to co-hosts USA.
Pakistan's woes were compounded by the performance of young wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan. He was dismissed for a first-ball duck and even missed significant time behind the wicket and in the field.
Azam Khan's performance against USA wasn't just disappointing, it ignited a firestorm of criticism online. Former Pakistan captain, Wasim Akram, even weighed in during a chat with ABP News. Akram didn't mince words, stating that Azam's performance wasn't doing him any favors and that some of the team management decisions surrounding him were puzzling.
“Babar needed a power hitter. Azam... he's my friend's (Moin Khan) son. He grew up in front of me, but he's not helping his cause,” Akram said.
“During our times, you could've probably gone off the radar. There was no social media. You just cannot hide. When we played against the USA, you didn't play him as a wicketkeeper. He didn't field for 8 overs. He played as a pinch-hitter, but he couldn't come with Fakhar because he sat out for 8 overs. I just couldn't understand that,” Akram further added.
Azam Khan disappointed with the bat in Pakistan's T20 World Cup opener against USA. He recorded a golden duck in Pakistan's losing cause against USA and was thus dropped from men in Green's playing XI against India on June 9. Pakistan won the toss and elected to bowl first against India at the at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Babar Azam, after winning the toss, said:
“We will bowl first because of the weather and moisture in the pitch. The conditions suit us, we have four fast bowlers. We will try to use it to our best. Past is past, we are looking forward to today's match, we are ready and will give our 100%. Always a big game, our confidence is always high for India vs Pak. Azam Khan is resting”.
Meanwhile, India skipper Rohit Sharma, after losing the toss, said:
“Would've bowled first too. We need to assess how conditions play and come up with an idea of what a good score is. Those games have helped us assess conditions here. We've spoken about what we need to do as a batting unit to get a good score and then we've got the bowling unit to defend. Every game is important in a World Cup, you can't just show up. Anything can happen. We're sticking to the same XI”.
India's Playing XI
Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh
Pakistan's Playing XI
Mohammad Rizwan(w), Babar Azam(c), Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir
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