The day has finally arrived. Nervous excitement seems to have gripped fans one of the biggest rivalries in professional sports is set to reignite with over a billion people hooked to television sets while being tucked in their comfortable couches. In the Super-12 stage of the ongoing T20 World Cup, the inaugural champions India will cross swords against arch-rivals Pakistan, who clinched the glittering silverware in 2009 and the excitement for the high-voltage contest is escalating at a rapid pace.
India and Pakistan are scheduled to lock horns in a blockbuster contest on October 23 (Sunday) at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Both teams are expected to land heavy punches to secure an all-important win to start their campaign in tremendous fashion.
Having said that, over a billion people might see a bitter end to their excitement as there is a chance of rain playing a spoilsport. A couple of days back, there was a 90% chance of rain on October 23 in Melbourne but the conditions have improved drastically since then.
"It has not rained in Melbourne for the last 20 hours. Talking about this morning (October 23), there are dark clouds hovering in the sky. Thus, the chances of skies opening up later in the day are definitely there. But the match is to start in the evening, and it is predicted that the game will carry on without any interruption. At the same time, how long it rains in the afternoon cannot be estimated right now. At present, there are dark clouds and the match is expected to be held," Vikrant Gupta, Managing Editor Aaj Tak/Sports Tak, reported from Melbourne.
One can only hope and pray for the rain gods to show mercy and let fans feast on a high-drama clash between two former champions and arch-rivals.
The two teams will square off against each other for the fourth time in a span of a year. Pakistan trounced India by 10 wickets in the T20 World Cup match last year in UAE while both teams registered a win against each other in the Asia Cup 2022. The Men in Blue will be desperate to exact revenge after suffering an awful defeat against the Men in Green last year and also for their loss in Asia Cup this year.
