A temporary “season of peace” began after Pakistan reversed its boycott and agreed to take the field against India at the Premadasa Stadium.
This came after weeks of intensive negotiations with the International Cricket Council, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Virtually all of South Asia has been wheeling and turning to make this match happen, weather gods permitting, because of its power to attract millions – both fans and bank balance.
So the chain of events that started the BCCI’s dropping of Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman from the Kolkata Knight Riders’ roster, which turned into a cross-border crisis, has come to a halt – for now.
Cricketers from both the teams also tried to tone down the accompanying whirlwind of hype and termed the match as the next game on the calendar. It’s hard to understand the exact nature of their thoughts in this regard, but both sides certainly don’t want the result to go against them because of the frenzy of negativism it might set off.
To do this, they will need to put thoughts of fan backlash aside and focus on more controllable factors.
Abhishek’s fitness boost
For India, the worries begin with Abhishek, who was forced to miss the match against Namibia with a stomach bug that required hospitalisation.
On the other hand, the left-hander was hitting the nets for a considerable amount of time on Saturday night, signaling his recovery.
“If you want, we will play Abhishek,” said captain Suryakumar Yadav in a joking mood when the obvious question was asked.
It is almost certain that Punjab will replace Sanju Samson to open the side in the form of Ishan Kishan. The nature of the track could also prompt the management to consider a left hander on Kuldeep Yadav’s wrist.
However, Kuldeep’s inclusion would likely come at the expense of the batter, with Rinku Singh the unlucky candidate to miss out. The Chinese bowler’s hold on Babar Azam and his impressive 4 for 30 in the Asia Cup final in Dubai – his last match against Pakistan – makes the temptation stronger.
Moderate stuttering
In the run-up to the World Cup, India’s batting resembled a bulldozer rolling down a hill. But two games into the tournament revealed a slight concern – a tendency to concede goals in the groups.
India slumped to 77 for six against USA in Mumbai, while five wickets fell for just four runs against Namibia in the death overs in New Delhi. The latest collapse was masked by a 200-plus total and a 93-run win. On both occasions, India were bailed out by Suryakumar, Kishan and Hardik Pandya.
A long tournament requires collective effort rather than repeated reliance on individual brilliance. With four points in the kitty, the management need not worry too much just yet, but another bout of sloppiness against Pakistan could prove costly.
The threat of Pakistan
Under the hybrid model that was introduced last year, Pakistan were stationed in Colombo, giving them a better understanding of the pitch and conditions. The surface at the R Premadasa Stadium tends to help the slower bowlers and the 2009 champions have five spin options – Usman Tariq, Saim Ayub, Abrar Ahmed, Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz.
Tariq’s side-arm stop-and-pause action has already become the talk of the town and his showdown with India’s all-rounders promises to be an interesting subplot.
“When you get a question outside the syllabus, you try to solve it,” Suryakumar said in response to a Pakistani journalist.
Led by the irrepressible Sahibzada Farhan – who seemed to find answers against Jasprit Bumrah in last year’s Asia Cup – along with Ayub and the all-rounder Faheem Ashraf, Pakistan’s batting can really rock their day.
Without any disrespect to Netherlands and USA, Pakistan have yet to face a bowling attack of India’s caliber.
From Bumrah to Varun Chakravarthy, India have proven match-winners while all-rounder Shivam Dube has improved significantly with the ball in recent times. It gives the defending champions immense flexibility in setting up combinations.
All calculations aside, this match is ultimately about finding mental balance and rising above multi-point pressures – external and internal.
There is a threat of rain
Sri Lanka’s Meteorological Department has warned of a low pressure area developing over the Bay of Bengal, which could mean up to 70 percent chance of rain in the Khettarama area on Sunday evening.
Teams (from)
India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh.
Pakistan: Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Tari Khan.