Sri Lanka: India skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bat first against Pakistan in their Asia Cup 2023 match in Kandy, Sri Lanka on Saturday. The covers have come off as there is no rain on the ground at the moment. Mohammed Shami is unavailable for game while Shardul Thakur has been picked in the team. This will be the first game for India in the tournament while Pakistan are coming on the back of a 238-run win over Nepal.
“We are going to bat first. There is a bit of weather around, but can’t think much about it. Got to play good cricket, you need to embrace the challenge, embrace the situation. We had some time off after the West Indies series. Everyone was up for those drills and challenges in Bangalore. Let’s see what we can achieve in this tournament. It’s a quality tournament with quality oppositions. At the end of the day we need to see what we can achieve as a team. Iyer is back, Bumrah is back and we got three seamers. Got two spinners – Kuldeep and Jadeja,” Rohit Sharma.
“We would have batted first. We have played a lot of cricket here, so we know the conditions. Top teams are playing so Asia Cup is good. We’ll try to do our best. We are playing with the same combination, no changes. Performing well always gives you confidence, we’ll try to capitalize. It’s a high intensity match, we’ll try to be calm and composed,” responded Babar Azam.
However, amidst the fervent anticipation of fans, there remains a slight possibility of the match being postponed due to inclement weather conditions, specifically rain. Such a scenario would undoubtedly disappoint cricket enthusiasts eagerly awaiting this enthralling encounter.
Pakistan (Playing XI): Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam(c), Mohammad Rizwan(w), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf
India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan(w), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
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