The great Cricket Rivalry of India vs Pakistan is all set to witness another glorious chapter in their Cricketing History on the biggest stage of Cricket. Manchester, a great sporting city will be the venue for the marquee clash. The match has been highly anticipated by fans from both sides of the border, and are all set to cheer for their country. India is 6-0 against their arch-rivals and are favourites going into the contest, but as they say, you can never be complacent and count against an unpredictable Pakistan side. They surprised everyone when they humbled India in the Champions trophy Final 2017 in England. The match is all about who will perform better under pressure and win the all-important match. Here are 3 players from each side, that will be vital in their side's success on Sunday.
India
1.Virat Kohli
The captain of the Indian cricket team has always put his hand up when the encounter is big. Against Pakistan Kohli has brought out his A game in several crunch encounters. The Indian skipper Scored a delightful 107 against Pakistan in the last World Cup in Australia. He was also the man of the match, in the crunch game when the two sides met in the 2016 T20 world cup in India. In the absence of Shikhar Dhawan, Kohli becomes the key Wicket for Pakistan and if they knock him early they would believe they can boss the match. Whereas, Kohli will be again looking to play a memorable knock against them and score his 42nd ODI century. The best batsman in the world will have to be at his best again in the marquee clash. The champion batsman has scored a staggering 10,943 at an average of 59.47 in his career so far.
2. Hardik Pandya
The Swashbuckling Indian All-rounder has been in top-notch form in this year. Pandya has become one of the most dangerous strikers in the world today, he has this amazing ability to take the game away from the opposition from ball one. He smashed Imad Wasim for three consecutive sixes when he played his first match against Pakistan. Even in the Final of the champions trophy, he scored the fastest fifty in the final of an ICC event against Pakistan. The All Rounder is a big player for team India and will be looking fire on all cylinders at Manchester. Pandya has a strike rate of 120 in his career so far, and if the Indian Top order gives Indian a good start, Pandya can go berserk from ball one as he did against Australia and South Africa.
3. Jasprit Bumrah
The trump card for Virat Kohli, and the leader of the pack when it comes to bowling. Bumrah has some unfinished business against Pakistan as his no ball to Fakhar Zaman proved to be extremely costly in the Champions Trophy Final. But Since then the fast bowler has gone from strength to strength and has become one of the best fast bowlers across all formats. He picks wickets in the first powerplay, you give him the ball in the middle overs he’ll knock a few wickets again and in the death, he is just a master at work. The Pakistan top order would have their task cut out against Jasprit Bumrah and will be looking to not give him wickets during his spells. The current number 1 bowlers in ODIs has an astonishing record, in the 51 matches he has played he has scalped 90 wickets at an impressive average of just 21.99.
Pakistan
1. Babar Azam
Babar Azam is the only batsman in the Pakistani side that can play authentic cricket shots and can still play at a strike rate of around 100, The stylish Pakistan number 3 has been in the terrific form since his side landed in England. India will have to remove Azam quickly, as he is one batsman that gets set quickly and doesn’t allow the bowlers to settle down easily. Babar has an average of over 50 in his ODI career and has shown that once he is set he ultimately goes on to score a Ton. He will not get a better stage than an India Pakistan game to showcase his talent and will be looking to be the game changer for his side. Against India Azam has played 4 matches in which he has only scored only 110 runs and would be looking to improve his numbers against the men in blue.
2. Mohammad Amir
All Indian fans still remember the Champions Trophy final when Amir won the game for Pakistan in his very first spell. Amir who wasn’t even selected in the initial World Cup squad for Pakistan was out of sorts before the tournament. He was heavily criticised for not picking up wickets and going for plenty of runs. But when the big games came he consistently picked wickets for his side and brought Pakistan in the match. He is the highest wicket-taker so far in the World Cup and would be looking to continue his heroics against India. India needs to be wary of Amir as he has the ability to strike early in the innings and can dent India heavily. The left arm seamer already has a 5 wicket haul to his name in this World Cup and will be looking to continue his red hot form on Sunday. Amir has played 4 matches against India in which he has picked 5 wickets at an average of 42.80.
3. Fakhar Zaman
Fakhar Zaman scored a scintillating century in the champions trophy final against India and showed that he is a big match player. He may have technical weaknesses in his game but he has shown in the past that once set he can create havoc by scoring runs all around the ground. India needs to get rid of the Pakistani opener early as he is Pakistan’s X factor with the bat. He is extremely strong square off the wicket and Bhuvi and Bumrah will have to cut out his scoring shots and frustrate him by not giving away boundaries to him. The Southpaw has a career average of 49 in his career but the most important thing is his strike rate which is close to a 100. Zaman would try to mirror is champions trophy final performance and win the match again for Pakistan. Fakhar Zaman has played 3 matches against India in which he has managed to score 145 runs at an average of 48.33
