Indian captain Virat Kohli has revealed that the game against Pakistan brings the best out of his team. The arch rivals are set to take center stage in World Cup 2019 on Sunday at Old Trafford.
The hype surrounding is already quite high. Both the teams have had some extra ordinary clashes in ICC events. However, India holds a distant advantage when it comes to ICC World Cups. The team had never lost to Pakistan in any format across world cups.
But Sunday will be a different game played with different teams. The history makes little sense on the day. However, the pressure to deliver in this match is high on both sets of players. Virat Kohli, has revealed that is team are keen to get on with their game plan.
“It’s been competitive for years, it’s a marquee event all over the world, honour to be a part of the big game. Brings out the best in all of us,” Kohli said about India vs Pakistan.
“For Sunday, we know we’re there when it comes to the mindset. Just about going out there and having a game plan, executing it,” he said after the washout against New Zealand.
India’s game against New Zealand was washed out without a single ball being bowled.
On the other hand, Pakistan suffered a 41 run defeat to defending champions Australia. Although, the winning margin does not reveal the thrilling contest on Wednesday.
India are considered as title favorites and are playing like one. Virat Kohli has insisted that his team is quite experienced to not get intimidated for the game against Pakistan. He also clearly stated once the players are on the field, it is much more calm and relaxed.
“As soon as you enter the field, it’s calm and relaxed. The atmosphere from the outside, for the first time, it’s a bit intimidating, but we’ll look to execute well.”
India suffered a major blow by losing Shikhar Dhawan with thumb injury. The southpaw suffered a hair line fracture in his thumb in the game against Australia. Reports revealed that he needs close to three weeks to fully recover.
The Indian skipper also revealed about the current status of Shikhar Dhawan. However, he expressed his hope on Dhawan’s availability during the latter stages of the world cup.
“Shikhar will be in a plaster for a couple of weeks, we’ll assess and see. Hopefully, he’ll be available for the later half and the semi-finals. He’s motivated, we wanted to keep him back.”
India hold a 6-0 win record against Pakistan in ICC World Cup history. Even though, Pakistan start as underdogs, they cannot be underestimated. They proved it in the game against hosts England. So it will be an interesting game between arch rivals unless rain intervenes. Lets keep our fingers crossed for an uninterrupted match on Sunday.