India Will Think Of Pakistan Game In T20I World Cup Once IPL 2021 Is Over, Says Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Jul 17, 2021 at 2:44 PM

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India Will Think Of Pakistan Game In T20I World Cup Once IPL 2021 Is Over, Says Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who will spearhead the pace attack in the upcoming Sri Lankan series starting July 18 has said that a clash between India and Pakistan is always a “high intensity” game but the team is not currently thinking about the T20 World Cup as there is a lot of cricket left before the marquee event.

India’s limited-overs vice-captain Bhuvneshwar Kumar for the Sri Lanka series led by Shikhar Dhawan expressed his excitement on facing arch-rivals Pakistan in the upcoming T20 World Cup and called it a high-pressure and high-intensity match. However, Bhuvneshwar Kumar pointed out that India’s focus was on the next Sri Lanka and England series before the postponed season of the Indian Premier League 2021 which is expected to start from the third week of September.

Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar Image-AP
Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar Image-AP

Bhuvneshwar Kumar: India Will Think Of Pakistan Game In T20I WC Once IPL 2021 Is Over

Indian teams and players from other countries will already be present in UAE as the BCCI is also set to host the remaining matches of the IPL 2021 in the Gulf nation.

Notably, hosts India has been placed in the same group as arch-rivals Pakistan as the draws were done on Friday in the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup to be held in the United Arab Emirates and Oman later this year. The last time the two teams squared off was in the 2019 Men’s ODI World Cup on June 16, which India had comfortably won by 89 runs via the D/L method.

“Look, it is always exciting to play against Pakistan, and it is always a pressure and high-intensity match. But, to be honest, we have not really thought about how it is going to be because we have a lot of cricket left,” Bhuvneshwar Kumar, vice-captain of the Sri Lanka-bound Indian outfit, said.

Representational image of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup trophy | AFP / Jewel Samad
Representational image of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup trophy | AFP / Jewel Samad

“We have got matches in Sri Lanka and of course Test matches in England and then the IPL and then the World Cup. Once we get off the IPL, we will start thinking about that,” Bhuvneshwar Kumar added.

The Groups of Super 12s have been selected on the basis of team rankings as of March 20, according to the International Cricket Council. Two teams will join each of the groups from the qualifying rounds. The tournament was originally scheduled to be held in India but was moved out of the country due to an expected third wave of the coronavirus.
Even before that, the tournament was supposed to be held in Australia in 2020 but Covid-19 prompted it to be postponed. Now Australia will hold the event in 2022.

India And Pakistan Have Not Played Bilateral Tests For 14 Years And Limited Overs For 8 Years

India and Pakistan have not played the Test series for more than 14 years. As far as bilateral series in ODIs and T20Is are concerned, it has been over eight years. While they face off each other during ICC events and Asia Cup.

The political tension between the two neighbouring countries flared up after the terror attack in Mumbai’s Taj Hotel. Since then, there have been many incidents that have erupted on the borders of India and Pakistan. As a result, it had affected the game of cricket between the two countries.

India and Pakistan rarely play against each other but have a heated rivalry. (Photo by Tharaka Basnayaka/NurPhoto via Getty Images) NURPHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES
India and Pakistan rarely play against each other but have a heated rivalry. (Photo by Tharaka Basnayaka/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The 2019 World Cup in England was when the two teams last met at a neutral venue. India won that match by 89 runs. Pakistan and India’s last bilateral ties at either of the two neighbouring countries were 2 T20Is and 3 ODIs in India way back in 2012.

The two Asian rivals now only play matches during the ICC events and Asia Cup which relatively has become one-sided affairs with the Men in Blue edging the Men in Green.

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