The biggest clash of Asia Cup 2023 is almost here. India play Pakistan on September 2 in Kandy and this match is already sold out. Expect millions of cricket fans to be hooked to the TV sets and other digital devices during the course of the game. India have not played Pakistan in an ODI for a long time and the fans cannot wait for the epic clash to take place. Weather could play a bummer though. As per Accuweather, there is a probability of a 94 percent rain in Kandy on the match day. The rain is expected to get heavier by the afternoon. The match begins at 3 pm IST. The fans will be hoping that rain subsides as two of the greatest teams take on each other.
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Coming to the match, all eyes will be on the playing XIs of both the teams. Talking about India, wicketkeeper and batter KL Rahul has been ruled out of the contest. Not just Pakistan game, Rahul will not take part in the match vs Nepal as well, as confirmed by head coach Rahul Dravid. Rahul has not travelled to Kandy with rest of the squad as he is being assessed currently at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru (NCA).
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— BCCI (@BCCI) August 30, 2023
With Rahul not present, Ishan Kishan could get a go-ahead. Rahul bats at No 5 and Kishan too will be playing at the same spot. Not to forget, Kishan in his earlier games has only batted in top 3. It will be interesting to see how he goes while batting in the middle order.
Apart from this India won't make any change. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami will return to the playing XI as two pacers. India may opt for either Shardul Thakur or Axar Patel as the bowling all-rounder to increase the depth of the batting. Who gets the nod will depend upon the nature of the wicket. Kuldeep Yadav should be the lone wrist spinner.
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli should make the top 3 followed by comeback man Shreyas Iyer and Hardik Pandya at No 5. Ravindra Jadeja will be one of India's finisher at No 7.
Coming to Pakistan XI, there is no real reason to change their winning combination untill unless conditions or injuries force them to make one. Think Pakistan will go with the same playing 11 they used in the Nepal game.
India vs Pakistan Predicted Playing 11
India Predicted Playing 11: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah
Pakistan Predicted Playing 11: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf
