T20 World Cup 2022: India vs Pakistan Match Preview, Playing XI, Head to Head, Where to Watch on TV, & Live Streaming Details for T20 WC

The weather at Melbourne does not look appealing and there are very high chances of rain playing a spoilsport.

Published - 23 Oct 2022, 09:00 IST | Updated - 22 Oct 2022, 12:50 IST

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India and Pakistan will kick start their T20 World Cup 2022 campaign by taking on each other on October 23, Sunday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Every cricket fan from around the world has been waiting for the arch-rivals to lock horns, but there is still no confirmation of the game happening, due to the rain prediction in Melbourne.

After three days of continuous rains, the rains finally stopped a day before the game, but there still are predictions of heavy rainfall on match day. The contest will get underway if the weather conditions favor the two teams. India’s outing against Pakistan in the previous edition of the T20 World Cup was disappointing, but the Men in Blue are currently in tremendous form.

Since the last world cup, India and Pakistan have faced off twice, and both games took place during the Asia Cup 2022. Both games were nail-biting thrillers with the teams winning the game in the final over, keeping everyone on the edge of their seats. While India defeated Pakistan in the group stage of the continental event, Pakistan bounced back to win the Super Four contest.

So far, India and Pakistan have played 11 T20Is, and the Men in Blue have an upper hand, having won eight out of the 11 fixtures. Notably, two out of Pakistan’s three wins against India have come within the past one year. While Pakistan is backed with a Tri-series victory against New Zealand and Bangladesh which concluded earlier this month, India is backed with a couple of T20I series victories at home, and also wins in the practice and warmup matches.

Pitch Conditions

The Melbourne pitch has a reputation for being favorable for both the bat and the ball. The bowlers will receive a strong bounce in the opening phase, but the spinners won't get many bites. India has played here on four occasions, winning twice and losing once. Pakistan has only played once in Melbourne, and that game ended in a loss for them. Captain winning the toss would look to bowl first.

Playing Combinations for IND vs PAK

India

The Indian team is in great form, and with a bunch of talented and potential players, it is going to be a task to name a strong XI. And the opponent being Pakistan, India needs to put forth their best combination.

Predicted Playing XI: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh.

Pakistan

Afghanistan will have a big challenge ahead of them. They’re placed in a group alongside big names like England, Australia, and New Zealand, and sailing past the giants would not be an easy task. But, the T20 World Cup has witnessed multiple upsets, and thus, no team can be underestimated.

Predicted Playing XI: Babar Azam (C), Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Haider Ali, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah