Advertisment

20-20 World Cup 2022: India's predicted playing XI vs Pakistan

Here we’ll have a look at the predicted playing XI of the Indians for the first match against their neighbors, Pakistan in the first match on

author-image
Jennifer
New Update
20-20 World Cup , India vs Pakistan

The Indian team is all set to play their first match against the arch-rivals Pakistan to start their campaign in the 20-20 World Cup 2022. The men in blue are coming in two T20I series wins before the marquee tournament in Australia. Although, Rohit’s men didn’t have an expected outing in the warm-up matches against Western Australia ahead of the main round of the tournament.

Advertisment

It will also be a concern for the selectors to pick the best playing eleven for the high-voltage encounter against Pakistan. It can be said because of vulnerabilities to injuries in the Indian camp. Having said that, here we’ll have a look at the predicted playing XI of the Indians for the first match against their neighbors, Pakistan in the first match.

Here’s a look at the predicted playing XI of India against Pakistan.

Openers – Rohit Sharma (C) and KL Rahul (VC)

Advertisment

India Playing XI

The opening pair of India including skipper Rohit Sharma and senior batter KL Rahul has been in good touch during the three-match T20I series against Australia. They also showed their class when India scored 237 runs for the loss of only three wickets in 20 overs against South Africa in the T20I series.

The onus will be on Rohit and Rahul to give a strong start to the Indian team in the crucial matches of the 20-20 World Cup. As Indians are placed with the teams like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and South Africa in Group B so Rohit and Rahul will be there automatically in the playing XI of the team for most of the matches.

Advertisment

Middle-Order – Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, and Dinesh Karthik (WK)

Suryakumar Yadav, Virat Kohli Suryakumar Yadav, Virat Kohli (Image Source: Twitter)

Former skipper and senior batter Virat Kohli has recently gained his old form with a swashbuckling century against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup 2022. Following that century, he has also performed brilliantly in the three-match T20I series against Australia and South Africa respectively. His place is looking fixed at number three in the Indian batting lineup during the ongoing 20-20 World Cup 2022.

Talking about the star Indian batting sensation Suryakumar Yadav has stunned and impressed everyone with his mind-blowing performances in the last couple of matches. The 32-year-old batter has smashed three consecutive half-centuries in the last five T20Is. Continuing his excellent form, Sky also played a half-century match in the warm-up match against Western Australia on the 10th of October ahead of World Cup.

Number five is considered as the most crucial position for team India in the current times so the skipper and management might count on the star all-rounder Hardik Pandya to play in this position. He might be followed by the senior wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik who is known for his excellent finishing skills of late.

All-rounder – Axar Patel

Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja

Axar Patel has proved his worth for the Indian team in the last few bilateral assignments in white-ball cricket. He has delivered both with the bat and the ball. Everybody was impressed with Axar’s outings in the series against West Indies and Zimbabwe. On the backs of his stellar performances, the selectors picked Axar in the Indian squad for the 20-20 World Cup.

He can play a vital role for team India in the lower order batting with some crucial contributions with the ball in the middle overs. So, Axar seems to be a perfect choice to bat at number seven in the batting order of India.

Bowlers – Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, and Yuzvendra Chahal

Mohammed Shami

Senior pacer Mohammed Shami has been included in the squad at the last moment as an immediate replacement for the injured senior pacer Jasprit Bumrah. Shami is expected to lead the Indian pace attack. Notably, the Amroha-based pacer hasn’t played any T20I since his last appearance for India during the 20-20 World Cup 2021 last year.

Another senior pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar is there to accompany Mohammed Shami in the pace attack of team India. He can play a vital role for the Indian team with his excellence in swinging the ball both ways. Apart from that, his slower yorker can also play a defining role for India. Harshal Patel has been on the receiving end of criticism for his recent poor outings in white-ball cricket. But there are the possibilities that the management might give him a chance in playing XI of the first match against Pakistan.

Speaking about the slot of a specialist spinner in the squad, Yuzvendra Chahal will be the first choice of the Indian selectors and skipper Rohit Sharma for their first match against Pakistan on the 23rd of October at MCG in Melbourne.

India Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma 20-20 World Cup 2022 T20 World Cup