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Gautam Gambhir reveals why playing Pakistan in the initial stages of T20 World Cup will help India

An India and Pakistan game is the cream of any ICC event. The two arch-rivals will once again cross swords on October 24 in the first Group 2 game of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021

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Sam Abraham
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Virat Kohli - Babar Azam

Virat Kohli - Babar Azam ( Image Credit: Twitter)

An India - Pakistan game is the cream of any ICC event. The two arch-rivals will once again cross swords on October 24 in the first Group 2 game of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 in Dubai. Former India opener Gautam Gambhir believes playing Pakistan in the initial stages of the tournament will help India focus on the remaining games.

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"In 2007 as well, when we went out to win the World Cup, our first game was against Scotland, which was washed out, but then practically, our first game was against Pakistan. And that is exactly what I mentioned it is important to play Pakistan in the early stages of the tournament because what happens is -- you don't want to keep thinking about Pakistan -- you can finish it off initially and concentrate on the entire tournament, and it is exactly the same for the fans and the country as well.

"Irrespective of what the result is, I am really happy for both the countries that they are going to play against each other in the initial stages, " Gambhir said on Star Sports show Game Plan

Earlier today, ICC announced the schedule for the T20 World Cup. The tournament will get underway on October 17, with Oman and Papua New Guinea crossing swords in the opening game of the qualifying round. In the other game of the day, Scotland will take on Bangladesh in a Group B match.

Teams from Group A - Ireland, Netherlands, Sri Lanka and Namibia will play their first game on October 18. The qualifying round will go on till October 22 after which the top two teams from each group will join the main eight teams in the Super 12s, which starts with a mouthwatering game between Australia and South Africa on October 23.

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