ICC Champions Trophy 2017, India vs Pakistan

ICC Champions Trophy 2017, India vs Pakistan: Title-holders India will look to put an off-field row behind them when they face arch-rivals Pakistan in their Champions Trophy opener at Edgbaston on Sunday.

Build up to what is debatably cricket’s most predictable fixture has been conquered by reports of a declining out between India captain Virat Kohli and coach Anil Kumble.Former India leg-spinner Kumble has overseen five Test series wins since his appointment in June last year.

His contract expires after the end of the Champions Trophy but many have questioned the insight of the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s decision to advertise Kumble’s job a week before the one day international tournament starts.
Ramachandra Guha, who quit a Supreme Court appointed four-member committee overseeing the BCCI in protest, said in his letter of resignation, “If indeed the captain and the head coach were not getting along, why was this not attended to as soon as the Australian series was over in late March, “Why was it left until the last minute, when a major international tournament was imminent?”
There were fears India may not even get the chance to defend the title they won at Edgbaston four years by thrashing hosts England in a exciting final reduced by rain to 20 overs per side, after the BCCI oblique at a boycott of the 50-over tournament as a result of a revenue-sharing dispute with the International Cricket Council (ICC).
However Kohli, one of the most ambitious players now in world cricket, said as his team left for England, “The hunger to win and ruthlessness is what we speak about all the time.”
The India captain leads a powerful batting line up, with former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi, in a column writing: “While Kohli is the backbone, India possesses considerable firepower around him. Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni are all match winners.”
Afridi also noted the balance in a bowling attack which is set to include steamers by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami as well as the spin partnership of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
However Pakistan are not without hope and boast proven performers in the likes of captain Sarfraz Ahmed, an excellent wicketkeeper and batsman, as well as a big beating rookie all rounder in Fahim Ashraf.
“We have nothing to lose, we just want to play our natural game,” Sarfraz Ahmed said. “We are very hopeful of playing well in this tournament and we want to win it.”
Yet for all that players on both sides have tried to tag Sunday’s clash as ‘just another game’, the fact is someone always has something to lose in an India vsPakistan match, a clash that commands the attention of billions round the world let alone in the two cricket crazy sub continent.
Political opposition means the two sides have not played a mutual series since 2012-2013, and India have refused to consider the idea without an end to ‘cross border terrorism’, code for militant incursions along the disputed Kashmir border.
India have never lost a 50-over World Cup or ICC Twenty20 showdown against Pakistan, and a win on Sunday would put them in good stead in a tough group also including Sri Lanka and South Africa.
However Pakistan have won two of their three Champions Trophy showdowns against India.
Teams (from):
PAKISTAN: Azhar Ali, Ahmed Shehzad, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Imad Wasim, Fahim Ashraf, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Hasan Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Haris Sohail.
INDIA: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (captain), Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Dinesh Karthik, Ajinkya Rahane.
Umpires: Marais Erasmus (South Africa) and Kumar Dharmasena (Sri Lanka).
TV umpire: Richard Kettleborough (England).
Match referee: Andy Pycroft (Zimbabwe).