It has been a while since India and Pakistan have met either in India or in Pakistan. The meetings have generally happened in neutral venues. This is because the countries do not take part in bilateral tournaments anymore. In the past, UAE was the hotspot for the India-Pakistan games. In this article, we take a look at India’s playing XI that last played against Pakistan in an international game in Dubai.
At the 2021 T20 World Cup, India and Pakistan will clash in Dubai. The teams last met in Dubai in the 2018 Asia Cup in the month of September. India had won that ODI game convincingly. We take a look at India’s playing XI from that encounter.
Openers in India’s Playing XI that last played against Pakistan in Dubai: Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan
Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan were the openers for India in that game. They both scored centuries in the chase of 238 and helped India post a convincing nine-wicket victory. While Rohit Sharma is still part of Team India, Dhawan has recently lost his place. However, the southpaw is a quality cricketer and will surely get a chance to earn a comeback into the set-up. Rohit, on the other hand, is likely to take over as the skipper of India’s T20I team.
Middle-Order: Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni (WK) and Dinesh Karthik
Virat Kohli was not part of that tournament and hence, it was Ambati Rayudu who operated at No.3. Before the 2019 World Cup, Rayudu was being groomed for a spot in the middle-order and had therefore got his chances. The cricketer recently won the IPL with CSK and might participate in the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Kedar Jadhav is going through a rough patch at the moment. He had yet another disappointing IPL. An India comeback is almost impossible at the moment. MS Dhoni is the mentor of India for the 2021 T20 World Cup. He also won the IPL with CSK this year. Dinesh Karthik reached the finals of IPL 2021 as a KKR player. For him, as well, an India return is unlikely to happen. DK is also a happening commentator right now.
All-Rounders in Openers in India’s Playing XI that last played against Pakistan in Dubai: Ravindra Jadeja
Ravindra Jadeja was the sole all-rounder in that game. With Hardik Pandya, not bowling, Jaddu holds a similar position in Team India even now. However, Jaddu is now a much more improved batsman and an experienced spinner.
Bowlers: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal and Jasprit Bumrah
Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah were the pacers in the playing XI in that encounter. The duo still holds an important place in the Indian pace attack. The famous Kul-Cha combination was in operation at that time. However, both players are not part of the current team. While Kuldeep is recovering from an injury, despite good form in IPL 2021, Chahal did not get a chance in the T20 WC squad. That said, both are still in contention to make a comeback in future tournaments.
