Pakistan: Shaheen Shah Afridi of Pakistan showed excellent form during the Vitality Blast, taking 22 wickets in 14 games. He's now preparing for the World Cup.
If we examine Team India's statistics against Pakistan at ICC World Cups, we can see that they have consistently been the superior team. The Men in Blue have consistently been in the lead versus the neighbors, whether it was in the 1992 edition, which saw the first meeting of the arch rivals in the championship game, or the prior edition, which was contested in England.
India not only has a strong record in the 50-over World Cup, but also in the shorter format. With the exception of a single blip during the UAE-hosted T20 World Cup in 2021, the team has consistently outperformed Pakistan.
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While winning and losing are inevitable in sports, Rohit Sharma and company now have the responsibility of continuing the trend. The marquee match between the two teams is the most anticipated game of the competition because Pakistan too faces great pressure to rewrite history.
Shaheen Shah Afridi, a Pakistani sprinter who performed admirably in the Vitality Blast, believes that other games should be given similar weight and that the focus should instead be on winning the World Cup rather than solely on India.
"We should stop thinking and concentrating on just India versus Pakistan match because that’s just one game. We need to focus our thoughts on how to win the World Cup, and as a team, this will be our aim," Afridi was quoted as saying in a report by Cricket Pakistan.
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Afridi made a comeback to competitive cricket in the most recent Pakistan Super League after missing a number of games due to a knee injury. The tall and lanky pacer allayed worries about his physical condition by declaring that he is prepared to play for Pakistan against Sri Lanka, which would be his return to international action following the injury.
"I am fully fit; that's why I'm back in the Test team. If I hadn't been fully match fit, my name wouldn't have been in the squad. I will be playing for Pakistan's national team, not for a club-level team."
India hasn't won a significant ICC title in over ten years, with the 2013 ICC Champions title serving as the most recent example. India was considered the favorite going into several ICC events after their victory in England, but they haven't won anything. The team hasn't been able to duplicate the show off the field despite having some of the greatest names and possibly the best franchise T20 league.
The ICC ODI World Cup will being conducted exclusively in the nation this year, giving Rohit Sharma and his team an excellent opportunity to end the 10-year dry spell. India will compete as favorites once more, and only time will tell if the drought will end or if there will be disappointment again.
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