Pakistan opt to bat; India bring back Pandya and Bumrah

Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first in the high-voltage encounter against arch-rivals India in a battle to determine the table toppers of Group A.

Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first in the high-voltage encounter against arch-rivals India in a battle to determine the table toppers of Group A.

India have made two changes to their side that just about managed to evade an embarrassing defeat to Hong Kong yesterday. Expectedly Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya have a made comeback to the Indian side in place of Shardul Thakur and Khaleel Ahmed. Apparently, it looks a bit harsh on young Khaleel, who had taken three wickets against Hong Kong and impressed one and all with his variations but one can't question India for going in with the experience of Pandya, who will also strengthen India's lower middle order.

Spinners are sure to play a key role in the outcome of the match, especially taking into consideration pitch, which is the same used in yesterday's India vs Hong Kong match. 

"It will be a slow pitch still but the batsmen should enjoy batting on it. The spinners might get a bit of help and the pacers with the new ball. Overall, a really good deck to bat on." reckoned Sunil Gavaskar after inspecting the surface. 

India captain Rohit Sharma agreed that they did not agree "Nevertheless we now know what we're doing. Have to accept the fact that we were rusty against HK. They played well, showed great determination. To cross the line was a great deal. The fresh game today, guys looking forward to it," said Rohit.

Teams:

India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni(w), Hardik Pandya, Kedar Jadhav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal

Pakistan (Playing XI): Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed(w/c), Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Usman Khan