All eyes will be on the high-voltage thriller where India will lock horns against Pakistan on October 23 at Melbourne Cricket Ground in the T20 World Cup. The mega event has already started with the initial group stage matches.


Former India batter Suresh Raina talked to NDTV and said, "Definitely, if we win the opening game against Pakistan, we will win the World Cup”.


He added, “The team is doing well right now. Shami has replaced Bumrah, it will give the side a bit of X-factor. We have Arshdeep Singh and Suryakumar Yadav. Everyone is in good form, and Virat Kohli is looking really good. Rohit Sharma is a very good leader, if we win the first match, it will set a good tone for us. Everyone in the country is praying for them and I really want them to win the World Cup."


Mohammed Shami replaced Jasprit Bumrah in the squad for the T20 World Cup last week. He took three wickets in the final over against Australia in a warm-up match on Monday.


"I would not call him a perfect replacement because you cannot replace Jasprit Bumrah or Ravindra Jadeja. They have played consistently for India and they have given performances. But the best option you had, you have selected him. Shami has given good performances, he has been in good form. BCCI have done really well in sending the team to Australia 15 days prior to the tournament. The grounds are big, overall I think the preparation has been nice. We will need to play fearless cricket and show good intent," said a former left-hander.


After being asked about whom will he bank on between Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant, Raina said, "Dinesh Karthik has been in good form and he has given good performances. But if Rishabh Pant is there in the side, it provides you with that X-factor because he is a left-handed batter. We saw how Gautam Gambhir performed in the 2007 T20 World Cup. Yuvraj Singh had six 6s. Then in the 2011 World Cup, both of them played a big role. So I think, being a left-handed batter gives you that advantage."


"Rishabh knows how to hit 6s from the first ball. If he gets a chance, he will definitely do well”, he further added.