9th June 2024 for cricket lovers and people who are following the current edition of the T20 wc; this is one of the most exciting dates as India and Pakistan, the two superpowers of the game known as cricket, will clash each other as a part of their group game in t20 wc 2024 on New York stadium. The Indian side in this T20 WC is led by Rohit Sharma, also known as “Hitman” for cricket fans due to his destructive batting. On the other hand, in this T20 WC, the men in green have been led by Babar Azam one of the prominent batsmen on the Pakistani cricket team.
The previous head-to-head history of both teams in the T20 WC
Before this game, India and Pakistan had faced each other in the T20 WC nearly six times. The men in blue have an edge on the head-to-head record as out of 6 meetings in T20 WC, the men in blue have secured five victories. Meanwhile, the Green Brigade secured one win.
The first encounter
Both teams first met in the 2007 T20 WC on 14th September 2007 as a part of their group match. This match was vital for Team India, as to qualify for Super 8 in that ongoing T20 WC, they had to win it (Due to their first match against Scotland being washed out).
The team India, led by the newly appointed captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, saw huge trouble during their first meeting. The fearsome bowling of Mohammed Asif saw the men in blue being reduced to 36/4 on six overs before being rescued by the 22-year-old batsman Robin Utthapa, who made 50 out of 39 balls. Team India, thanks to the effort of Robin Uthappa, posted 141/9 in 20 overs.
On the other hand, the Pakistan team also faced a similar problem with their batting lineup, as they saw themselves 47-4 in 8 overs. Before, Misbah Ul Haq made a splendid 50 out of just 39 balls. The match finally went down to a nail-biting position as one needed in one ball for Pakistan to secure their first victory against their arch-rivals in T20 WC.
However, the tight fielding of Team India has turned down the odds and the match was held as a tie. However, since super over was still a vague concept in those days, the game ultimately decided on a bowl-out competition where the bowlers had to hit the stumps. India secured a 3-0 victory on the bowl-out, registering their first victory against Pakistan in the T20 WC.
The second encounter
The second encounter of both teams in the T20 WC was held in the same year’s edition. After successfully passing the Super 8 and semi-final stage, both teams met in the T20 WC final in 2007. Thanks to the splendid batting of Gautam Gambhir, who scored 75 out of 54 balls, India posted 157/5 in 20 overs. Pakistan, while chasing 158 to win their first T20 WC, was in deep trouble at the start due to the splendid bowling of the youngster Irfan Pathan.
This led the men in green to see themselves on 77/6 in 11 overs before being rescued by Misbah Ul Haq once again, who single-handedly carried the Pakistan Team and made the match nearly in their favour, with Pakistan requiring six needed in just four balls. In contrast, Team India needed only one wicket. However, the final laugh was seen on the men in blue camp as they successfully not only defended 157 but also won the first edition of the T20 WC by just five runs.
The third encounter
The third time India and Pakistan met with each other in T20 WC was in 2012 at the Colombo stadium. However, this game had no nail-biting thriller like the previous two. As in this game, it was a heavily one-sided game as India dominated the match from start to end. Pakistan opted to bat and collapsed with 128 runs, losing all their wickets. The men in blue, meanwhile, on return, have this score chased securely by eight wickets with three overs to spare, securing their 3rd victory against Pakistan in T20 wc with Virat Kohli gaining man of the match award for his 78 out of 61 balls innings.
The Fourth Encounter
The fourth time India and Pakistan pitted against each other in the T20 WC this time was in 2014 in Sher e Bangla Stadium Dhaka, and just like the earlier one, it was also a heavily one-sided match dominated by the Indian cricket team throughout the game. Pakistan, just like the 2012 T20 WC, went down to bat first, and the magnificent bowling by Indian pacer Amit Sharma saw them restricted to 130/7. In return, the Indian cricket team chased this score comfortably by seven wickets with two overs to spare, registering their 4th victory in a row.
The fifth encounter
India is again being dominated on the fifth encounter with their arch-rivals in the T20 WC. This time, both of them met with each other in Eden Gardens Kolkata in 2016 as a part of their group game. The match was rain-affected, which led instead of 20 overs an 18 overs match to be seen. Pakistan has scored 118/5 in 18 overs. The men in blue, in the process of chasing 119, saw themselves in trouble with 23-3 before a well-built partnership between Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh made the men in blue secure their fifth win against Pakistan in T20 wc by just six wickets with 13 balls to spare.
The sixth encounter
However, on the sixth encounter, the Indian team didn’t get the easy hand. Both teams met with each other this time in UAE in 2021 t20 wc. From the beginning, Pakistan saw heavy dominance thanks to the terrific spell of Shaheen Shah Afridi that restricted India to 151/7. The Pakistan team, without losing any wickets, has successfully chased the score in 17.5 with both of their batsman captain, Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan, scoring a half-century. This was the first time Pakistan beat India in a T20 WC game.
The seventh encounter
This time, India and Pakistan encountered each other for the 7th time in the 2022 T20 WC scheduled in Australia. The T20 WC match was scheduled at Melbourne Stadium. Thanks to a superb bowling unit of India, especially Arshdeep Singh, the men in blue successfully restricted Pakistan to 159/8. However, when India came to chase this target, they looked into deep trouble as Haris Rauf led Pakistan’s bowling attack and made men in blue in the position of 31-4 in 6 overs. At the same time, everyone was counting on the 2nd consecutive victory for Pakistan in the T20 WC against India.
However, this time, once again, Virat Kohli came up to the rescue, and he, with Indian vice-captain Hardik Pandya, made a 100+ partnership that brought the game back to India. However, in the last couple of overs, Pakistan took the game nearly into their hand, with the game in the last stage turning out just like their first meeting in T20 WC 2007. The final equation went down into one run, one ball equation. Unlike the 2007 T20 WC, the batting team successfully made it, avoiding a run-out-like situation in the previous one, and India registered their sixth victory against Pakistan in the T20 WC.
Some players that can be the game changers in this particular game of T20 WC
For India
Virat Kohli
Without a doubt, one of India’s most game-changing players in this particular match is Virat Kohli. The 35-year-old batsman is currently in splendid form, as seen in the IPL when he secured 741 runs in 15 games, winning the orange cap. Also, judging by his records against Pakistan in the T20 WC, especially on the last one, he can undoubtedly be put into the category of game-changing player.
Hardik Pandya
Another name that can be the game-changer player for India in this T20 WC match is Hardik Pandya, the team’s vice-captain. The 30-year-old Indian all-rounder might have had a bad IPL session this year, but in the recent practice match of the T20 WC against Bangladesh, he seems to have regained his lost form as he scored a quick 40 out of 23 balls, also securing 30/1 in just three overs.
Arshdeep Singh
In the bowling department, one of the leading names that can come up is certainly Arshdeep Singh. The 25-year-old spinner has already secured 62 wickets in 44 matches that he played for India. Judging by his prominent role in the previous T20 WC match between both teams and his recent bowling performance against the practice match with Bangladesh (2/12 in 4 overs ). He might be considered a trump card for India in this T20 WC game against Pakistan regarding the bowling.
Mohammed Siraj
Speaking of the bowling department, another player looking forward to being a game-changer for the Indian cricket team in this T20 WC match against Pakistan is Mohammed Siraj, the 30-year-old right-arm fast bowler who might have played only 10 T20s for India. Still, he secured seven wickets in his name in these ten games. Lastly, he was also in pretty good form in the recent edition of IPL and the T20 WC practice match, with his bowling figure in that game being just 17/1 in 3 overs.
For Pakistan
Babar Azam
The first name on the list is the Pakistan captain, Babar Azam, who has scored 3 thousand runs in 119 t20 matches. In the recent t20 series against Ireland, the skipper of Pakistan had good form as he scored two half-centuries. In the 2021 T20 WC, he was a crucial pillar in Pakistan’s first victory. One of the prominent players for Pakistan in this T20 WC game is undoubtedly the skipper of the Pakistan team.
Fakhar Zaman
Another prominent batsman who could be a crucial game-changer for Pakistan in this upcoming T20 WC game is Fakhar Zaman. Not only has he a pretty good batting record against India in the past, especially on the critical ICC events, but recently, in the Ireland series, he has scored a valuable 78 runs to guide their team into an ultimate victory and save them from a series loss.
Shaheen Shah Afridi
However, one of the significant game-changers for this upcoming T20 WC game for Pakistan will undoubtedly be their 25-year-old fast bowler, Shaheen Shah Afridi. In his 66 t20 matches, the Sialkot bowler has secured 110 wickets, and in the past encounter, especially in the 2021 T20 WC, he troubled India a lot with his fearsome bowling. This is one of the critical players Pakistan is looking forward to in this T20 WC game to restrict India to a low total or defend their low total target.
Ifthikar Ahmed
Also, since Pakistan has a habit of falling into batting collapse, Pakistani cricket fans, if their team faces a similar situation in this T20 WC match, will undoubtedly look forward to their middle order batsman Iftikhar Ahamed, also known as “Chachu” by cricket fans. He has saved Pakistan numerous times from a troublesome position. So if the Pakistan cricket team once again on 9th June faces a similar type of situation, then he can emerge as a game changer regarding this.
About the T20 WC match of 9th June
This particular T20 WC match between India and Pakistan will be played as a part of their Group A game at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York. The match, according to the Eastern time zone, primarily followed by New York, will start at 10:30 am. However, in the Indian standard time, this crucial match of the 2024 T20 WC will begin at 8 pm. However, there are two things to worry about in this game. One is the weather.
The weather forecast for 9th June in New York is expected to be cloudy, so there might or might not be a chance of rainfall. Another is a terror attack threat that is made by a pro-ISIS group, ISIS K, regarding this T20 WC game (However, the security has been tightened with FBI, NYPD and Homeland Security jointly working together).
The stadium is also expected to be fully packed up as repeatedly all tickets for this particular T20 WC game have sold out, with the highest price of the ticket touching nearly eight lakhs in the rate of Indian currency. Before facing off each other, both teams will play respectively against Ireland and the USA to kick-start their 2024 T20 WC campaign.
Final Thoughts
From the perspective of a cricket fan, all I want from this particular T20 WC game is a thrilling nail-biting contest. I want the match to be exciting, like the 2022 T20 WC, where, during the whole game, 50-50 chances were floating around, and every time, both teams had their edge on this game. This will undoubtedly make the India vs Pakistan match, also referred to as the mother of all clashes in cricket, live up to the name.
Otherwise, boring, one-sided matches kill the whole game’s vibe, which I repeatedly experienced in the 2024 IPL final. Lastly, judging by the pitch, this particular T20 WC game is heavily bowling-friendly. Just a few days ago, Sri Lanka and South Africa, as part of their T20 WC schedule, clashed in this venue when Sri Lanka bundled on 77 in 19.1 overs.
However, South Africa didn’t find it easy to chase it as they chased the target in 16.2 overs while losing four wickets. So you can see this particular stadium if it keeps the same pitch characteristics as the previous game between Lankan Lions and Proteas on the 9th June t20 WC. Then, both sides should heavily depend on their bowlers and secure a victory on the toss.
At the same time, in this condition, India will look for bowlers like Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah to shine. On the other hand, Pakistan must cross their fingers to see Shaheen Shah Afridi, Nassem Shah, and Haris Rauf creating magic. So, this particular T20 WC game has a chance to see bowlers dominating the game from both sides.
