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Asia Cup 2018: India's ideal Playing XI against Pakistan

India v Pakistan - ICC Champions Trophy
India v Pakistan: More than just a game

The Indian players are bag again donning the historic blue colored jersey of Indian cricket team in limited overs. India open their Asia Cup campaign on Tuesday (18th September) with a match against minnows Hong Kong. Team India might experiment with a few players against Hong Kong before getting into the more serious business of playing against arch-rivals Pakistan on Wednesday (19th September).

Team India, without Virat Kohli, are straight away on the back foot. Any unwarranted complication by the team management in selecting the best playing XI will further dent the team’s chances of winning against Pakistan.

This article is about selecting the best possible XI for India against Pakistan.


Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan – The Openers

Australia v India - Game 1
Rohit and Dhawan - Most successful Indian opening pair

Rohit Sharma is back as Captain of the team and raring to go. The interim break from International Cricket should do him a world of good. He will get a practice match against Hong Kong to test his form and fitness. But the match against Pakistan will be a different ball game altogether.

Rohit Sharma has been a nervous starter against Mohammad Amir in the recent past. The Indian fans would be better off closing their eyes to pray and to avoid distress when Amir comes onto bowl his first over to Rohit Sharma. Rohit Sharma would be better off with focusing on more protection on his pads because that is where Amir is going to aim at.

Having said that, if Rohit manages to survive the initial onslaught of Mohammad Amir, he is a genuine match winner and he can take the attack to the opposition. The additional responsibility of leading the team in the absence of Kohli should inspire him to perform better.

In the absence of Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan has been elevated to the position of vice-captain of the team. No one can doubt his skills in white ball cricket on sub-continental pitches. In the last one year, the top 3 have been scoring all the runs for India. Dhawan should forget his miserable England tour and his immediate Test career and should concentrate on what lies ahead for him in white ball cricket.  Dhawan is an important player for India in the forthcoming World Cup.

In the absence of Virat Kohli, the Indian openers should soak all the pressure to come on top.

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