Champions Trophy 2017: Younis Khan feels Pakistan has the ability to beat India

India vs Pakistan is one of the greatest sports rivalries

What’s the story?

Former Pakistan cricketer Younis Khan has shown confidence in the Sarfraz Ahmed-led side, saying they have the ability to get the better of arch-rivals India in the high-voltage Champions Trophy encounter on June 4 at Edgbaston.

"Pakistani side has the ability to beat India in Champions Trophy as Pakistan has outperformed India in the past as well," the Dawn quoted Younis as saying.

"Pitches look good and in my opinion, even 400 runs will be easily chased down in the Champions Trophy," he added.

In case you didn’t know...

Pakistan hold a 2-1 lead over their neighboring rivals in the Champions Trophy, but when it comes to the World Cups,  India have won 11 out of the 11 contests between the two sides.

The heart of the matter

Younis Khan also said that the key for Pakistan in the tournament will be their fielding, and that's what they need to concentrate more on, along with bowling and batting. The right-handed batsman, who very recently put down curtains on his international career, also hoped Sarfraz Ahmed will take the Pakistani cricket team forward.

Sarfraz took over from Azhar Ali as captain after a disastrous tour of Australia in January. This is the skipper’s first major tournament and the challenge ahead is substantial. Pakistan have played only three ODIs against the West Indies in the interim.

What’s next?

For the men in blue, they couldn't have found a better and more exciting opponent than arch-rivals Pakistan to begin their title defence in England and Wales. The pitches in England seem to be high scoring one and the encounter promises to be a roller coaster for fans. The match will begin at 3 PM IST. 

Author’s Take

The Champions Trophy hasn't been a very successful hunting ground for the men in green. Thrice they have made the semi-finals only to be eliminated - once by the West Indies and twice by New Zealand. In the 2013 edition, Pakistan remained winless. But this time around, the team would be hungry to lift the mini World Cup.