Pak vs Ind: Start to blockbuster clash delayed again due to rain after Babar Azam decides to field first – Sport

Rain delayed the start of play for the second time in the blockbuster Pakistan-India clash in the T20 World Cup after skipper Babar Azam won the toss and elected to field first.

The match was supposed to start at 8pm after the original delay of 30 minutes.

According to ESPNCricinfo, the second inspection has been completed by the umpires and the match is scheduled to begin at 8:20pm.

Although both countries are cricket powerhouses, head-to-head matches are rare between the nations. The two sides do not meet outside of official competitions of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the last Test match between them was in 2007.

The Rohit Sharma-led India will face Babar Azam and his men in their Group A match at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York — the 34,000-capacity venue built earlier this year. The match will kick off at 7:30pm.

The tickets for the high-profile encounter were sold out months ago.

A loss in today’s match will significantly diminish Pakis­tan’s chances to qualify for the Super Eight stage of the 20-nation spectacle.

According to AccuWeather, there was a 43 per cent chance of rain before the start of the tie, a probability which rose to 54pc at 11am New York time.

Following a shocking loss against USA, Babar had acknowledged that his team had a tendency to underestimate less established ones at major tournaments, adding that his side played well below their standard in Thursday’s match.

The ICC will set up its Official T20 World Cup Fanpark at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium for today’s match, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a post on X.

“So come one and all, enjoy the game on the biggest screens; with a musical concert and fun activities for all ages!” it said while describing the planned event.

VIP Stand tickets can be booked at t20worldcup.bookme.pk while entry for the general enclosures is free.

‘Challenging pitch’

A few unexpected results have also seen concerns being raised about the new pitches used in the T20 World Cup matches played in New York, with the ICC admitting that they have not been up to standard.

The temporary Nassau County International Cricket Stadium has hosted two games so far, both of which were low-scoring encounters due to the nature of the drop-in pitch which has made batting extremely difficult due to the movement and bounce.

While Indian batting coach Vikram Rathour has described it as a “challenging wicket”, boosted by a win over Ireland, he has asserted that his batters had the skills and experience needed to navigate that.

Gary Kirsten, the recently appointed white ball head coach of Pakistan, also remained optimistic, saying he expected a “favourable result”. To a query, he said that all-rounder Imad Wasim had become fully fit and was available to play against India.

“Two days ago is forgotten, we can’t take it back, it’s gone. We move on,” he told the media, referring to the defeat by USA.

Meanwhile, Rohit said his side will take the match ball by ball and over by over. Responding to a query about the pitch, he said regardless of the track behaviour, his team will play according to their plan.

“We are playing with eight batters so we look to bat aggressively to get runs quickly,” the skipper further said, stressing that he was not relying on one or two players.

India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Siraj

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir