Srilanka September 02 2023:
Pakistan have named their playing XI for the clash against India in Pallekele on Saturday.
Pakistan will field an unchanged XI from the Nepal game for the high-profile clash against India. After a massive win to start off their Asia Cup campaign, Pakistan head to Pallekele to meet India on Saturday.
Babar Azam's men are fielding an unchanged XI with a three-prong pace attack supported by three spin-bowling all-rounders.
Iftikhar Ahmed's spot was one that was arguably up for grabs in recent times, but a spectacular century from him against Nepal all but cemented his place in the XI.
The No.1 ranked team in the MRF Tyres ICC Men's ODI Team Rankings made a rousing start to their campaign against Nepal, racing to a 238-run win, but will face a stiff challenge against a near full-strength Indian team.
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India have a few tricky calls to make for the big clash, notably with respect to where Ishan Kishan bats. The wicketkeeper batter is set to play in the XI with KL Rahul ruled out of the first couple of matches.
They would also either have to choose between Axar Patel and Shardul Thakur for the No.8 spot to lengthen the batting or go bowling heavy and play Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami alongside Kuldeep Yadav.
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Pakistan XI: Fakhar Zaman, Imam Ul Haq, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf.
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