‘For us, it is just a game of cricket’ – Rohit Sharma on the upcoming Asia Cup clash against Pakistan
The Indian Cricket Team skipper, Rohit Sharma has acknowledged the fact that the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 clash against arch-rivals Pakistan is without a doubt a high-pressure game of cricket. With the highly anticipated encounter just a week away, the excitement of fans around the globe knows no bounds.
The Asia Cup 2022 is scheduled to be played from August 27 to September 11 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The tournament will kick off with the hosts Sri Lanka taking on Afghanistan. The multi-nation tournament was initially set to be played in Sri Lanka but was shifted to UAE due to the political turmoil in the country.
The Asian Giants India and Pakistan will start their Asia Cup campaign against each other on match-day two at the Dubai International Stadium on the 28th of August 2022.
Interestingly, India and Pakistan squared off against each other in their opening fixture of the 20-20 World Cup last year at the same venue. The Babar Azam-led side then thrashed the Men in Blue by ten wickets. The likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi were the heroes of the famous victory. It was, in fact, Pakistan’s first-ever win over India in a World Cup fixture.
India, which is under a new regime of Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid, would look to make amends from their previous outing. The Indian skipper, while speaking to Star Sports, admitted that the game will be intense and players will be under the pump but he and coach Dravid want to create a sense of calm in the dressing room. The veteran batter added that it will be important for him and the coach to continuously explain to the players that it is just another game of cricket.
“Everyone watches the game, especially India vs Pakistan. Without a doubt, it is a high-pressure game, but within the group, we want to create a normal atmosphere and don’t want to hype this game within ourselves. For us, it is just a game of cricket. It is important for me and Rahul Bhai to tell the players that it’s just another opposition,” he said ahead of the big game.
India and Pakistan have locked horns 14 times in Asia Cup and the Men in Blue have stood tall on eight of those occasions. Also in their last six battles, India has been defeated just once. India and Pakistan are currently engaged in bilateral ODI series against Zimbabwe and Netherlands respectively in the build-up to the highly anticipated clash.
Related Posts
