The India vs Pakistan cricket rivalry will be renewed on Saturday when the two cricket teams clash in the ODI Cricket World Cup 2023 in Ahmedabad. Cricket matches between the two teams hold extra significance for fans from both countries. and, if it is the Cricket World Cup then nothing like it. Both the Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team and the Babar Azam-led Pakistan cricket team are in terrific form in the Cricket World cup so far. With two wins in two matches, the sides are among the top-three sides in the 10-team marquee event.
Things have looked positive for India so far. On Wednesday, India captain Rohit Sharma roared back to his century-striking form with the fastest World Cup ton by an Indian. Against Afghanistan, Rohit Sharma reached the triple-figure mark in just 63 balls. On the other hand, Jasprit Bumrah took four wickets.
Earlier, in the first match against Australia, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul struck great half-centuries. The Indian spinners were also in top-notch form. India's form has impressed Sachin Tendulkar.
"Two fine performances by Bumrah and Rohit, who were well supported by the bowling and batting units respectively. The 2 games have seen different players contributing and that sets things up nicely for the 14th of October. Look forward!" he posted on X (formerly Twitter).
India captain Rohit Sharma on Wednesday urged his side to keep their focus on "things we can control" ahead of the mega World Cup clash against arch-rival Pakistan, having completed a dominating eight-wicket win over Afghanistan here.
India crushed Afghanistan to record a second victory on the trot in the World Cup with Rohit breaking several records en route a superb 131 off 84 balls.
The hosts reached the second spot in the points table after achieving the victory target of 273 with 15 overs to spare.
"(It) was a good win for us, very important to get that momentum at the start of the tournament," Rohit said during the post-match presentation.
"For us it is crucial that we don't worry about external factors and just look at things we can control. We just need to show up and do well," Rohit said while talking about India's clash against Pakistan on Saturday in Ahmedabad.
"Things like what the pitch is like, what combo we can play is what we can control. What happens outside we won't be worried about it. It is just about focusing on what we can do as players and how we can perform," the India captain added.
Rohit said absorbing pressure was a key factor in the first game for India in this World Cup. After being reduced to 5/3, India defeated Australia in the first match by six wickets to stamp their authority.
"We have got guys who can play fearless cricket with bat and guys who can absorb like the last game. It is about absorbing pressure and taking the right decision on the field," Rohit said.
"There will be a spell from the opposition where you will have to absorb pressure. Leading up to the tournament, we had played such games.
"We have got players with different skill sets in our team. They bring different attributes of the game to the team and it puts you in good positions as a team when you have that," he added.
With PTI inputs