The highly anticipated clash between India and Pakistan will take place on October 15 during the ICC World Cup 2023, reigniting their historic cricket rivalry. Pakistan’s captain, Babar Azam, who will be playing his first international match in India, has downplayed the intensity surrounding the India-Pakistan fixture and emphasized the importance of focusing on the other eight teams as well.
Pakistan’s previous visit to India was during the 2016 T20 World Cup, and their last encounter with their arch-rivals was during the 2019 ODI World Cup, both held in India. Fans from both nations are eagerly awaiting the renewal of this fierce rivalry in the ODI World Cup in India, and the cricket community is already shining a bright spotlight on this particular match.
While speaking to the ICC, Babar Azam, the captain of the Pakistan cricket team, downplayed the hype surrounding the India-Pakistan match and emphasized that his team will give equal focus to the other eight participating teams. He emphasized the need for his team to approach each match with the same level of importance and preparation, rather than solely focusing on the high-profile clash against India.
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“We are going to play World Cup and not just going to play against India only,” Babar said. “There are eight other teams and it’s not only India and only if we beat them then we will make it into the final. We are not focused on only one team, we are focused on all other teams in the tournament. Our plan is that we have to play well against all of them and win against them.”
Pakistan is scheduled to play against India in Ahmedabad, while their matches against other teams will be held at various venues including Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. Babar Azam emphasized the importance of adapting to different environments and conditions rather than solely fixating on the India-Pakistan game. He expressed the need for his team to focus on adjusting to the diverse challenges posed by playing in different venues, highlighting the importance of adaptability throughout the tournament.
“You prepare yourself for different conditions and in every environment and that is what we call a challenge and you take it to live up to it,” Babar added. “Me, as a player and captain, I aspire to score runs in every country, dominate and win Pakistan games. So this is all we have in mind and not only that we’re going to play against one team.”
