5 Reasons why India has an upper hand over Pakistan

The stage is set for the two Asian giants India and Pakistan to take over. Both the teams are gearing up for their first clash in a year since they met in Adelaide during last year’s World Cup. As they head into their Asia Cup match, India are deemed favourites to walk out victorious. What is it that gives the Men in Blue the edge? Here we tell you the five reasons why India has an upper hand against Pakistan.

1. Top form:

To begin with India are hot favourites to win their Asia Cup header against Pakistan. They’ve won 6 out of their 7 last T20I games which includes 2 series wins. They whitewashed Australia in Australia and became the first team to do so. They later followed it up with a comprehensive 2-1 win over Sri Lanka at home. The morale in the team is quite high as it has come against a great team like Australia and defending champions Sri Lanka. India also started their Asia Cup campaign with a victory, they’ll be keen to push ahead with the winning momentum.

2. Fielding department:

If there is something where India have largely excelled, it’s the fielding department. Ravindra Jadeja has been quite quick on the field while Suresh Raina has always been a live wire. Adding to it, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli too have a safe pair of hands. Shikhar Dhawan is an erratic fielder inside the circle as well. The young Hardik Pandya has also been dazzling on the field with some terrific catches in the last few games. Also, there’s no question about Dhoni’s abilities behind the wicket, he is effecting the stumpings as quick as lightning.

3. Spinners in tandem:

The biggest plus point for India in the bowling department has to be the spinners. Once they begin bowling in tandem, there’s no stopping them. They have so often applied the brakes on the opposition run flow and taken crucial breakthroughs. While Ashwin is in the form of his life, Jadeja is creating his own image and impact. Such is their form that the legendary Harbhajan Singh has been warming the bench. Even part-timer Yuvraj Singh has stepped up quite well and even got the dangerous Maxwell 2 times in a row. On the other hand, even Suresh Raina can spin in a few overs, in case the skipper needs a few additional overs of spin.

4. Batting depth:

Dhawan has batted exceptionally well whenever India has needed him to do so while Rohit Sharma has finally embraced consistency and is batting with a majestic flow. Talking about Kohli, he has been the lion of the team and has a batting average of above 50 in T20 internationals which is a rarity in this format. Then you have the two left-handers in Raina and Yuvraj who are both potential match winners for India. MS Dhoni can finish any game in style and we all saw Hardik Pandya’s skills in the last game. Compared to Pakistan, this batting lineup is quite an extraordinary one and Pakistani bowling will really need to do something special to stop them.

5. Pressure Killer:

The most vital aspect of T20s is handling the pressure calmly and the whole cricketing universe will agree that no one does it better than Mahendra Singh Dhoni. His decision making during such a situation is highly commendable. India-Pakistan games have always been pressure games and can take a strain on players. Even in their last Asia Cup clash, Afridi held his nerves to take Pakistan home. But this is a young Pakistani team and Afridi is not in a great patch with the bat. Hence, this is another aspect where India will be soaring their heads high.

A T20 is the toughest to predict and the team that plays those crucial moments better walks away with the win, but the manner in which things are lined up at the moment team India certainly seems to inch ahead of the arch-rivals.