'Whichever team handles pressure better will win' - Shahid Afridi on India-Pakistan T20 WC clash

The T20 World Cup is just around the corner and ever since the schedule of the mega event is out, the cricket onlookers have been raring to watch the action unfold. The fact that India and Pakistan are in the same pool for the marquee tournament has further garnered the audacity of their excitement. However, the former Pakistan cricketer Shahid Afridi has opened up on the India Pakistan clash.

An India-Pakistan game is always a highly anticipated contest. The teams do not get involved in any bilateral series owing to the political tensions between the two nations. They face each other only in the Asia Cup and the ICC events.

The last time India and Pakistan played bilateral series was back in the year 2012-13 wherein the latter had toured India for a three-match ODI series. The visitors had won the series 2-1. Afridi who has been a part of many India-Pakistan games asserted that the team that could handle the pressure of the game better will emerge triumphantly.

“See, India vs Pakistan is always a high-pressure game. And whichever team handles pressure better will win. Also, whichever teams make the smallest of mistakes has a better chance of winning,” Shahid Afridi said as reported by HT.

India and Pakistan will lock horns with each other on October 24

India will begin their World Cup campaign by taking on Pakistan on October 24. The Dubai International Cricket Stadium will host the high-profile clash of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. However, it is to be noted that ahead of the match, all the match tickets were sold out within no time. As soon as the tickets went live, the fans rushed in to book their seats to witness this game.

India has triumphed against Pakistan seven times in the 50-over World Cup. Whereas in the T20 World Cup, the former has won on five occasions against their arch-rivals. The team has a good record in World Cup against Pakistan and thus the former Pakistan speedster Azhar Mahmood highlighted these aspects and had earlier stated, “The match is expected to be tough because our players perform well in T20 format but the way India are playing themselves and the kind of team they have, definitely India will have the edge, but on the day, if our players click, I am sure we can beat them.”