Team India will take on Pakistan in a sensational Asia Cup 2022 match on August 28. It will be the first time the two sides lock horns in men’s cricket since last year’s T20 World Cup, when Babar Azam’s side secured a comprehensive 10-wicket victory over India. Pakistan reached the semi-finals of the tournament where they faced eventual champions Australia, while India bowed out in the group stages. Since the global tournament, India have seen significant changes in their approach to the shortest format under new captain Rohit Sharma, but former Pakistan skipper Rashid Latif believes the massive 10-wicket defeat in the T20 World Cup encounter did “a lot of damage” Indian team.
“I don’t think the World Cup is on their (India’s) mind. They take it series by series, it’s worth noting that the teams change with each series. He will focus on the Asia Cup. The loss against Pakistan caused a lot of damage to the Indian team, so they are trying to recover from it,” Latif said on his official YouTube channel “Caught Behind”.“You can play as many series as you want, but the India-Pakistan match remains very important. I believe that the Indian team, board, management will pay significant attention to the match against Pakistan in the Asia Cup. They would like to win the Asia Cup and if all the players are available for India, they can be favourites.”
The former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman further added that while India have dominated the games between the two arch-rivals in the recent past, a landslide win in their last clash would give the Babar Azam-led side a boost.“The conditions in the United Arab Emirates suit them. India will give everything in the match against Pakistan. They have dominated the clashes between the two sides in the last 20 years, but Pakistan won by 10 wickets in their last match. So planning will go into it,” concluded Latif.
