(REUTERS)
India and Pakistan will clash in the Twenty20 World Cup in Colombo on Sunday.
Defending champions India have a 7-1 record against Pakistan in the tournament's history and they underlined that dominance at last year's Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates. India beat Pakistan three times in that single event, including in a stormy final match.
Both teams have opened their World Cup campaigns with back-to-back wins.
India opener Abhishek Sharma and spinner Varun Chakravarthy currently top the batting and bowling rankings respectively. Abhishek is doubtful for the Pakistan match though as he continues to recover from a stomach infection that kept him out of their first two matches.
Ishan Kishan has reinvented himself as a top-order linchpin, skipper Suryakumar Yadav has regained form, while Rinku Singh has settled into the finisher's role in India's explosive lineup.
Mystery spinner Chakravarthy and the ever-crafty Jasprit Bumrah anchor the spin and pace units, while Hardik Pandya's all-round spark is pivotal.
For Pakistan, opener Sahibzada Farhan has looked in fine form but Babar Azam's strike rate continues to polarise opinion.
Captain Salman Agha will bank on spin-bowling all-rounder Saim Ayub, but the potential trump card is off-spinner Usman Tariq, whose slinging, side-arm action has intrigued opponents and fans alike.