The countdown for the marquee India Pakistan encounter has begun. The clash that is likely to make fans glued to their TV sets is without doubt the most awaited world T20 game for both nations’ fans. The Eden Garden’s will witness this historic game and people are ready to pay anything for a ticket. Such is the craze.

Having contrasting starts to their respective World T20 campaign, India losing by heavy margin to New Zealand and on the other hand Pakistan are high in confidence after thrashing the Bangla tigers. Records say that Pakistan have never beaten India in 10 previous games in World Cups across formats.

Shahid Afridi’s return to form, or may be not (that’s the way he plays) will be haunting India his swashbuckling knock of 49 set an example for his team. The Indian side, on the other hand, has a lot to ponder over. While Ravichandran Ashwin preferred to brush aside the defeat to New Zealand and said that it was the Indian team who has the ability to come over quickly after a big loss. Having won the recently concluded Asia Cup with five wins in a row, India would be looking to put pressure on the opposition and hold their nerves. The game is already being seen as a battle between Mohammad Amir and Virat Kohli. Having bowled extremely well coming from his exile after match fixing scandal, many greats of the game have appreciated his bowling and are surprised to see him at top three in the world.

India would be looking forward to the services of Mohammad Shami, who now looks fit and was one of the best bowlers at the 2015 World Cup. An injury setback, a surgery and months of layoff later, the 26-year-old seems to be back to his original self.

On the other hand Pakistan are unlikely to tamper with a winning combination. Ahmed Shehzad’s excellent start to the tournament has given the team management a reason to be happy with their decision to make a last-minute change to the squad. Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik have also been in the runs in the two games, with Umar Akmal yet to get a real shot at taking his Asia Cup T20 form forward. Among the bowlers, Imad Wasim’s role could be crucial, given India’s recent struggle against spin.

. Amitabh Bachchan, one of the biggest Bollywood actors in India, and Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan, a Pakistani classical singer, will render their voices for the two national anthems.

Squads:

Pakistan (From): Sharjeel Khan, Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Umar Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed(w), Shahid Afridi(c), Imad Wasim, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Sami, Khalid Latif, Anwar Ali

India (From): Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni(w/c), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Jasprit Bumrah, Harbhajan Singh, Mohammed Shami, Pawan Negi, Ajinkya Rahane