Gill, Shami In; Ishan, Siraj Out, Here's India's Playing XI Vs Pakistan

image-lno7w88uShubman Gill might make his return to the Indian playing XI [AP]

On Saturday, cricket fans across the globe will witness the mother of all battles, as arch-rivals India and Pakistan will go up against each other in the 12th group-stage match of the ongoing ICC World Cup. Both teams are high on confidence, having won their first couple of games in the marquee event. While India annihilated Australia and Afghanistan, Pakistan kicked off their World Cup campaign with thumping victories over Sri Lanka and the Netherlands. 

So, as Rohit Sharma and co. get ready to take on their Pakistani counterparts, let's see what combination they will go with for this high-voltage encounter. 


India's Playing XI Vs Pakistan

Talking about India, the Men in Blue have performed admirably despite missing their first-choice opener Shubman Gill due to viral fever. 

However, fortunately for India, Gill has started practising and could return to the playing XI for this mega clash, with Ishan Kishan making way for him. Furthermore, there will be a toss-up between Shardul Thakur and Ravichandran Ashwin for the bowling all-rounder's role at number eight position. 


Solving Ashwin vs Thakur conundrum

image-lno7zcpwShardul Thakur will likely be preferred over Ashwin [AP]

In their first World Cup game against Australia, India went with Ravichandran Ashwin's experience as the surface in Chennai was on the drier side. However, Shardul Thakur replaced the spin maestro in Afghanistan game, with the Delhi track being flat and conducive for batters. 

India will likely persist with Thakur as their third seamer against Pakistan, as the deck in Ahmedabad won't offer significant assistance to the spinners. There could also be a hint of seam movement, prompting India to include four seam bowling options as they did in the Asia Cup Super Four game against the same opponent. 


Shami or Siraj- Who will play?

After rattling Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final, ace speedster Mohammed Siraj has had a tough time in ODIs, scalping only two wickets in three outings at a horrendous economy of 6.93. So, considering Siraj's poor recent form, India might think to replace him with Mohammed Shami, who has performed exceptionally at the venue for his IPL franchise Gujarat Titans. 

However, don't be surprised if India decide to continue with Siraj, as this management, led by Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid, isn't really known for chopping and changing. 

Besides the aforementioned points, it's needless to say that if Shubman Gill is fit, he will replace Ishan Kishan at the top of the order. 


India's probable Playing XI Vs Pakistan

Shubman Gill (if he is not fit then Ishan Kishan), Rohit Sharma (C), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj/Mohammed Shami