Asia Cup 2023 | PAK vs IND, Match 3 - Top Captain and Vice-captain Picks
Babar Azam has announced himself with a big hundred in the Asia Cup 2023 (AP Photo)
The biggest rivalry of the cricketing world is ready to grasp the fans with all its excitement. Pakistan (PAK) will be playing against India (IND) in the third match of the Asia Cup 2023. The match will be played at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Palleke, Sri Lanka on Saturday, 31st August at 3:00 PM IST. Ahead of the game let us have a look at the best possible candidates to be the captain or the vice-captain in the fantasy contests of the match.
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PAK vs IND, Match 3: Ground Analysis
This high voltage clash will be played at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. The pitch here will generally favour the batters, especially in the first innings. As the game goes by the wicket might slow down gradually and the spinner will come into play. The team winning the toss might look to bat first in this match.
PAK vs IND, Match 3: Toss Factor
Scenario: India Wins the Toss
If India wins the toss, Rohit Sharma might look to bat first and set a target for Pakistan in the pressure match. In that case, the Indian batters will be good picks as the captain or the vice-captain of the match. Also, the spinners from India, especially Kuldeep Yadav will become a great choice.
Scenario: Pakistan Wins the Toss
Much like the first match, Pakistan on winning the toss might look to bat first in this game. If this happens, Babar Azam will once again be a good choice as the captain or the vice-captain of the match. Also, in this case Shaheen Shah Afridi becomes an important choice as he might pose a greater threat to the Indian top-order in the initial overs of the second innings under the lights.
PAK vs IND, Match 3: Top Captain and Vice-captain Choices
Scenario: India Bats First
Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma will be a key in deciding India's fate against Pakistan (Source: Twitter)
If India bats first, Rohit Sharma becomes the best candidate to be the captain or the vice-captain for the fantasy contests of the match. He has a great record against Pakistan, in Pallekele and in the first innings of ODI. So, if you see India setting target in the match, you can definitely select Rohit Sharma as the captain or the vice-captain.
Kuldeep Yadav
Kuldeep Yadav will pose great threat to the Pakistan batting line-up (Source: Twitter)
It is expected that the wicket will slow down at Pallekele with the progress of the game. However, at night there are chances that for the initial phase the conditions might become better for batting. Yet the spinners will come into play in the middle-phase and that is where Kuldeep Yadav will be a very good choice as the captain or the vice-captain.
Scenario: Pakistan Bats first
Babar Azam
The Pakistani skipper showed his batting prowess in the first match against Nepal. Azam does not have a great record against India in the ODIs but, the pressure of not having a target in front of him might act in his favour and he might repeat his antics from the opening clash.
Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli likes batting against Pakistan and has a great record against them (Source: Twitter)
Kohli has a great record against Pakistan and he enjoy batting in the second innings of a match. If India bats second, it might actually bring out the chase master within Kohli and then choosing him as the captain or the vice-captain will be very rewarding.
PAK vs IND, Match 3: Big Risk, Big Return Choices
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Shaheen Afridi will be the biggest threat for the Indian top-order (Source: Twitter)
The Indian top-order struggles against left-arm pacers and Shaheen is a very potent new ball bowler. We have seen previously how Shaheen troubled the Indian batter, so even though his ODI figures are not good against India, Afridi is worthy choice as the captain or the vice-captain for the fantasy contests of the match.
Shreyas Iyer
The Indian batter is returning to action after nursing an injury. So, a lot of fantasy players might keep Iyer out of their fantasy teams, but he enjoys the subcontinent batting conditions. The fact that Iyer's form was great before the injury struck him, makes him a risky yet worthy choice as the captain or the vice-captain for the match.
 "Probuddha Bhattacharjee")
