T20 World Cup 2022: Suresh Raina's bold claim ahead of India vs Pakistan

Suresh Raina (Source: Twitter)

India will take on arch-rivals Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2022 later this week. 

The Men in Blue are all set to begin their World Cup campaign against Pakistan on the 23rd of October and former batter Suresh Raina believes that India will win the tournament if they can beat the Men in Green on Sunday. 

Raina claims that the win over Pakistan could set the tone for the team and it would give them a much-needed confidence boost at the start of the World Cup. 

That said, India did manage to beat Pakistan early on in the Asia Cup 2022 but ended up crashing out of the competition during the business end. 

Raina added that India are looking like a team in form, especially with the likes of KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli scoring important runs in the recent T20Is. 

It will be interesting to see if the Men in Blue can step up and bring the World Cup home this time around. 

Meanwhile, Raina admits that the absence of Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja will be a blow for the team. However, India have players in reserves who can add an x-factor to the side. 

Speaking to NDTV, Raina said: 

"Definitely, if we win the opening game against Pakistan, we will win the World Cup. The team is doing well right now. Shami has replaced Bumrah, it will give the side a bit of X-factor. We have Arshdeep Singh, Suryakumar Yadav. Everyone is in good form, Virat Kohli is looking really good. Rohit Sharma is a very good leader, if we win the first match, it will set a good tone for us. Everyone in the country is praying for them and I really want them to win the World Cup."

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