Daijiworld Media Network

Adelaide, Feb 15 : Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat first against Pakistan in their opening match of the cricket World Cup at the Adelaide Oval, here today. AP file photo

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat first against Pakistan in their opening match of the cricket World Cup at the Adelaide Oval, here today.

Teams:

India: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt & wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Mohit Sharma, Mohammed Shami.

Pakistan: Ahmed Shehzad, Younis Khan, Haris Sohail, Misbah-ul Haq (capt), Sohaib Maqsood, Umar Akmal (wk), Shahid Afridi, Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah, Sohail Khan, Mohammad Irfan.

Worried about what kind of a day it is in Adelaide today. The players are warming up currently and it's bright and sunny. 35 degree celsius right now and there is no rain predicted for the entire day. So we should get a brilliant game of cricket in. That's that then.

Pre-match team news, Pakistan: Umar Akmal kept wicket in both the warm-ups, so he will continue to do so. Haris Sohail may bat at 4 and bowl the 10 overs. It will be interesting to see whether Yasir Shah is picked. One of Ehsan Adil and Sohail Khan will miss out. Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Irfan are confirmed choices.

Pre-match team news, India: Bhuvneshwar Kumar may not play as India don't want to risk him. Jadeja will be the first choice over Axar Patel. It could be a toss-up between Stuart Binny and Mohit Sharma for the last spot. Dhawan and Rohit Sharma will be the preferred openers.

'I think you need to focus on your game, go there and play your best.' Misbah will be inspired by Pakistan's title victory under Imran Khan when the World Cup was last played in Australia-New Zealand in 1992, but is burdened with a team weakened by injuries and suspensions.

The Pakistan captain was not worried that his team's opening match in the 2015 World Cup was a high-voltage encounter against India. 'You have to be ready to play against any team at any time if you really want to do well in any tournament. It's not really a question of playing India first. You need to be ready. Whenever any team comes against you, you should be ready to play well. The key is not to take anything into the ground when you are playing against India. You don't have to worry about what's happening outside, what's going on in the two countries,' he said.

Now Misbah's say. 'This is a chance to create history,' Misbah said on Saturday ahead of the match that will be followed by millions in both nations and around the world.'India-Pakistan is always all about pressure. The best thing we can do is just enjoy the game, enjoy the atmosphere, go there and be positive. My advice to the team is just go out there and play your natural game. That is the only way to handle pressure,' Misbah stated.

'All I know is that I am asked a lot of questions about the record. Look, I am not bothered about statistics because what happened in the past will count for little in what is a prized game for all. It's nice for fans and the media to talk about it, but for us the only thing that will matter is how we play. The important thing is to plan well and execute those plans well. I don't know if it will be an even contest. It is hard to predict such things.'

Dhoni played down repeated questions about India's impressive 5-0 record World Cup record against Pakistan, saying what mattered more was how the team played on the given day.

Captain's thoughts before the game now. First up, it's MS Dhoni. Dhoni said that the clash against Pakistan, which he described as a 'prized game' on the cricket calendar, was an opportunity for players to transform themselves from zeroes to heroes. 'There is more intensity when we play Pakistan because the game is followed by so many fans. 'But I see it as a good platform for the team to perform,' the Indian captain said.

Final verdict: 'It is like a shock-absorber in a car - the better it is the more it will handle the dusty roads and bouncy roads. India, at the present moment, are probably better in that front.'

'I have played a few World Cup games against Pakistan. I have played in a lot of bilateral series and tri-nation tournaments against them, but it is different when you are playing in a World Cup. On the other hand, players tend to get used to the pressure as they play day in and day out. Players from both sides are under equal pressure to perform well. Players go through peculiar thought processes which the common man from outside will not understand. They see the hype, the politics, the crowd but players are used to it. For someone like Dhoni or Kohli, or for that matter Tendulkar, Ganguly or Dravid, who have faced Pakistan before, it is going to be jut another match. The first 20 minutes matter, but once you get though it, it is just another game.'

'I think India are ahead, mentally ahead of Pakistan. Yes, India have been in the country for two months, they have been battered by Australia - beaten in the Test matches, beaten in the tri-series and they have been in poor shape before the start of this game. But, tomorrow is going to be a different battle. India are not playing Australia tomorrow, but Pakistan, who come from the sub-continent and will face the same problems that India did in Australian conditions.'

Sourav Ganguly writing for our site in an exclusive calls the clash 'the mother of all battles'

'Many might not agree with me, but in all previous five World Cup matches, we were rated as favorites and we ended up on losing side. This time around we are for sure not the favorites. This might help us to change the result. Who knows? This Super Sunday we all would know about it.'

'In Sydney we couldn't chase 217 runs; in Bangalore we squandered an electrifying start of Aamir Sohail and Saeed Anwar in pursuit of 288 runs; in Manchester again our batsmen faltered despite restricting India at 227-6 and at Centurion when our batsmen racked up 273-7, the all star-studded pace battery of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar were shot down by Tendulkar's brilliance.'

'If one closely look at our previous five WC encounters against India, we didn't give up easily and it were all well contested matches. In most of these games our bowlers had done well, but it was the batting which gave us headache.'

'But having said that, I think we had our chances in Sydney (1992), Bangalore (1996), Manchester (1999) and even at Mohali (2011). I can't find a suitable word to describe what goes wrong when we chase against India, but it's more like a mental blockage of players on which I'm sure Pakistan team management will be working on.'

'I believe batting first is always an advantage as batsmen tend to get under pressure while chasing in big games. India has won four of the five toss against us in WCs games and our batsmen stumbled in all four run-chases. The only toss they lost was at Centurion in 2003 but Sachin Tendulkar played one of the best innings I have seen from the master, which allowed India to chase down a 274-run target.'
Inzamam-ul-Haq the former Pakistani great, reckons - in an ICC exclusive - that the India-Pakistan game is a final before the final.
'They should play two spinners in the match, and if Irfan can bowl on his speed, he can alone make the difference,' Imran Khan said.
'If you have wickets in hand you can even chase a big score If the top order can score enough, beating India is possible,' Imran said during the interview.

'The best batsman should start first. If Pakistan chases, Misbah should not play beyond number four.'

The former captain said that Pakistan's performance will depend on batsman as both sides have similar bowlers.

'How will I do it? That's what they should think. If one fears losing they will keep making mistakes,' he said.
'They should abandon fear of losing. When they step on the ground they need to make up their mind to win,' Imran said during an interview with a private television channel.

The Pakistani newspaper Dawn has this message from legendary former skipper, Imran Khan, who said this - 'Abandon fear of losing'
'Like any genuine cricket fan, I am looking forward to a terrific game of cricket. For, winning and losing is part of any sporting battle. But, my bet is on India to win,' Sania remarked.

'Shoaib (Malik, her husband and former Pakistan cricket captain) will be in India doing the expert commentary on the World Cup for two TV channels. So, I will be watching the game alone in Dubai,' she said.

'I think any India-Pakistan sporting contest has that emotional tinge attached to it. It charges up everyone. It is actually the excitement and expectations which are really high. I think the sporting battles between India and Pakistan have been one of the best,' both on and off the field, she felt.

'There is no question of divided loyalty. I want to go with India which has a 5-0 record against Pakistan in the World Cup. I just hope it will extend that record,' remarked Sania Mirza, the goodwill ambassador for sports in India.