Epic India-Pak clash on the cards in T20 final

Johannesburg: It is a colossal day for cricket on the sub-continent. What had seemed an event to test the waters in a new format of the game has taken epic proportions as famed adversaries India and Pakistan strive to become champions of the first ICC Twenty20 World Championship.


The stars have contrived to repair the damage done by their early exit from the World Cup in the West Indies and the two young sides have already done their bit in resurrecting the game that is known to be nothing short of a religion in their respective countries but took a beating earlier this year.


Seeing their run in this 12-team tournament, a fierce contest is definitely on the cards in the final to be played at the Wanderers on Monday afternoon.


India and Pakistan have both lost just one match each going into the final, India going down to New Zealand in a Super Eights match and Pakistan losing to India in a preliminary league tie that saw the first 'bowl out' of the championship.


But all that has happened in the past will matter for little, a point emphasized by skippers Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shoaib Malik on the eve of the big day.


Rare India-Pak final:


This is only the second instance of India and Pakistan locking horns in the final of a world level event. But in contrast to the World Championship played in Australia in 1985, when banners like "tram drivers versus bus conductors" greeted them, they have great fan following here.


In fact, it was almost a home ground for India at Kingsmead in Durban when they vanquished Australia in the semi-finals, but that is not the kind of support they are likely to get here.


By surprisingly topping their part of the Super Eights league, India had ensured a semi-final at Durban, which proved to be a great advantage for them as they had played all but one of their outings there.


They now move out of their den to the Wanderers, where they lost to New Zealand by 10 runs.


A slight edge here and there:


Both teams have shown the kind of consistency that they are not exactly known for and it is just that wee bit here and there that separates the teams.



India have a slight edge in batting because most of their batsmen have chipped in at some time or the other with Yuvraj Singh being the pick of the lot with 134 runs in four matches (he missed one match) and an astounding strike rate of 235 with a world record 36 in an over to boast of.


Openers Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag have ensured steady starts with Dhoni and Yuvraj doing the accelerating job, Robin Uthappa shining in patches, Rohit Sharma showing promise and Irfan Pathan lending some balance.


Pakistan have two of the most successful batsmen in the tournament with Malik (187) and Misbah-ul-Haq (175) scoring a heap of runs but which also suggests an over-dependence on these two.


Their third most successful batsman, the experienced Younis Khan has scored 103 thus far, not anywhere near the aggregates of Gambhir (152), Dhoni (148), Yuvraj (134) or Sehwag (133).


Cautious captains:


However, Dhoni said he did not believe in going by statistics, nor did he see any relevance of the past record of world level events in which Pakistan have never prevailed.


"Any batsman that gets set can be dangerous and any bowler who strikes rhythm can trouble you," he said on the eve of the match.


On the other hand, Pakistan have an edge in their bowling with Shahid Afridi (12 wickets), Umar Gul (10) and Mohammad Asif (nine) all showing superb abilities while India have generally struggled with their fifth bowler except for the Aussie outing.


Malik was wary of the Indian bowling and worried about India's batting.


"RP Singh and Sreesanth have been bowling well while Yuvraj's batting form is a worry for us. I have never seen him bat like he is doing right now," he said.


Friendlier turf for batting:


The pitch here is not likely to be as seamer-friendly as the one in Durban. One will have to wait and see to whose advantage that it eventually turns out to be.


India's bowlers did well because they used the windy conditions well while their batsmen may find it less disconcerting to take on a spicy Pakistan pace combination.


The average run-rate at the Wanderers has been 8.72 per over so far in the championship.


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