As long as Babar Azam is at the crease, Pakistan’s defeat is on the cards, 3 moves of the captain

New Delhi. During the 2025 Champions Trophy, it was repeatedly said that India got an unfair advantage by playing all its matches in Dubai under the hybrid model. Now the same situation in Colombo is in favor of Pakistan. Pakistan have been here for the last two weeks and have adapted to the conditions and have played matches at SSC and practiced at Premadasa. Even last night, Pakistan had a rigorous practice session from 6 to 9 pm. In this session, all eyes were on Babar Azam because his batting can trap the team in the middle.

India, on the other hand, reached here after 9 pm last night and practiced in the evening, meaning India only got one intense practice session before Sunday’s match. If seen from every aspect, Pakistan has the advantage. Here they are effectively like the home team, not India. Due to better understanding of the circumstances, this match should not go out of their hands. This is the best opportunity for Pakistan to make a difference. If he misses here, then Suryakumar Yadav’s statement can be considered correct that this match is no longer a rivalry.

Babar Azam is the weakest link

Now if we talk directly about the match, two things will decide the result for me. First, how does Babar Azam bat? Will they continue to play at run-a-ball pace for the first 20 balls and then try to pick up the pace? If this happens then India will have no objection, and Babar can become the weak link in Pakistan’s batting chain. He was able to score only 46 runs on 32 balls against USA and only 15 runs on 18 balls against Netherlands.

Pakistan has jumbo advantage in Colombo

In fact, if ever there was a match in which Pakistan entered with a complete lead, then it is this one. India have many fitness concerns and the team had arrived from Delhi just a day earlier after traveling four hours. Abhishek Sharma’s availability is doubtful and if Suryakumar’s statement is any indication, the possibility of him being out of the Pakistan match is real. Washington Sundar has also not played any competitive match for some time, while Jasprit Bumrah has recently returned after recovering from viral fever. The world’s best team India is looking a bit incomplete before this match. However, none of this is an excuse and should not be seen as an excuse. Despite all these issues, India is a strong contender in this match and Pakistan’s victory will be considered an upset. Such is the quality of the Indian team and with time the format of this match has also become similar.

Let the rain not spoil the equation

On the other hand, how do Indian spinners Varun Chakraborty, Axar Patel and (if they get a chance in place of a fast bowler) Kuldeep Yadav bowl today? The wicket has indicated that the match may slow down a bit as it progresses. The question is, is this enough temptation to feed Kuldeep? Michael Clarke often says that Kuldeep is a match-winning bowler, and he performed brilliantly against Pakistan in the Asia Cup. Finally, there is a possibility of rain today, although there is less chance of the match being completely washed out, but interruptions can be a cause for concern. It will be interesting to see what strategy both the teams make keeping the rain in mind. It is now clear that this is the biggest opportunity for Pakistan, if they miss here also, then there will be no rivalry left.