T20 World Cup 2021: India all set to face arch-rival Pakistan on October 24

A match between India and Pakistan is always exciting to watch in any sport; yet, cricket has its own unique flavour, probably due to a large number of supporters in both nations who love and enjoy the game to its full potential. When India and Pakistan meet in a World Cup match, the clash becomes much more interesting given the intense rivalry between the two nations. Since 2012, however, cricket fans all around the world have been deprived of the India-Pakistan bilateral series. Only ICC competitions pit the two nations against each other.

India-Pakistan clash on October 24

The next time fans will see an India-Pakistan match will be on October 24, when the two sides meet in the group round of the upcoming T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The ICC has placed India and Pakistan in the same group, and when it was announced by the apex cricketing body last month, fans exploded in jubilation, unable to contain their joy at learning that the two sides would play at least one game in the world cup.

While England, Australia, South Africa, and West Indies have been kept in Group 1, India, Pakistan, New Zealand, and Afghanistan will lock horns in Group 2. In the meantime, the winners of Groups A and B from Round 1 of the T20 World Cup qualifiers will be assigned to Groups 1 and 2, respectively. Group A and B runners-up will be assigned to Groups 2 and 1, accordingly. The top eight teams in the ICC T20 standings have already qualified for the Super 12 round, while the bottom eight will vie for the final four berths.

The T20 World Cup is scheduled to start on October 17 with the final slated to be held on November 14. The World Cup will be hosted by the BCCI in the UAE and Oman. The marquee ICC event was moved out of India earlier last month keeping in mind the COVID-19 pandemic and the safety of all stakeholders. The World Cup will be held right after the completion of the second leg of IPL 2021 in UAE on October 15. 

Image: PTI/T20WorldCup/Twitter