India will face arch-rivals Pakistan in the 19th match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 on Sunday (June 9) at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York, United States. (Full Coverage | More Cricket News)
The IND vs PAK, Group A match will mark the eighth meeting between the two Asian neighbours in the T20 World Cup, across nine editions.
India, who have a vice-like grip over Pakistan in the International Cricket Council-sanctioned events, have lost only once in this fixture. With that, here's a look at seven IND vs PAK, T20 World Cup matches:
1. September 14, 2007: India Vs Pakistan at Kingsmead in Durban, South Africa
Pakistan won and opted to bowl first in the final Group D match. India, from a precarious 36/4 in the seventh over, managed to post 141/9 with Robin Uthappa and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni playing contrasting knocks -- 50 off 39 and 33 off 31, respectively.
In reply, Pakistan huffed and puffed to reach 87/5 in the 15th over. But Misbah-ul-Haq conjured up one sensational innings, hitting 53 off 35, to single-handedly win, almost. A run in the last ball ended his stay and Pakistan's hope. They matched India's score. The Kingsmead, then, witnessed a cricketing slapstick, a Bowl Out to break the tie. India won (3-0) a la penalty shoot-out but both qualified for the Super 8 stage.
For India, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and Robin Uthappa hit the target; for Pakistan, Yasir Arafat, Umar Gul and Shahid Afridi missed. Mohammad Asif, who took four wickets for 18, was adjudged Player of the Match.
2. September 24, 2007: India vs Pakistan at Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
Ten days after that unique Bowl Out, India and Pakistan met in the final. This time, MS Dhoni won the toss and opted to bat first. Gautam Gambhir, opening the batting, scored 75 off 54, and Rohit Sharma, five down, hit 30 off 16 to help India post 157/5.
In reply, Pakistan could manage only 152 in 19.3 overs despite Misbah-ul-Haq's 43. For India, RP Singh and Irfan Pathan claimed three wickets each. India won by five runs and became the inaugural champions.
3. September 30, 2014: India Vs Pakistan at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez won the toss and elected to bat first in the Super 8 match. After losing the top five for 59 runs inside the first 10 overs, Pakistan set India a target of 129 runs. India, despite losing Gambhir in the first over, cantered to an eight-wicket win with 18 balls to spare thanks to POTM Virat Kohli's unbeaten 78 off 61.
But India failed to make the semi-finals, while Pakistan were defeated by hosts Sri Lanka in their last four match.
4. March 21, 2014: Pakistan vs India at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka, Bangladesh
MS Dhoni won yet another toss, and he elected to field first in their Super 10, Group 2 match. After a sluggish start, Pakistan reached 130/7 thanks to Umar Akmal's 33 off 30 and Ahmed Shehzad's 22 off 17.
India reached the target in 18.3 overs with Rohit Sharma (24 off 21), Shikhar Dhawan (30 off 28), Virat Kohli (36 not out off 32) and Suresh Raina (35 off 28) scoring brisk runs. But it was tweaker Amit Mishra who got the individual honours for his 2/22 in four overs.
India lost the final against Sri Lanka by six wickets.
5. March 19, 2016: India vs Pakistan at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, India
Another toss win for Dhoni and India opted to field first in the delayed, rain-affected match of 18 overs per side game. Five Indian bowlers claimed one wicket each and Pakistan were restricted to 118/5. Ahmed Shehzad (25), Umar Akmal (22) and Shoaib Malik (26) hit 20s, but none threatened to post a big enough individual score.
In reply, India rode Kohli's unbeaten 55 off 37 to chase the target down in 15.5 overs. Yuvraj Singh contributed with 24 off 23. India were eliminated by eventual champions West Indies in the semi-finals.
6. October 24, 2021: India vs Pakistan at Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai, UAE
Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and asked India to set a target. The Virat Kohli-led India, despite the skipper's 49-ball 57 and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant's 39 off 30 failed to post a winning total following Shaheen Shah Afridi's opening burst.
India's defence also fell flat as Azam (68 not out off 52) and his opening partner Mohammad Rizwan (79 not out off 55) toyed with a five-pronged bowling attack, feat. pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, and spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Ravindra Jadeja.
Pakistan thus recorded their first win over India in a World Cup match (either ODI or T20I) in 13 attempts. In the semis, they were handed a five-wicket defeat by eventual champions Australia.
7. October 23, 2022: India vs Pakistan at Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia
Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to field first. Shan Masood (52 off 42) and Iftikhar Ahmed (51 off 34) stitched a 76-run stand for the first wicket to revive the Pakistani innings. Later Masood and Shaheen Afridi added 31 in 16 for the eighth wicket, which eventually helped Men in Green post a defendable total of 159/8. For India, Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya claimed three wickets each.
With both openers -- KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma -- back in the hut early, the onus to bail India out was once again on Virat Kohli. And he did it some style. An unbeaten 82 in 53 balls, laced with six fours and four sixes including the 'Shot Of The Century', ensured India won the modern classic by four wickets on the last ball, albeit a wide, down Ravichandran Ashwin's leg side. Of course, there's a 113-run stand in 78 balls between Kohli and Pandya (40 off 37).
India and Pakistan qualified for the semi-finals and Super 12, Group 2 winners and runners-up, respectively. India lost to England in the semis, while Pakistan were beaten by England in the title clash.
