India to face arch rivals Pakistan in T20 World Cup opener

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The Super 12s, round two of the tournament, with two groups, will begin on October 23, with Australia facing South Africa in Abu Dhabi and England up against title holders and two-time champions West Indies in Dubai. The first semifinal will be held in Abu Dhabi on November 10, while the second will be played in Dubai on November 11. The final will be held in Dubai on November 14 with November 15 marked as a reserve day.

The tournament is being hosted by India in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman since a third wave of the COVID-19 is being anticipated at that time of the tournament. Pakistan captain Babar Azam is looking forward to opening their campaign and said his side will feel at home in UAE conditions having played there on a consistent basis.

"For Pakistan, the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 is like a home event as the UAE has been our venue for more than a decade. We have not only nurtured our talent and developed our side in the UAE but have also beaten the top sides in these conditions to peak to number-one in the ICC T20I Team Rankings," he said.

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"All the players are excited, motivated and enthusiastic, and view this tournament as an opportunity to showcase our prowess and re-establish our superiority in the shortest format of the game in conditions that suit us best."

West Indies captain Kieron Pollard is eager to defend their 2016 title, which they won by beating England in a pulsating final at the Eden Gardens with Carlos Brathwaite blasting four consecutive sixes in the last over to turn the tables. "We have a particularly interesting Super 12 group, which sees us come up against Australia, England and South Africa. We can't wait to get started! West Indian cricketers have always played an exciting brand of cricket and I am sure our fans in the Caribbean and all over the world are highly anticipating seeing us in action," he said.

England captain Eoin Morgan expects the T20 World Cup to be a closely contested event. "The standard of T20 cricket around the world is improving exponentially and every nation has a chance of becoming World Champions. It should be one of the closest and most competitive world tournaments to date and we can't wait to get started."

On the high-octane India-Pakistan clash, former India opener Gautam Gambhir told Star Sports, "In 2007 as well, when we went out to win the World Cup, our first game was against Scotland, which was washed out, but then practically, our first game was against Pakistan. And that is exactly what I mentioned it is important to play Pakistan in the early stages of the tournament because what happens is you don't want to keep thinking about Pakistan, you can finish it off initially and concentrate on the entire tournament, and it is exactly the same for the fans and the country as well."