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Cricket world is dreaming of a blockbuster India-Pakistan final next Sunday

It's a mouthwatering prospect but for it to actualise, both teams have the semifinal hurdle to cross

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India's Suryakumar Yadav (left) and Pakistan's Shaheen Shah Afridi. (Twitter)

By Ayaz Memon

Published: Sun 6 Nov 2022, 6:48 PM

The T20 World Cup semifinalists have been identified, and are not very different from what most had predicted before the tournament began.

England and New Zealand made the cut from one group, India and Pakistan from the second, after several upsets, and high drama in the Super 12 over the past fortnight.

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Defending champions Australia became a casualty in Group 1, they had some ill luck with the weather.

But truth be told, they hardly looked a champion side. The first match defeat to New Zealand put them on the backfoot. Failure to give the Net Run Rate a boost in two successive matches because of poor planning saw them crash out.

Suspense over which teams will qualify from Group 2 did not reach the crescendo it did in Group 1. But Sunday’s matches in this cluster produced perhaps the biggest shock of the tournament, Netherlands beating South Africa and creating an alley for Pakistan to find a way into the semis against all odds.

The cricket world is now humming with the possibility of a final between India and Pakistan at the MCG next Sunday.

It’s a mouthwatering prospect but for it to actualise, both teams have the semifinal hurdle to cross. New Zealand and England stand in the path of a grandstand finale!

Ayaz Memon

Published: Sun 6 Nov 2022, 6:48 PM

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