Team India is laying the groundwork for a much-awaited ODI clash against Pakistan, to kickstart its Asia Cup 2023 campaign. Scheduled to take place on Saturday, 2 August, at Pallekele International Stadium, this is the first time since ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, that the two teams will be battling in an ODI game.
Ahead of the highly anticipated game, players from both nations were seen in jovial mood during the training session. In a video shared by the Pakistan Cricket Board, Virat Kohli was seen embracing Pakistan speedster, Haris Rauf.
Notably, the pair played a crucial role in the last India-Pakistan encounter at the T20I World Cup 2022, wherein Kohli managed to seal the victory for India by playing some extraordinary shots off Rauf's bowling.
The captains of both teams, Rohit Sharma and Babar Azam also greeted and spoke to each other, while the star pacers of both sides, Rauf and Siraj, were spotted having a lengthy conversation.
Pakistan opened its Asia Cup campaign against Nepal on Wednesday, 30 August, wherein they registered a massive victory by 238 runs. India, on the other hand, will play the first match of the intercontinental tournament on Saturday, against their arch-rivals.
Speaking about the Indian team's approach to the Asia Cup, Rohit can be heard saying, "The whole idea of being aggressive is to allow them to play their game but at the same time, we let the individuals take the decisions when they are in the middle because a lot of them are actually quite experienced and have played in these type of conditions. It's important to read the situation and conditions as well because it's not a T20 format, it's a 50-over format, where you have to apply a little more than T20 cricket."
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