Here are a few areas of concern for the two sides…

Wrong call to tamper with opening duo?

Shubman Gill is Indian cricket’s blue-eyed boy, but even his die-hard fans would have been skeptical about his inclusion in the T20 side as vice-captain, besides being given the role of opener in place of Sanju Samson. The first six Powerplay overs are extremely critical in the shortest white-ball format, and while his opening partner Abhishek Sharma has been going hammer-and-tongs from the word go, Gill has been found wanting in his role. Though it is unlikely India will tamper with their winning combination, meaning Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakaravarthy will be back in the side to bolster the bowling attack which looked toothless against Oman, the elegant stroke-maker really needs to put some quick runs on the board to relieve pressure on the maverick Sharma and get the side off to a flyer.

Jaydip Sengupta

Jaydip is a Pages Editor at Gulf News and has sports running in his veins. While specializing in Tennis and Formula 1, he also makes sure to stay on top of cricket, football, golf, athletics and anything related to sports in general.

Known for his ability to dig out exclusive stories and land interviews with the biggest names in sports, Jaydip has built up a remarkable portfolio in almost 25 years of journalism, with one-on-one interviews of Michael Schumacher, Roger Federer, Usain Bolt and Tiger Woods, just to name a few.

Besides sports, Jaydip also has a keen interest in films and geopolitics.