India and Pakistan will clash in the ICC World T20 2021 Super 12 stage as the ICC announced the make-up of the two groups for the tournament that will be held in the UAE.
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The International Cricket Council has announced the groups for the ICC World T20 2021. Blockbuster India vs Pakistan clash will take place as both are in Group 2. Apart from India and Pakistan, ICC World Test Champions New Zealand are also present in the same group. Afghanistan is the fourth team. The remaining two spots will be taken up by the winner of the qualifying rounds of Group B and the runner-up of Group A.
India, England, Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Pakistan, South Africa, and West Indies have automatically qualified for the Super 12 stage. There will be a total of four teams vying for the remaining spots in the Super 12 stage. Before the ICC World T20 Super 12 stage, there will be a qualifier that will involve Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Ireland, Netherlands, Oman, and Papua New Guinea.
India and Pakistan have not played a bilateral series for the last eight years. They have played only in major ICC tournaments.
The ICC World T20 2021 will be played in the UAE and Oman from October to November. The tournament was shifted from India due to the coronavirus pandemic. The matches will take place from October 14 to November 14. The venues will be in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and the new Oman Cricket Academy.
In a statement released by the ICC, acting CEO Geoff Allardice said, “Given the disruption caused by COVID-19, we selected the cutoff date as close as possible to the event to ensure we were able to include the maximum amount of cricket in the rankings which determine the groups. There is no doubt we will witness some highly competitive cricket when the event gets underway in just three months.”
Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary said with Oman hosting some World T20 games, it was a great time to be an associate nation. “As a major force in world cricket, the BCCI has always endeavored to promote and assist Associate Nations. In my capacity as Asian Cricket Council President, my vision is to take cricket far and deep into Asia. Co-hosting the World Cup will put Oman Cricket on the global stage. They are also playing the Qualifiers and it will be an icing on the cake if they make it to the Super 12s,” Jay Shah said.
With tensions between India and Pakistan high, the two sides have played only in ICC events. Pakistan has never defeated India in the ICC World T20s, having lost in the 2007 World T20, 2012, 2014, and in the 2016 World T20. India and Pakistan last played in the 2019 ICC World Cup where India won for the seventh time.
In the last 10 years, Pakistan has won only once in ICC events and that was the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy. The final at The Oval saw Mohammad Amir bowl a tremendous spell as Pakistan won by 180 runs. In overall ICC events, Pakistan has a 3-14 disadvantage against India since 1992.
Super 12 Group 1 and Group 2 – England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, Winner Group A, Runner-up Group B, India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Runner-up Group A, Winner Group B
Group A – Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands, Namibia
Group B – Bangladesh, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, Oman
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