The Indian cricket team takes on arch-rivals Pakistan in Manchester on June 16, Sunday in what is a marquee clash of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2019. This will be the seventh time in history of the Cricket World Cup that the two sides will be facing each other. India enter the tie as the favourites, but they won’t be taking Pakistan lightly in this mega contest at Old Trafford.
India, who won the tournament in 1983 and 2011, beat South Africa and Australia in their first two games. Their third encounter ended in a wash-out against New Zealand.
Pakistan, on the other hand, have lost twice in their first four matches. The 1992 winners started their campaign with a big defeat against the West Indies. They stunned hosts England and and then shared a point with Sri Lanka after a wash-out. In their last encounter, Sarfaraz Ahmed’s side wasted a chance to overcome defending champions Australia.
Therefore, a win on Sunday is more crucial for Pakistan as they have collected just three points from four games in the ongoing World Cup. The two teams have shared a long history in World Cup cricket. India have dominated the show in World Cup cricket.  Out of the previous six meets, India have a 100% record.
Here we go back memory lane and look at the past meeting of these two sides at the World Cup.
1992 – India defend low total of 216
Led by Mohammad Azharuddin, the Indian team posted a paltry total of 216/7 in 49 overs at the SCG in Australia. It was a young Sachin Tendulkar, who was the top-scorer with an unbeaten 54. Ace spinner Mushtaq Ahmed was the star for Pakistan with figures of 3/59 from 10 overs.
Imran Khan’s side needed to bat sensibly in a low-scoring affair. It was Aamir Sohail who crafted his way to a half-century. Pakistan were in control and crossed the 100-run mark with eight wickets in hand. Once Tendulkar dismissed Sohail for 62, the complexion of the match changed.
Pakistan struggled to build partnerships and collapsed to be all out for 173 in 48.1 overs. Indian pacers Kapil Dev, Manoj Prabhakar and Javagal Srinath picked three wickets apiece. This was the same match in which talisman Javed Miandad held his bat high and jumped in the air to mock Indian wicketkeeper Kiran More, who constantly appealed from behind the stumps.
1996 – India clinch victory in Bengaluru
The 1996 quarter-final encounter saw Venkatesh Prasad give Sohail that epic send-off which is even talked about till date. Batting first, India started strongly with Navjot Singh Sidhu (93) and Tendulkar (31) adding 90 runs for the first wicket. Sidhu took Pakistan’s bowlers to the cleaners, smashing 11 boundaries.
Ajay Jadeja’s contribution helped India as the right-hander blazed his way to a 25-ball 45. His heroics helped India to get to a total of 287/6 in 50 overs. Waqar Younis with 2/67 and Mushtaq Ahmed with 2/56 were the most successful Pakistani bowlers.
In reply, Sohail top-scored for his team once again with a sublime 55. Once he was sent back by Prasad, the game changed. The top quality Pakistani batsmen got starts, but nobody converted them to big scores. Prasad and leg-spinner Anil Kumble got three wickets each to restrict their opposition to 248/9 in 49 overs. India won by 39 runs.
1999 – India seal the deal in Manchester
This was the third consecutive time that Azhar captained India in the World Cup and he chose to bat once again after winning the toss. The skipper led the way with a fine 59. Rahul Dravid’s 61 also played a role as India managed a reasonable 227/6 in 50 overs. Perhaps, India could have scored more at a brisk rate, but losing Tendulkar for 45 hampered their chances.
Wasim Akram, with 2/27 from his 10 overs, was the standout bowler for Pakistan. It was a good bowling effort from the Men in Green. They needed to apply themselves in the chase and get this done. But that wasn’t the case. It was the pressure of the World Cup that got to them.
Prasad bowled one of his best ODI spells of the World Cup. The lanky right-arm pacer ran through the Pakistan batting order and returned with figures of 5/27 from 9.3 overs. Only, Inzamam-ul-Haq applied some solidity with a 41-run knock. But Pakistan were bowled out for just 180 in 45.3 overs. India won the game by 47 runs.
2003 – Sachin’s mastery floors Pakistan
This was a match that saw Pakistan bat first at the SuperSport Park in Centurion. Opening batsman Saeed Anwar led the show with a classy 101. But the rest of the batting couldn’t quite get a hold on at the crease. All Pakistan managed was 273/7 in 50 overs. Credit to India and especially Zaheer Khan, who bowled his hart out and got two scalps.
In reply, it was maestro Tendulkar all the way. He started the inning with an iconic upper-cut six off Shoaib Akhtar. India suffered a blip after losing Virender Sehwag and captain Sourav Ganguly off successive deliveries when the score read 53. But Sachin was there to cut out the danger.
The right-handed batsman tore into the Pakistani bowlers and scored a brilliant 75-ball 98. The likes of Rahul Dravid (44*) and  Yuvraj Singh (50*) ensured that India got past the line. India finished with 276/4 in 45.4 overs to earn a memorable win. They managed to reach the final that year.
2011 – India win a crucial World Cup semis tie
This was a blockbuster tie given that it was the semi-final of the ICC World Cup 2011. It was a jam-packed stadium in Mohali and the atmosphere lived up to its billing. Indian captain MS Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat first and it was a Tendulkar show once again.
The legend was lucky on the field after Pakistani fielders dropped him on five occasions. Tendulkar punished the Pakistanis with 11 boundaries in a cautious innings of 85. However, India managed just 260/9 in 50 overs thanks. It was Wahab Riaz’s brilliant spell of 5/46 that helped Pakistan restrict India.
In reply, the Indian bowlers did well collectively and kept picking up wickets. They eventually bowled out Pakistan for 231 in 49.5 overs. Veteran Misbah-ul-Haq was the highest scorer with 56. Tendulkar was adjudged the player of the match for the third time in the India-Pakistan World Cup match. India reached the final and were the eventual World Cup winners.
2015 – Men in Blue conquer Pakistan once again
This was the fifth occasion at the World Cup where India won the toss against Pakistan and chose to bat first. MS Dhoni-led India saw a Virat Kohli special, who scored a disciplined 107 off 126 deliveries. He was ably supported by Shikhar Dhawan (73) and Suresh Raina (74). The defending champions posted 300/7 in 50 overs at the Adelaide Oval.
Pakistani right-arm pacer Sohail Khan was the lick of the bowlers with figures of 5/55 from 10 overs. In reply, Misbah took the responsibility and top-scored for Pakistan with a knock of 76. But none of the other batsmen managed to show any character as Pakistan were bowled out for 227 in 47 overs.
India’s Mohammed Shami got 4/35 from nine overs to deliver the goods for India with the ball. The right-arm fast-bowler’s effort helped India seal a promising win over Pakistan. Kohli was awarded the player of the match award for his match-winning century.
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