It was a seventh straight World Cup win for India over Pakistan, and this one felt as good as over for much of the contest. <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/sport/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2019-rohit-sharma-shines-as-india-outclass-pakistan-1.875273">Read Paul Radley's report</a> from the Old Trafford clash. <strong>___________________</strong> Kuldeep Yadav sparked a dramatic Pakistan collapse as India remained on course to extend their unbeaten World Cup record. The left-arm spinner struck twice in quick succession as Pakistan, who had been 117-1, lost four wickets for 12 runs in 18 balls at Old Trafford to dent their bid to reach a target of 337. After 35 overs, Pakistan - who have lost all six of their previous World Cup matches against India - were struggling at 166-6 as the rain returned for a second time. <strong>___________________</strong> Rohit Sharma smashed his second century in three innings and skipper Virat Kohli made 77 to power India to 336-5. Put into bat under a grey sky, India got off to a strong start with Lokesh Rahul, replacing injured Shikhar Dhawan at the top, and Rohit forging a 136-run stand for the opening wicket. Rohit made 140 off 113 balls and raised 98 runs with Kohli but Mohammad Amir's tight bowling at the death overs denied India a 350-plus total. Amir was the pick of the Pakistan bowlers claiming 3-47. <strong>___________________</strong> Virat Kohli became the fastest player to reach 11,000 one-day international runs as the India captain made history in against Pakistan. The 30-year-old reached the landmark in his 222nd innings, surpassing Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar, who crossed the 11,000-run mark in 276 innings. When rain stopped play, Kohli, in his 230th ODI, was on 71 off 62 deliveries - his 92nd 50-plus score since making his debut against Sri Lanka in 2008. He reached the 11,000 milestone with a boundary off Pakistan paceman Hasan Ali in the 45th over of the Indian innings at Old Trafford. Kohli, who was also the fastest to 10,000 runs - a milestone he achieved in October last year, is the third Indian to join the elite list. The star batsman hit six fours in his innings so far, helping India to 305 for four in 46.4 overs when rain interrupted play. <strong>___________________</strong> The weather has been a central theme of this Cricket World Cup and it has again arrived to steal the attention of this gripping encounter in Manchester. The players leave the pitch with India 305/4 - captain Virat Kohli is well set on 71, with Vijay Shankar (3) a new arrival at the crease. ___________________ When Rohit Sharma got to three figures, India were 172-1 in the 31st over and set for a huge total at Old Trafford. Rohit and KL Rahul (57) put on 137 for the first wicket. Their efforts were all the more impressive as they were opening together for the first time in a one-day international. Regular opener Shikhar Dhawan was <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/sport/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2019-shikhar-dhawan-ruled-out-for-at-least-two-weeks-with-hand-injury-1.873091">sidelined with a thumb injury</a> sustained while making a century in a victory over champions Australia last time out. Rahul also brought his fifty up with a six against Shoaib Malik and drove one more off Mohammad Hafeez. But he fell soon afterwards to Wahab Riaz who, as happened twice to fellow left-arm quick Mohammad Amir earlier in the innings, was warned for running on the pitch. Two balls after that sanction from umpire Marais Erasmus, Riaz - now bowling from around the wicket - had Rahul chipping a tame catch to mid-off. But Rohit carried and he went into the 90s with an extraordinary square-cut six over paceman Hasan Ali. Then a single off Shadab saw Sharma to a hundred off 85 balls including three sixes and nine fours. It was his 24th ODI century. Rohit eventually fell to Hasan, caught by Riaz, on 140, while Rahul was done off the bowling off Riaz having scored a 78-ball 57, Virat Kohli and Hardik Panya were the next batsmen up. ___________________ Rohit Sharma brings up his 100 with a single through the covers. It is the Indian opener's 24th century in one-day cricket and his second at the Cricket World Cup 2019 in England, having also scored 122 not out against South Africa on June 5. Take a bow, son. ___________________ India batsman Rohit Sharma is dominating the Pakistan attack and has just brought up his 66th score of 50 or more in one-day cricket. Fakhar Zaman missed a golden opportunity to make the breakthrough, throwing at the non-striker's end when Rohit had advanced midway down the pitch for a second run. Rohit was able to scramble back into his crease before bringing up the fifty stand for the opening wicket later in the over as India reached 53 without loss at the end of the opening powerplay. Rohit was given another life shortly afterwards following an errant throw from Shadab to wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed, with the batsman well short of his ground as he and KL Rahul attempted a quick single. Rohit then clubbed leg-spinner Shadab's full-toss for six before cutting him for four to bring up a 34-ball half-century. ___________________ Pakistan spearhead Mohammad Amir faced the prospect of being removed from the attack before completing his overs in a key World Cup match against arch rivals India after receiving two official warnings for running on the pitch in his first spell at Old Trafford. The left-arm quick was officially warned by Australian umpire Bruce Oxenford in the third and fifth overs of Sunday's match. One more such warning, from either Oxenford or fellow standing umpire Marais Erasmus, would see Amir removed from the attack and unable to bowl again in this match. That would be a huge blow to Pakistan, with the in-form Amir having taken career-best figures of 5-30 -- the best of the tournament so far in a 41-run group loss to reigning champions Australia at Taunton on Wednesday. Bowlers must not run on to the protected area near the stumps after delivering the ball so as not to unfairly scuff up the surface and make batting more difficult when the bowling is from the other end. Amir conceded just eight runs in his opening four overs. ___________________ Our colleague Evenly Lau has been scouring the Twittersphere to see who's watching the big match. Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan is getting in on the action. He posted not only about the match but Father’s Day as well, showing that he and his son Aryan were ready to root for India: While Pakistani singer-songwriter Ali Zafar shared a photo wishing for good weather for the game: See who else is Tweeting about <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/imran-khan-and-shah-rukh-khan-tweet-out-about-india-v-pakistan-cricket-match-1.875043">India-Pakistan here</a>. ___________________ Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed decided to give his bowlers first use of a green-tinged pitch in a crucial World Cup match against arch rivals India at Old Trafford on Sunday. "We will bowl first," said Sarfaraz. "India v Pakistan is a big game but we just have to focus on playing our best game." India captain Virat Kohli said he would have made the same decision, with the overcast conditions promising to assist Pakistan spearhead Mohammad Amir, who started the match with a maiden. "We would have bowled first to be honest," said Kohli at the toss. "The conditions are good for bowling but the wicket looks nice. "There's a lot of attention outside of the rope but when you enter the field, it's about applying the basics of the game." Meanwhile the prospect of rain - which has already washed out four games this World Cup - threatened to reduce the number of overs and so hand an advantage to the side batting second in terms of a possibly revised target. Pakistan are currently ninth in the 10-team table. That meant this fixture has effectively become a "must-win" game for Pakistan if they are to finish in the top four teams who will qualify for the semi-finals from the round-robin group phase. They made two changes from the side that lost to Australia on Wednesday, recalling spinners Shadab Khan and Imad Wasim in place of batsman Asif Ali and paceman Shaheen Shah Afridi. India, whose last match against New Zealand was a complete washout, made one enforced change from the side that beat champions Australia by 36 runs at the Oval. Vijay Shankar replaced Shikhar Dhawan after the opener suffered a thumb injury while making a hundred in that match. Kohli's side have yet to lose at this World Cup after winning their completed group fixtures against both South Africa and Australia. India have also won all six of their previous World Cup matches against Pakistan. More than a billion fans worldwide are expected to watch Sunday's match between the subcontinental cricket giants. <strong>Teams</strong> <strong>India:</strong> Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (capt), Vijay Shankar, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni (wkt), Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah <strong>Pakistan:</strong> Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfaraz Ahmed (capt/wkt), Shoaib Malik, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir <strong>Umpires: </strong>Marais Erasmus (RSA) and Bruce Oxenford (AUS) <strong>TV umpire:</strong> Joel Wilson (WIS) <strong>Match referee:</strong> Ranjan Madugalle (SRI) ___________________ Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, who led the country to their only Cricket World Cup title, in 1992, before entering politics, urged the current team to banish the fear of losing in their crucial match against India Sunday. The arch rivals go head-to-head in a World Cup blockbuster at Old Trafford in Manchester, England, in a match expected to be watched on television around the world by over one billion people. Pakistan have the better record overall, winning 73 matches to India's 54, but at the World Cup it is a different story. India have come out on top all six times the sides met at the World Cup, starting with a 43-run triumph in 1992 until, most recently, a 76-run victory in 2015. "All fears of losing should be banished from the mind as the mind can only process one thought at a time," tweeted Khan, who led Pakistan to victory at the 1992 World Cup. "Fear of losing leads to a negative and defensive strategy & crucially mistakes by opponents are not pounced upon." Recalling his cricketing career, Khan - one of the greatest all-rounders in the game's history - said: "I assumed success was 70 per cent talent and 30 per cent [in the] mind. "By the time I finished playing cricket I felt it was 50-50 ratio. But now I tend to agree with my friend [Indian batsman Sunil] Gavaskar it's 60 per cent mental strength and 40 per cent talent." ___________________ Let's be honest, the weather has been pretty grim in England since the tournament got under way on May 30. To be honest, the ICC were always asking for trouble. You know, holding a major international tournament in the middle of the British summer. What were they thinking? The first 10 games were completed with minimal fuss, but then the Pakistan v Sri Lanka match at Bristol on June 7 was abandoned without a ball bowled, followed by South Africa v West Indies at Southampton on June 10, Bangladesh v Sri Lanka at Bristol on June 11 and India v New Zealand at Trent Bridge on June 13. Saturday's match between South Africa and Afghanistan was also rain affected. The prediction for today's match between India and Pakistan? <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/sport/cricket/manchester-weather-how-india-v-pakistan-became-clouded-by-the-climate-1.874937">Read Ian Oxborrow's report</a>. Let's just say West Indies batting legend Chris Gayle may need an umbrella to maintain <em>that</em> suit. ___________________ The most eagerly-anticipated game of the 2019 Cricket World Cup so far takes place today as arch-rivals India and Pakistan clash in Manchester. Pakistan edge the overall meetings between the two sides but have never beaten their subcontinent rivals in six previous meetings at the World Cup. Today's match takes place at Old Trafford at 1.30pm, <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/sport/cricket/manchester-weather-how-india-v-pakistan-became-clouded-by-the-climate-1.874937">with plenty of interest in the weather in North-west England</a>, with showers predicted. We will bring you live updates as the match unfolds. For now, check out Chitrabhanu Kadalayil's lowdown on today's heavyweight clash. ___________________ 2019 World Cup group stage match India v Pakistan Today, 1.30pm (UAE time) start Old Trafford, Manchester Tune in to <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/%3Cspan%20class='preview-text--highlighted'%3Esport%3C/span%3E/cricket/osn-to-ditch-all-non-cricket-sports-channels-from-march-31-1.824381">OSN Sports Cricket HD</a> or create an online account with Wavo for US$54 (a little less than Dh200). The account will provide customers access to two channels, OSN Cric Xtra 1 and OSN Cric Xtra 2. Matches: 131 India won: 54 Pakistan won: 73 No result: 4 India: WWLLL Pakistan: LWLLL <strong>Virat Kohli</strong><strong>, India captain, on mental approach to game:</strong> "I think the best way to approach something like this, it's to understand that the game starts tomorrow at a certain time and it finishes at a certain time. So it's not going to last a lifetime for you, whether you do well or you don't." <strong>Mickey Arthur, Pakistan coach, on leaving a legacy:</strong> "I am telling our players in the dressing room, you could be a hero tomorrow. Your careers are going to be defined by a moment in the game. You do something incredible tomorrow, you'll be remembered forever." <strong>India:</strong> Rohit Sharma, Lokesh Rahul, Virat Kohli (c), Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni (wk), Kedhar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah. <strong>Pakistan:</strong> Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammed Hafeez, Sarfaraz Ahmed (c & wk), Haris Sohail, Shoaib Malik, Shadab Khan, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Mohammed Amir. India have a decisive edge going into today's game against Pakistan, considering their superior form over the past four years as well as the 6-0 head-to-head record they enjoy over their arch-rivals in World Cup games. That said, this is a new game and there's much pressure on both sides to win given the history of their rivalry as cricket teams and also as neighbouring nations. India and Pakistan have often been described as two nations with one soul, considering how much history and culture they have in common. But with the two countries having suffered a fractious relationship since gaining independence from Britain in 1947, there has always been an edge to the sides whenever they have clashed in the sporting arena, particularly on the cricket field. India will likely be hampered without opener Shikhar Dhawan, with all eyes on Lokesh Rahul who has been moved up from No 4. Pakistan will also be hopeful of repeating their massive win over the Indians in the final of the Champions Trophy at the Oval two years ago - the last time they met in an ICC tournament. India, themselves with a formidable bowling attack, will be wary of the threat posed by Mohammed Amir, who is a big-match player and performed brilliantly in that 2017 Champions Trophy final. As for the Indian bowlers, they know they can clinch the game if they can send opener Fakhar Zaman back to the dressing room early.
