Will Rishabh Pant make it? Gautam Gambhir picks his Team India Playing XI for the match against Pakistan

In the T20 World Cup 2022, Team India is ready to kick-start its campaign with the first match against Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on 23rd October. Millions of fans around the world including India and Pakistan are eagerly waiting for this high voltage match.

This time India is being considered as a strong contender to win the T20 World Cup 2022 (like always) being played in Australia. And its possibilities became even greater when in the warm-up match, Team India defeated hosts Australia by 6 runs in a thrilling match.

With star fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and spin all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja out of the tournament due to injuries, it will be interesting to watch India's playing XI against Pakistan. But in the meantime, former World Cup winning player Gautam Gambhir has selected his playing XI for the match against Pakistan.

Gautam Gambhir, who played a key role in the 2007 and 2011 World Cup victories, has dropped 37-year-old finisher Dinesh Karthik in his playing XI. In a Zee News show, Gambhir said that Karthik's role as a finisher limits his chances. Whereas if India lose the opening wicket, Pant can be sent to bat first as a floater.

At the same time, Gambhir surprised many people by making a lot of changes in India's bowling. He picked Yuzvendra Chahal as India's leading spinner for the match against Pakistan along with Axar Patel ahead of the experienced Ravichandran Ashwin in the spin department. Also, in fast bowling, he has advised to choose between Bhuvneshwar Kumar or Arshdeep Singh to support Harshal Patel and veteran Mohammed Shami.

Gautam Gambhir's Predicted India Playing XI vs Pakistan

Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar/ Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal