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Friday, April 01, 2011

India win toss, elect to bat against Pakistan

3:33 AM  Unknown  

Updated at: 1337 PST,  Wednesday, March 30, 2011
MOHALI: India captain Mahindra Singh Dhoni has won the toss and elected to bat first against Pakistan as the two cricket-crazy countries are heading for an epic World Cup showdown in the second semi-final here at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium on Wednesday.This clash will highlight the bitter rivalry and common bonds between the estranged nuclear-armed neighbours.The teams clash in the semi-final of the competition in a battle promising passion and drama, with more than a billion people, or a fifth of humanity, set to follow the much-hyped contest between bat and ball.Pakistan, who thrashed the West Indies by 10 wickets in their last eight clash, were unchanged and that meant there was no recall for erratic fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar.India made one change from the side that beat champions Australia by five wickets in the quarter-finals, with left-arm quick Ashish Nehra replacing off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin as the hosts opted for a three-man pace attack. India batting great Sachin Tendulkar came into this match needing just one more century to become the first man to score a hundred international hundreds.The 37-year-old has 51 Test centuries and 48 one-day international tons to his credit.India have won all four previous World Cup matches between the arch-rivals.The winners of this encounter will face Sri Lanka, who beat New Zealand by five wickets in Colombo on Tuesday, in Saturday's final in Mumbai.All three remaining teams in the tournament have won the World Cup once, with India triumphing in 1983, Pakistan in 1992 and Sri Lanka in 1996.India: Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain/wk), Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Munaf PatelPakistan: Mohammad Hafeez, Kamran Akmal (wk), Asad Shafiq, Younus Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi (capt), Abdul Razzaq, Wahab Riaz, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal
Umpires: Simon Taufel (AUS) and Ian Gould (ENG),TV umpire: Billy Bowden (NZ)Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (SL)

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