"Richa Ghosh would be Player of Match": Sanjay Manjrekar's bold predictions ahead of India-Pak clash in Women's T20 World Cup

As India prepares for a highly anticipated clash against arch-rivals Pakistan in the Women's T20 World Cup 2024, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has made some bold predictions. The Group A match is set to take place at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. India, aiming to bounce back from their opening defeat against New Zealand, will face a confident Pakistan team fresh off a win against Sri Lanka.

Manjrekar has singled out wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh as the potential standout performer for India. He predicted that Ghosh's explosive batting and sharp wicketkeeping would earn her the Player of the Match award. Manjrekar also highlighted Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur and spinner Asha Sobhana as key players to watch.

"Three players to watch out for. No. 1 Richa Ghosh, number two would be Harmanpreet Kaur. She failed in the first match and this doesn't happen quite often. It almost feels impossible. The third player to watch out for would be Asha Sobhana. 2 Predictions would be that its been years since India beat Pakistan in an afternoon game. So, that will happen. 2nd is that Richa Ghosh would be the Player of the Match. 2 stumpings and a quickfire forty. By doing this she will be the Player of the Match," Manjrekar said in a video posted by Star Sports on X.

Manjrekar also offered tactical advice to the Indian team, emphasizing the importance of adapting to the slow pitch conditions in Dubai. He urged the players to avoid playing big shots and instead focus on accumulating runs through singles and twos, much like Virat Kohli's approach.

"One piece of advice for India against Pakistan is to avoid big shots on Dubai's slow and fresh pitch. Instead, play sensibly. Take ones and twos, and if you want to hit a six, don't hit it straight," Manjrekar added.

India suffered a setback with a 58-run loss against New Zealand in their opening match, putting them in a tight spot in their quest for a semi-final berth. In contrast, Pakistan, led by Fatima Sana, will be riding high on confidence after defeating the Asia Cup 2024 champions Sri Lanka in their opener. The stakes are always high when India face Pakistan in international cricket and it's no different this time around with mixed fortunes for both sides in their opening group matches.

India would have been banking on a victory first-up against New Zealand and won't want to drop a second consecutive match at the tournament, while Pakistan will be dreaming of what might be if they can make it two on the trot and inch closer to a maiden semi-final berth. More will be expected of India's strong batting order in this contest, while Pakistan boast some decent depth in their own line-up and should not be underestimated.

Squads:India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Yastika Bhatia (subject to fitness), Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Dayalan Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil (subject to fitness), Sajana Sajeevan.

Travelling reserves: Uma Chetry (wk), Tanuja Kanwer, Saima Thakor.

Non-Travelling reserves: Raghvi Bist, Priya Mishra

Pakistan: Fatima Sana (c), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Gull Feroza, Iram Javed, Muneeba Ali, Nashra Sundhu, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal (subject to fitness), Sidra Amin, Syeda Aroob Shah, Tasmia Rubab, Tuba Hassan.

Travelling reserve: Najiha Alvi (wk).

Non-travelling reserves: Rameen Shamim, Umm-e-Hani. (ANI)