The match will begin at 1:30 pm and continue till after 9:15 pm. The match will be played on the same pitch on which the World Cup final was played last year. Despite bright sunshine on Wednesday, there will be moisture in the wicket which can be exploited fully by pacemen like Waqar Younis, Aaqib Javed and Azhar Mahmood.
Management of both the teams have decided to name the two elevens shortly before the start of the game.
Talking to this reporter shortly before the Indian and Pakistani teams had a practice-session this evening at the Qadhafi Stadium under floodlights, Sachin Tendulkar said that every effort would be made to clinch the series 2-1 by winning the last match on Thursday. ``We have worked out a strategy for the decisive match and try to put up a good show. We are not at all over-awed by the belligerent Pakistani batsmen Saeed Anwar and Shahid Afridi'', said the diminutive Indian skipper.
Stringent security measures have been taken for the Indian team. About 700 commandos have been deployed besides the policemen in uniforms and in plain clothes. However, a few hundred overzealous fans, keen to watch the two teams practising, succeeded in breaking the security arrangements and went into the Qadhafi Stadium on Wednesday evening.
Setting for the all-important match of the series is ideal. Rain on Monday turned the weather in Lahore very pleasant. The outfield at the Qadhafi Stadium is lush-green and grass is tastefully mowed. Ground-staff tried to shave off every blade of grass from the pitch to make it suitable for stroke-play. However, the moisture left due to rain and overnight dew can help the pacemen and they will pose problems for the batsmen. The strength of the two teams, which are full of stroke-players,a tall-scoring game cannot be ruled out.
Unprecedented rush for sale of tickets shows keenness of cricket-lovers of Lahore and the adjoining cities. Almost 90 per cent tickets for majority of the enclosures had been sold out. People were seen running from pillar to post on Wednesday to buy tickets. Even the tickets of Rs 600 denomination for Fazal Mahmood and Imran Khan Enclosures had been sold heavily.
The Pakistan team looks very keen to repeat its win against India registered on her soil during the Independence Cup. That was built around a world record-shattering knock of 194 by the diminutive left-hand opener Saeed Anwar, who now leads the Pakistan team against the visiting Sachin Tendulkar's Indian side. The Pakistan team wants to forget the loss at the National Stadium, Karachi, in an exciting finish on Tuesday and also the 1-4 drubbing by the Indian team in the second Sahara Cup series.
The winning of toss will be vital in this decisive match. Team batting first will be in an advantageous position and can hit a big score. However, the evening dew makes grip on the ball rather difficult and is troublesome for the bowlers. Batting under floodlights is also a difficult task.
The Indian team is better than the host side in fielding, particularly catching. This department plays an important part in limited-over matches.
In presence of in-form batsmen like Inzamam-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi and experienced players like Saeed Anwar, Ejaz Ahmad, Moin Khan and talented youngsters like Muhammad Wasim, Azhar Mahmood and Hasan Raza, the Pakistan team enjoys edge over the Indian team in batting. But this should not detract from ability of the Indian stroke-players like Sachin Tendulkar, Azharuddin, Dravid, Surav Ganguly, Ajay Jadeja, Robin Singh and Vinod Kambli, who have the capability to turn the game in their team's favour.
The Pakistan bowling has been strengthened with the inclusion of paceman Waqar Younis. He will be assisted by Azhar Mahmood and Aqib Javed. Saqlain Mushtaq and Shahid Afridi are talented spinners. The Indian team is not that strong in bowling but has been served well by Ganguly, Mohanty, Kuruvilla, Nilesh Kulkarni, Rajesh Chauhan.
All-round superiority of the Pakistan team tilts scales in its favour. Backed up by local crowd and favourable home conditions should help the Pakistan team register a victory in the last match over the Indian side and clinch the series 2-1.
Teams:
PAKISTAN: Saeed Anwar (captain), Shahid Afridi, Ejaz Ahmed, Salim Elahi, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Wasim, Hasan Raza, Moin Khan, Saqlain Mushtaq, Waqar Younis, Mohammad Hussain, Azhar Mahmood, Shahid Nazir, Aaqib Javed.
INDIA: Sachin Tendulkar (captain), Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Ajay Jadeja, Saba Karim, Mohammad Azharuddin, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, Vindo Kambli, Rajesh Chauhan, Abey Kuruvilla, Debashish Mohanty, Harvinder Singh, Nilesh Kulkarni, Robin Singh.
UMPIRES: Javed Akhter and Nazir Jr.