Champions Trophy final: Pakistan has nothing to lose, says Azhar Mahmood

“The more relaxed you stay in these kind of situations, it’s a good thing, because it helps you take better decisions when you are composed and calm mentally, and you can help the team come out of hard situations only if you’re thinking in that fashion”. “He can be effective as a bowler and his batting is priceless”, the 28-year-old told reporters here. Chasing a revised total of 289, Pakistan were bundled out for 164.

After their comfortable win against Zimbabwe, Pakistan were shot out for 74 and just when England looked to canter to a facile win, rain spoiled play and points were shared.

“They have shown faith in us and we would like them to support us during the final too”, the soft-spoken Pakistan skipper said in a hurried tone.

IST: Indian soldiers at the border are hoping for Virat Kohli’s men to bring the Champions Trophy home. On the day you arrive, if you are not feeling well mentally, it doesn’t matter whether you are 100 or whether you had a convincing victory. That game, won by India, was one of the top-six most viewed sporting events, along with the soccer World Cup final and Usain Bolt’s 100-metre sprint at the 2012 Olympic Games, the sports broadcasting industry source said.

We dissected India a lot before that game at Edgbaston but we’ve backtracked a bit on that.

After losing their opener against India by a huge margin, Pakistan made a resounding comeback in the tournament upsetting South Africa and overcoming Sri Lanka in a nerve racking encounter.

IST: The Pakistan team is making their way into the stadium. So everyone is aware of the kind of talent they have in their team.

“Yet while the disappointed captains of eliminated teams must accept the reality of recriminations and a social media backlash, Virat has managed to guide his team through to the final and now, once again, stands centre stage for the showpiece occasion”.

“It’s going to be a very well-contested match”.

The buzz for the final has been enormous in England, too, where there is a large population from both the nations.

“But someone asked me before the tournament who would be in the final and I said Pakistan“.

Victory over India will be a huge prize for Arthur’s charges in a sell-out match set to attract one of sport’s biggest-ever global broadcast audiences.

“I have never believed in watching too many videos of anyone”. “Before the Edgbaston game I thought they were really, really calm, but they’re very, very excited now, and there’s a hell of a good vibe in that dressing room”.

But Kohli was adamant that he valued the all-round balance Pandya offers and suggested that, if India continued to invest in him, they would be rewarded with “a match-winning performance” in a “crisis”.

“I don’t take extra pressure thinking about who is bowling and how is he bowling”. However, isolated thunderstorm activity can not be ruled out but will not impact the play much.

– This will be the fifth time these sides will have faced off in the Champions Trophy; the record is now balanced with two victories apiece.