Shock results have been the norm in this year's
Champions Trophy. But on Wednesday, Pakistan pulled off the mother of all upsets, outclassing hosts and hot favourites England and setting up a potentially mouth-watering clash with India in Sunday's final. First, though, India must get past Bangladesh on Thursday. It won't be easy. Here's why
TOPSY-TURVY TOURNEY: Pakistan vanquished South Africa and England. Sri Lanka thrashed India. Bangladesh made short work of New Zealand. Who can bet that the unexpected won't happen again?
(AP Photo)LESSONS FROM HISTORY: Remember the shock loss to Bangladesh in the 2007 ODI World Cup? Bangla also felt undone by the controversial not out decision of
Rohit Sharma in the 2015 ODI WC. In the last ODI series played between the two in June 2015, Bangladesh triumphed 2-1. Even in the 2016 World T20, India only scraped past Bangla with a last-ball run-out
SLOW STARTS: Openers Rohit Sharma and
Shikhar Dhawan have looked good but have failed to maximise the early Powerplay. India has put up only 46 (against Pak), 48 (Lanka) and 35 (S Africa) in the first 10 overs
(AP Photo)Read this story in Gujarati DROPPED CATCHES: India cannot afford to drop dollies like
Kedar Jadhav did against Pakistan. Even
Hardik Pandya grassed offerings by
Kusal Mendis and
Hashim Amla off his own bowling. The ground fielding too needs to show more consistency
BOWLING PUZZLE: R Ashwin's induction has given a balanced look to the attack. But India continues to sacrifice a genuine fifth bowler for more depth in the batting. Hardik Pandya can be erratic. Also, can India defend a small total? Worryingly, the question remains unanswered so far