Hafeez says opening Indo-Pak clash in World T20 has 'nothing to do with history'

Pakistani Twenty20 captain Mohammad Hafeez has said that opening India-Pakistan clash of the Super-10 stage of the World Twenty20 has 'nothing to do with history'.

As cricket's top eight sides enter the fray, Pakistan seeks a historic win against India in the second round's standout clash while the associate teams have been slogging it out in the expanded 16-nation tournament to join the Test nations from round one.

According to The Dawn, although Pakistan is bidding to defeat archrivals India for the first time at the World T20, however, Hafeez dismissed that the match has anything to do with history and insisted that beating India will give them momentum in the tournament and is, therefore, a good start for them.

Hafeez further said that he is glad they are playing India in their first match as their morale is good given that they beat their neighbours in the Asia Cup, although he admitted that they need to be at their best to win against India.

Hafeez also said that nothing of the past matters in this game, adding that even though their future matches are just as important, they are currently focusing on their clash with India.

Pakistan qualified for the semi-finals in all four editions of the World T20, winning the tournament in 2009 in England after being runners-up to India in the inaugural event in 2007.

India, however, have not made the semi-finals since their title win despite the popularity of the T20 Indian Premier League over the last six years, the report added.