Shaheen Afridi made a fiery start in the
T20 World Cup Super 12 clash against India on Sunday, dismissing openers Rohit
Sharma and KL Rahul to draw first blood for Pakistan.

The 21-year-old left-arm pacer sent the ‘Hitman’
packing for a golden duck with a peach of a delivery, swinging back in at pace at
yorker length to beat Sharma and crash into his pads for a plumb LBW decision.
It was a straightforward decision for the umpire, who promptly raised the
finger as Afridi celebrated in typical style.

Afridi then clean bowled Rahul with the
very first delivery of his second over, nailing an in-swinging length delivery that
the 28-year-old mistimed in his effort to whip across the line as it crashed into
the stumps.

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Afridi’s performance earned him comparisons with legendary Pakistan pacer Wasim Akram, with Twitter users lauding the youngster’s game-changing spell to jolt India early in the match. 

Earlier, Babar Azam won the toss and chose to bowl in the high-stakes encounter against India. This is the sixth time India are facing Pakistan in the T20 World Cup, having won all five previous encounters. The historic rivalry is one that defines T20 World Cup history. 

India faced Pakistan twice in the inaugural edition in 2007, including the final, where Mahendra Singh Dhoni‘s men won by five runs to end a 24-year wait for a World Cup trophy. 

Overall India and Pakistan have faced off 12 times in World Cups, with India winning on all occassions.