It is needless to say that India and Pakistan share the greatest of rivalries in cricket. However this time, arch-rivals Pakistan would be hoping and backing the Men in Blue to do a favour for them in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia.
Pakistan would hope that they beat the Netherlands on Sunday and India defeat South Africa later on the day to keep their hopes alive for the semifinal berth.
To put into context, India is currently on top of the Group 2 points table with four points (contrasting victories against Pakistan and Netherlands). A victory over the Proteas would take Rohit Sharma and Co to six points, and almost closer to the semifinals.
South Africa, meanwhile, endured a washout against Zimbabwe, which meant they dropped a point, and they followed it up with a dominant 104-run win over Bangladesh.
If the Men in Blue beat South Africa, and Pakistan beat the Netherlands, then both South Africa and Pakistan would be at three and two points respectively. South Africa vs Pakistan contest becomes all the more important, with the loser of that match at the risk of being eliminated.
Moreover, the Men in Green would even hope that Zimbabwe and South Africa lose at least two of their remaining three matches. If it happens, both Zimbabwe and South Africa would have five points by the end of the Super 12 stage, and assuming Pakistan wins all three matches, they would have six points in their kitty.
On the contrary, if South Africa beat India and Netherlands, and India beat both Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, in that case, both South Africa and India would have an excess of over six points, and Pakistan would be eliminated.