Cricket’s Biggest Rivalry Takes Center Stage in T20 World Cup 2024 Clash in New York

Cricket’s fiercest rivals India and Pakistan will come face to face in a highly anticipated T20 World Cup 2024 match for the first time in the United States. India head into the Group A match on the back of a strong performance, while Pakistan are under pressure after suffering a defeat in the opener.

Security arrangements in Long Island have been increased to an unprecedented level for a sports event, multiple screening events are planned across the world, and tickets are selling like hotcakes. Here’s everything you need to know about cricket’s marquee fixture:

The match will be played on Sunday, June 9. It will start at 10:30am local (14:30 GMT). For viewers in India and Pakistan, it would be at 8pm and 7:30pm respectively.

The match will be held at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in Long Island, New York. It has a capacity of 34,000.

The temporary Nassau County International Cricket Stadium has hosted three games so far. The first two were low-scoring encounters that favored seam bowlers due to the nature of the drop-in pitch. Batters found it difficult to hit big shots due to the movement and bounce. Following complaints, the International Cricket Council has said the pitches have not been up to standard and ground staff are working on remedying them for the rest of the tournament. The third match, between Ireland and Canada, saw both teams post scores above 100 but the pitch remained tricky. The India-Pakistan match is expected to be played on a new surface.

The Governor of New York State, Kathy Hochul, said last week that security in New York would be “elevated” for the tournament, especially before the marquee clash between India and Pakistan. Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said his teams are not taking the match lightly and termed it like the “Super Bowl on steroids” when it comes to fan interest. Ryder told Indian newspaper Deccan Herald that the security for the match “is possibly more than the one we offer the president”.

General tickets for the match have been sold out, but limited premium tickets are still available on the official ICC platform, ranging from $1,500 to $10,000. Ticket resale websites are offering tickets for the “hottest event” as well, with prices starting at $980 and reaching up to a whopping $17,475.

The ICC has arranged official fan parks for fans who could not travel to the host city. In New York, India vs Pakistan will be broadcast live for fans at Oculus World Trade Center and Cedar Creek Park. Fan parks will also be arranged at Epic Central in Texas and Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center. Most of these venues have been sold out as well. Apart from the US, the ICC has arranged fan parks in New Delhi, India and Rawalpindi, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom and South Africa.

There is a forecast for rain in the morning, which could interrupt the fixture. In case of adverse weather conditions or other interruptions, an additional 90 minutes will be allotted to all morning and afternoon fixtures, and 60 minutes to all evening fixtures. In case of a shortened match, each team will have to complete five overs for a result to be declared. There is no reserve day for group-stage games.

All tied matches will proceed to a super over. And if that too is tied, subsequent super overs will be played until a winner emerges.

Al Jazeera will have live text and photo coverage of the match from 09:00 GMT. The match will be broadcast and streamed live through various rights holders. Disney Star will broadcast the match in India, while PTV and Ten Sports have the rights in Pakistan.

India are favorites to win this match owing to their dominant head-to-head record. In the seven times the teams have met at the T20 World Cup, India have won six times, including a bowl-out, while Pakistan have won only once.