India vs Pakistan has never quite cut it as the rivalry in women's cricket. But it seems poised to heat up significantly on Sunday, much to the delight of fans, organisers and the broadcasters.
It's not that the rivalry - which, in women's cricket, often turns into an exhibition of bonhomie, unstained by geopolitical frictions - has suddenly gained an edge. On the face of it, this match, between an India line-up studded with superstars emboldened by the success of the Women's Premier League (WPL) and a Pakistan side weighed down by systemic apathy, shouldn't even be a contest.
But the ground reality is this: the twin shockwaves from Pakistan's opening-night upset of a more fancied Sri Lanka side and India's sensational unravelling against New Zealand have added a significant dash of spice to Sunday afternoon's primetime blockbuster.
As India arrived at the ICC Academy to train shortly after 2pm on Saturday, welcomed by a gust of hot desert air, the aftereffects of their physically and emotionally exhausting loss from a little over 12 hours earlier seemed to linger. There was a grimness to their demeanour, a reflection of how tricky their passage to the semi-finals now appears.
However, the sight of the open field and a session of fun and games changed the mood, with every member of the squad present. The training session began with a session of football, with Jemimah Rodrigues and S Sajana doubling up as strikers and scorekeepers. As the competitive energy spread through the group, stony faces gave way to banter and leg-pulling.
As such, the short turnaround may have left India with little time to brood over what went wrong against New Zealand, but they'll be aware of the flip side: another slip-up and they could be booted out of a party they were expected to liven up until the end. Inadvertently, though, they may have given this tournament, which has witnessed four one-sided games over its first two days, a welcome dose of energy thanks to the element of jeopardy that this otherwise regulation group fixture has gained.
India's players now moved from football to foot volley, and the afternoon lull around the training session, partly fueled by the heat and sapping humidity, was broken by choruses of "Messi" when Richa Ghosh nailed a perfect header and "Ronaldo" when Sajana, who hails from football-mad Kerala, attempted a backheel.
Head coach Amol Muzumdar and Smriti Mandhana were involved in a long discussion, while Harmanpreet Kaur did some stretching by the side, all on her own, followed by some visualisation. Muzumdar then joined the foot volley group, and was immediately ribbed for "poor passing", before Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma exchanged thunderous high-fives after kicking a winner to groans from the opposite camp.
Once the regular sessions began, the first act was a fielding drill to replicate catches similar to the skier Richa Ghosh put down against New Zealand, a swirler that had her back-pedalling. The attention to detail lay in her practicing these drills with a helmet on - it seemed apparent that the grille may have come in her way of a clear sighter during the match. The players then proceeded to have a sharp net session before dispersing to the sound of laughter.
On Sunday, the scene will change. From the relaxed vibe around the training center to the cauldron that the Dubai International Stadium will be. As many as 12,000 tickets have been sold, and fans, who in other matches could troop as late as five minutes before the first ball, have been advised to reach the venue early to avoid traffic snarls and queues with security personnel at all entry gates having been subject to meticulous briefings.
It's India vs Pakistan, after all, a rivalry that will draw in crowds just by the sheer weight of those two words. On the field, these contests have seldom lived up to the hype, with India boasting a 12-3 overall record in women's T20Is, and a 5-2 record at T20 World Cups. Despite those numbers making India favourites, they go into this match with the pressure of a must-win game.
In a way, the tournament from here will be a test of India's resolve and belief. While one result can't and shouldn't define how a team is perceived, Harmanpreet's proclamation that this is the strongest India side to play in a T20 World Cup will come under more and more scrutiny if India fail to walk the talk.