Barring the lone qualifier Hong Kong, five other teams, including record seven-time champions India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, could beat each other on their day.
The tournament, which is being staged in the T20 format after six years, had to be moved to the UAE after hosts Sri Lanka expressed their inability to hold it back home amid the economic crisis facing the island nation.
Although conditions in the UAE will be different from the World Cup in Australia in October-November, all competing sides will be looking to identify their final squad for the ICC event over the course of the next two weeks.
There is also a lot at stake for the participating teams. India will look to execute their aggressive stance with the bat in a high-pressure environment starting with the opener against Pakistan on Sunday.
All eyes will be on Kohli, who will be expected to come out of the long thin patch. The focus will be on the performance of the top three, including Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, while injured pacer Jasprit Bumrah will be sorely missed.
Pakistan will be aiming to win the tournament which it last won in 2012 when it was played in the ODI format. With star pacer Shaheen Afridi ruled out of the tournament, he has had to back down with some injury concerns.
With a relatively inexperienced middle order, there will be more reliance on the opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan.
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