Written by: Waseem Abbas
Posted on: June 04, 2024 | 
| 中文
Shaheen Afridi, Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan during the 2022 T20 World Cup
Pakistan has once again entered the T20 World Cup as an underprepared and underperforming team, with an unsettled eleven and many out-of-form players in the squad. Pakistan cricket fans hope for a miracle from the team led by Babar Azam. But as is the norm in the cricketing world you cannot rule out Pakistan, as the mercurial team can stun the pundits on the given day. The famous Naseer Hussain line: "Pakistan cricket at its best: one minute down, next minute up", aptly describes the men in green.
The T20 World Cup 2024 has kicked off in the United States of America (USA) and West Indies, with twenty teams from across the world competing for the coveted trophy. The tournament kickstarted on the 2nd of June between the United States and Canada in Dallas, as the hosts clinched a memorable win. The top two teams from all four groups will qualify for the Super 8 round, and the top four in this round will play the semi-finals. Pakistan is paired with Canada, USA, Ireland, and the arch-rival, India, in group A, with the high voltage Pakistan-India clash scheduled on the 9th of June.
Group B captains pose with the World Cup trophy
Pakistan reinstated the duo of Rizwan-Babar (Known as Rizbar), in the last game before the World Cup as openers. They dropped Saim Ayub, who had just scored 286 runs in 19 T20I innings at an average of mere 15.05 and a strike rate of 127.67. The Rizwan-Babar pair has been consistent in scoring runs, as it is the only pair with 2000 T20I runs and averages close to fifty with eight 100-runs partnerships. Their scoring rate has been under the radar, as the pair scores 7.98 runs per over, which puts pressure on the middle and the lower-order batters who go berserk from the first ball, resulting in their failure. The designated "finishers" also need to play more balls to develop their hitting, but the Pakistan team has mostly promoted allrounders like Shadab Khan and Muhammad Nawaz over the established power hitters, in order to "save them" for the death overs (16-20). It has happened with players like Khushdil Shah and Asif Ali in the past, and it is happening with Iftikhar Ahmed and Azam Khan now.
Iftikhar Ahmed has, in his 63-match career, faced 14 balls per inning, while Azam Khan, who is in the nascent phase of his international career, has faced 5.5 balls per inning. On the other hand, Babar Azam has faced 26.69 balls per inning and Muhammad Rizwan has faced 33.11 balls per inning while opening. The opening duo, on average, consumes half the balls, with a strike rate of under 130, leaving other batters to think about the brisk scoring rate. Against weak teams, in good batting conditions, the top order consumes most of the deliveries, while against tougher opponents and on difficult batting pitches, the finishers get to play most balls. For example, Iftikhar has four fifties in 53 innings, one against India, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa each, while against weaker teams like Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, Netherlands, Ireland or Hong Kong, he has never faced 20 or more balls in an inning.
Usman Khan will most probably be slotted at number three, who had a good outing against England and a marvelous PSL a month ago. Usman's prowess against spin bowling in the middle overs will be crucial for Pakistan to set up big totals and not lose momentum in the 7-15 overs. After being relegated to number four at the start of 2024, Fakhar Zaman's numbers are impressive as he has accumulated 382 runs at an average of 34.72 and a strike rate of 157.85. Fakhar's form is crucial for Pakistan, because once set, he can demolish any bowling attack in the world.
Haris Rauf and Muhammad Rizwan celebrate after taking a wicket
Another worry for Pakistan in this World Cup is the form of Shadab Khan, who has been off-color in the recent past. Khan has never looked the same since the 2022 T20 World Cup, whose batting average of 15.90 (strike rate of 131) and a bowling average of 42.11 with an economy of 8.42 since the start of 2023, is a big letdown for team Pakistan. Pakistan has, however, persisted with Shadab, mainly because of his batting abilities and fielding. Usama Mir has been dropped from the team, while Abrar Ahmed has been warming the bench for a while now. If the analysts are to be believed and the first few games are any indicator, the pitches in America and West Indies are going to be conducive for spinners, where Pakistan lacks quality and form.
Pakistan has a good pace battery on paper, and if a trio of Shaheen, Naseem and Rauf perform on the day, they can win matches for the country singlehandedly. Veteran pacer Muhammad Amir has been back in the team, but his performance has not been up to the mark, while young Abbas Afridi has been warming the bench despite good outings in the limited opportunities provided to him.
India has one of the best squads in the World Cup, focusing heavily on its spin stocks. India's experienced and explosive batters can use the condition for their benefit, as Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Surya Kumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, and the fit again Rishabh Pant all can smack the ball out of the park. In Jasprit Bumrah, India has arguably the best fast bowler in the competition, with Muhammad Siraj and Arshadeep Singh being the other fast bowling options.
Team India
England's pace attack looks scary, to say the least with the return of Jofra Archer, as Mark Wood, Reece Topley and Chris Jordan are already waiting in the wings. Experienced Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone will take care of the spin department, while the batting unit of the defending champions is arguably the best in the competition. It is likely that players like Ben Duckett and Sam Curran might not find a place in their starting eleven, which is a scary prospect for the opponents.
England's Adil Rashid and Liam Livingstone
If the experience of watching cricket for years has taught me anything, it is that you never underestimate Australia, more so when it is the World Cup. There is a famous saying that ten teams prepare for the World Cup and in the end, Australia wins it. It is not wrong to predict their success, given that the Aussies have won six ODI World Cups, one T20 WC, two Champion Trophy editions, and one World Test Championship. This year again, the Aussies have banked on experienced players to deliver on the big stage, with the likes of David Warner, Mitchel Starc, Matthew Wade, Josh Hazelwood, Pat Cummins and Adam Zampa taking the charge. With all bases covered, the Aussies will be looking to roar once again.
Team Australia
South Africa and New Zealand are the other teams that can stun the opponents, as both teams boast experienced players with refined skills. They only need to rise to the occasion and silence the critics by winning major ICC events. New Zealand has Mitchel Santner and Ish Sodhi in spin, while South Africa has Tabriz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj, who all are global T20 league trotters. While there has never been a dearth of fast bowlers and quality batters in both countries, they need to soak pressure in tense situations and emerge triumphant. While teams like Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, with their versatile spin bowling attack, can bamboozle big teams in the megaevent, however, it will be a big learning opportunity for associate teams to compete against the world's best teams and develop their skills further.
The likely super eight teams will be India (A1), Pakistan (A2), Australia (B1), England (B2), New Zealand (C1), West Indies (C2), South Africa (D1) and Sri Lanka (D2). The potential semi-finalists will be England, India, Australia and Pakistan.
Pakistan's fixtures in the first round are against the United States on the 6th of June, India on the 9th of June, Canada on the 11th of June, and Ireland on the 16th of June, 2024. The final of the World Cup is scheduled for the 29th of June in Bridgetown, West Indies.
You may also like:
