Pakistan's progress in cricket World Cup 2011

[S.U.R.B.]

I think its just to facilitate the batting due to the known fragility we have in batting .so the plan is to have an extra batsman who in time of need can come in and smash couple here and there .Similar to what Shane Watson is doing for Australia though he is an opener but still his bowling is similar to what A.R holds

A.R is now to somewhat a part timer who can facilitate in batting and bowling when needed what i m more worried about is Gul .also i want to see Ajmal play

The next match is against Canada,so it's affordable to test Ajmal instead of Razzak
Playing with 6 specialist Batsmen with Afiridi comming at number seven,and Umer gul as well ,who can bat a bit.And,see how the 4 spinners combo works ( meanwhile rest shoaib .)

If your first six batmen can't bat for some reason,then all you need is a miracle ,not Razzak to bring it together for you.We'll be asking for too much i guess.

Well umer Gul needs to play the next match to get in some sort of form,His yorkers are turning in to low full toss and also he's bowling with the same pace ,on slower tracks you need vareity to be successful,so he needs to play the next match and need to get in to some rhythm.He will perform good against Canada and it will surely boost his morale.

 

[Awesome]

I see this happening, according to teams on paper.

Group A
Australia
Pakistan
Sri Lanka
New Zealand

Group B
South Africa
India
England
West Indies

QF C 1 v 4
Australia vs Windies = Australia

QF D 2 v 3
Pakistan vs England = Pakistan

QF E 3 v 2
India vs Sri Lanka = Sri Lanka

QF F 4 v 1
South Africa vs New Zealand = South Africa

Semi C vs E
Australia vs Sri Lanka = Sri Lanka

Semi D vs F
Pakistan vs South Africa = South Africa

Finals
South Africa vs Sri Lanka = South Africa

Of course, Pakistani team always beats all odds, and I am hoping they do some magic this WC.

 

[S.U.R.B.]

It's good to see that they are considering to do the replacement that i recommended in my posts.

The next match is on 3rd March with Canada ,a comparatively weaker opponent.I'll suggest the following team.

1-Kamran Akmal
2-Ahmed Shahzad
3-Muhammad Hafeez
4-Younis khan
5-Asad Shafique(Misbah needs to be rested because of his injury)
6-Umer Akmal
7-Shahid Afridi
8-Saeed Ajmal
9-Abdur Rehman
10-Wahab riaz( Shoiab needs to be rested for bigger matches.)
11-Umer Gul

Thats four spinners and 2 fast bowlers against Canada.

After all it's a match against Canada and it's better to test the bench strengh before the quaterfinals and semis where experimenting with the team combination will not be a good option.
Test them all with canada and New Zealand before the all important matches against the Aussies and other good teams.

 

[S.U.R.B.]

Umar Gul did well today,also the wicket suited his type of bowling ,hope he continues on with this.Razzak showed some energy.Reminded of old days,when he used to ball some good in swingers and yorkers.

Openers still continuing with the negative set of mind,same see first 6 overs policy.Today they could have made some changes in the batting order as well.Afridi could have come a bit earlier.

But it all depends upon the state of mind of the people in the camp and dressing room.

I will quote Imran khan here,"you do have a policy before the match but a good captain keeps himself prepared for all options,you need to experiment a bit against weaker teams when the condition is suitable."
But everytime we miss the trick and have to pay in the end.

 

[S.U.R.B.]

ICC World Cup 2011 is wide open

Posted by
Inzamamul Haq

Drastic improvement must be made in the field if Pakistan are to lift the trophy, according to Inzamam.

Australia entered the last two editions of the World Cups as sole favourites. It’s not very often that a World Cup is so wide open that any of the top five teams can clinch it with equal probability.

Pakistan stand tall, striking a perfect balance in their batting line-up and their bowling depth. With the tournament wide open, it provides a rare opportunity which should not be lost without a fight.

But I want to emphasise on the need to improve their fielding. If Pakistan are to win the Cup, they must make rapid improvements in their fielding. Ground fielding is looking strong but straightforward catches and stumps are being missed. This will cost us the tournament.

Fielders are not performing because of the mounting pressure. They should not fear the ball but every delivery must be followed like it’s meant for you. Going all out in the field without the fear of mistakes will take this team a long way.

This team has not looked better for a long time.

The batting line-up goes till number eight, a factor that works in our advantage as subcontinent pitches are mercilessly rewarding on the batsmen. Our bowling consists of two fast-bowlers – with Shoaib Akhtar making a striking comeback – and three specialist spinners.

Pakistan batsmen must also look out for the Powerplay. The mandatory Powerplay in the beginning of the innings must be utilised with care. The openers must have a pre-planned strategy: losing one or two wickets for 80 runs in the first 10 overs is a good bargain and they should aim for that. Our openers are either hitting hard or playing too many dot balls. I would emphasise the power of soft boundaries and singles during this time of the match.

Coming to our bowling, I would think twice before resting Akhtar for today’s match. He has astonishingly stumbled across good form. There was a four-day break between Pakistan’s matches and that rest is enough for Akhtar. Resting him for eight days is calling for trouble. You want to hone his form, not rust it.

It is also time for the captain to ask Saeed Ajmal to get off the bench. Ajmal has tremendous potential and he’ll cause a lot of trouble on these pitches. He must be given a chance given the variety his bowling offers. I’d suggest to Shahid Afridi to roll his dice and take it up a notch by acting boldly with the toss. Today’s match should be a training ground for the quarters. He should go in and test his team’s chasing capabilities by bowling first.

Finally, the winning momentum should not be broken. Eight batsmen is not too many. I’d want to go in today and the rest of the tournament without making any major changes which could upset the winning streak. Grab the trophy, its wide open.

ICC World Cup 2011 is wide open – The Express Tribune Blog

 

[W.11]

without afridi, there is no pakistni bowling attack, and as some one said, pakistan can have lots of difficulty to chase..

 

[S.U.R.B.]

without afridi, there is no pakistni bowling attack, and as some one said, pakistan can have lots of difficulty to chase..

Agreed ,Why not try it against kiwis in the next match.They are a good side,it will be a good tester.Also i suppose kiwis will opt for batting if they won the toss.

So the toss doesn't matter for us in the next match against them. And no need to worry either if we lose chasing a big total.

http://www.cricwaves.com/cricket/widgets/115/PointsTable.html

 

[S.U.R.B.]

I've a feeling that in the matches ahead Pakistani Batsmen will do better.As the pitches they have played on were not the batting paradise as expected and suited the balling attack a bit more.

 

[S.U.R.B.]

Pakistan v New Zealand head to head
Head-to-head record for the World Cup Group A match between Pakistan and New Zealand at the Pallekele stadium on Tuesday:
Matches: 88
Pakistan: 51
New Zealand: 34
No result/Tied: 3
First meeting: Feb 11, 1973, Christchurch - New Zealand won by 22 runs
Last meeting: Feb 5, 2011, Auckland - New Zealand won by 57 runs

 

[MZUBAIR]

PAKISTAN vs NEW-ZEALAND

Played ODI's = 88
PAK Won = 51
NZ won = 34
...NR/Tie = 3

Played WC ODIs' 7
PAK won= 6
NZ won =1

Say thanxs to Zubair States Guru ..

 

[Spitballa]

I've a feeling that in the matches ahead Pakistani Batsmen will do better.As the pitches they have played on were not the batting paradise as expected and suited the balling attack a bit more.

This is true. And this is why I am not too concerned about the batting.

I'm very concerned about Akmal obviously. We were lucky to beat Sri Lanka to be honest, especially since Akmal missed two EASY stumping chances. And everyone knows what happened when we played NZ.

Did you know Kamran Akmal has dropped more than 100 catches, stumpings and run-outs? I think Kamran has dropped more chances than all the wicket keepers of the WC.

Second person I'm concerned about is Razzaq. He should not be on the team. His bowling is basically finished, its garbage now. A team full of good hitters like India will hit him very badly. From time to time he can still go berserk with the bat, but there are many better batsmen than him.

I fear Akmal has already lost any chance for the World Cup for us. The bowlers won't have any confidence with Akmal around.

 

[sid426]

I was amazed to see that Afridi has just reached the milestone of 300 wickets in that SL v/s Pak match.

Amazing feat!.. People have concentrated so much on his batting prowess that no one paid any heed to his amazing bowling talent.

300 wickets are alot!

I mean, players like bhajji and Zak and still very far away from 300..and here afridi!..goddamn!...

the other day I saw Ajit Agarkar's stats and he has taken 280 odd one day wickets..well..it went unnoticed...

 

[Spitballa]

Yup. Afridi has not been a consistent match winner with the ball for a few years now. Hes has won Pakistan many matches with his bowling. Hes known as someone who got Pakistan wickets whenever he needed it. I've been very impressed with his bowling for the last few years. And theres the added bonus once in a while he goes bananas with the bat.

I remember Ajit Agarkars career. I think at the time he broke the record for most wickets in for a bowler in their first year, he started really well, but he quickly went down after that. They retired him quite early didn't they? So 280 is very good because I don't think he played very long. Hes on sky sports along with Azhar Mahmood in the UK for the WC, seems like a nice guy.

 

[twoplustwoisfour]

You'll all hate me for this :

 

[ashok321]

Pakistan face tough task | Pakistan | News | Newspaper | Daily | English | Online

KANDY - Pakistan sailing serenely to the top of the points table, suddenly found their points boat capsized through the batting tsunami of Ross Taylor three days ago, face a huge task to reclaim that position which will be decided either by clear points difference or in case of ties on that account on better run-rate.

Retaining top perch at the points table was crucial for Pakistan to clinch a quarter-final against the fourth ranked weaker team of group B. But their loss to New Zealand and Sri Lankan and one-sided win against Zimbabwe had pushed the host nation up to the top of the table with seven points and a positive run rate of plus 2.705.

Pakistan after their loss to New Zealand, currently are joint second with six points each with New Zealand on second rung of the ladder due to better run rate of plus 1.848 . Pakistan’s run rate at plus 0.760 has given them second place currently.

Pakistan along with New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Australia has already reached the last knock out stage of the fourteen-team championship.
The next week is, however, crucial for all the four teams including Pakistan which have a game against Zimbabwe here at Pallekele on March 14 and against tournament co favourites Australia at Colombo on March 19.

Pakistan can hoist itself to the top place only if it wins it next two matches which will be like climbing steep face of a hill. During the last two days Kandy and Pallekele which have moderate climate as compared to hot humid and sticky Colombo, is experiencing warm weather and according to weather experts when the heat grows, there is greater likely hood of rain coming. God forbidding if the rain come on Monday and Pakistan failed to clinch maximum two points and is forced to share the points match booty, it would be disastrous. Pakistan match against Australia would for all practical purposes could be termed the final because it will decide the best team in the competition.