Are Pakistan up for the challenge?

The two arch-rivals will face each other once again in a span of a week

The last Sunday was stressful for Pakistan and India fans as the two Asian giants clashed at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

It seems like this Sunday will be no different as Pakistan defeated Hong Kong, who looked promising in the Asia Cup. Shaheens posted a mammoth total of 193/2 on the board, which proved to be too much for the newbies.

It was a thriller when the two arch-rivals met last week. Though the Men-in-Blue got the better of the Men-in-Green by a whisker, the Pakistan team, especially their bowlers, got full marks for their effort.

Pakistan were put into bat by the opposition’s captain Rohit Sharma. The seven-time Asia Cup winner had come well-prepared to counter the Green Caps’ batting line and utilised short deliveries to a great effect.

They restricted the Green Caps to a small total of 147 runs. In reply, India also struggled against the likes of Naseem Shah and Co. on a tricky track, losing four wickets for just 89 runs in 14.2 overs. Hardik Pandya, who picked three wickets and scored crucial 33 runs off 17 deliveries, proved to be the difference between the two units.

Pakistan and India facing each other in a span of a week is an extremely rare sight now. Usually, the two sides lock horns once in a year or two in some global tournament and most of the time they play just one game.

The next time they meet, they step into the field with different units, different playing conditions and different scenarios.

Now, they will be coming face to face with the same players and same playing conditions, meaning with better planning.

So, let’s have a look at what Pakistan lacked in the last game and how they can fix it.

Slow and steady openers

There has been enough discussion about what Pakistan’s strength is, but it is also their biggest weakness. The prolific opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan scores the majority of the runs, but the problem lies in their strike rate.

In the last game, Babar fell early, while Mohammad Rizwan kept on batting in his merry way, scoring 43 runs off 42 deliveries, which is not good enough in the T20 format, at least now a days.

Against Hong Kong, it looked like a similar script, where Babar fell after scoring nine runs and Rizwan and Fakhar kept scoring at run-a-ball rate. Though they recovered in the latter part of the inning, they cannot follow the same approach against a more experienced and capable bowling attack.

It is not like the two top-ranked T20I batters cannot bat aggressively, they have done it in the past and they can do it in tonight’s match also.

They probably get a leaf out of Hong Kong’s book as they did a favour to Pakistan by exposing that the Indian bowling line is not as strong as it seems. Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan are inexperienced and can be put under pressure. They leaked 44 and 53 runs in their quota of four overs against the associate side, respectively.

All Pakistan openers need to do is to take some risks, put the opposition’s bowlers under the pump by scoring some boundaries and checkmating their plans.

Importance of Fakhar Zaman

Fakhar Zaman is arguably Pakistan’s most explosive batter in the current team. He is one man in the side who can take the game away from the opposition in a matter of three or four overs.

Often regarded as the ‘big match player’, Zaman has not been able to fire in recent times. He played a decent inning against Hong Kong, where he started slow and then accelerated to make 53 runs off 42 deliveries, but it will be tough for him to follow in the suit in the future games.

He needs to get his act together in tonight’s game and know the price of his wicket because everyone knows if Zaman gets going, Pakistan will be in the driving seat whatsoever.

Middle-order conundrum

Pakistan’s middle-order is fragile. There are debates about their roles and how they get to play very few deliveries. However, the matter of fact is that they lack the capability of understanding the game and playing accordingly.

Currently, the 2009 World T20 Champions do not have experienced campaigners like Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik in the mix, who knew how to play in the middle overs. They knew the importance of rotation of strike as well as playing courageous shots.

If Pakistan’s middle-order is exposed in a game somewhere around the 12-over mark, they look clueless.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 01: Haider Ali of Pakistan hits a six during the 3rd Vitality International Twenty20 match between England and Pakistan at Emirates Old Trafford on September 01, 2020 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images for ECB)

Players like Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah and Asif Ali are one-dimensional. Either they go into their shells or just go all guns blazing. Probably the most intelligent batter in the middle-order is vice-captain Shadab Khan.

He knows how to build innings and when to play shots, but what a sole warrior can do? For today’s game, the two-time Asian Champions can give young Haider Ali a go.

There is no doubt about the immense potential he has and all he needs to do is focus on execution. Haider has all the shots in his arsenal. He can play attractive drives and explosive sixes.

The 21-year-old can easily replace Asif Ali or Iftikhar Ahmed, whom the management has been carrying for so long with the hope that they will fire one day.

If they put Haider at four, they will have the option of both steadying the ship (if he is mindful) in case of a collapse and aggressive stroke play if the situation is favourable.

Babar’s captaincy

India played a master stroke in the last game by sending Ravindra Jadeja, a left-handed batter, at no 4 to mitigate the threat of leg-spinner Shadab and left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz.

As Jadeja went after Nawaz, Babar was forced to call back his paces into the attack, which left him with no choice but to bowl the left-arm spinner in the last over. It had an enormous impact on the game.

Though Babar made the right call by removing Nawaz at that moment, what he missed was bowling Iftikhar Ahmed, a right-arm off-spinner.

Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam hits a six during the ICC mens Twenty20 World Cup cricket match between Pakistan and Scotland at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah on November 7, 2021. (Photo by Aamir QURESHI / AFP) (Photo by AAMIR QURESHI/AFP via Getty Images)

Iftikhar is in the team in the capacity of an all-rounder and if he is not going to bowl even against a left-hander like Jadeja, then there are definite question marks over his selection.

Though Pakistan have done well under the leadership of the top-ranked T20I and ODI batter, he is often blamed for following a pre-programmed plan and hardly ever makes brave or unorthodox calls.

Moreover, another point, which even the commentators pointed in their last outing, was not taking slips when they needed wickets.

The Men-in-Green had posted a mediocre total and they could only win the game by taking wickets. However, in those crunch moments when Indian batters were struggling, the skipper removed slips apparently for no good reason.

Massive challenge

Pakistan bowlers bowled their hearts out last Sunday. Naseem Shah was hurt but still gave his everything. Haris Rauf was impressive apart from his last over, while Shahnawaz Dahani was also on point.

The spin duo of Shadab and Nawaz also kept things tight. However, that game is history now and tonight, there will be new challenges.

This time around, experienced Indian batters will come prepared for Naseem and others. They have batting heavyweights in the shape of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul and it is always difficult to keep such batters quiet for long.

Sharma and Rahul showed glimpses of their class against Hong Kong, while Kohli seems to be close to finding his lost form.

Moreover, Suryakumar Yadav was merciless in their last game. How the tournament has progressed, it looks like things will only get difficult for Pakistan in the upcoming game.

Will Babar and his men be up for the massive task? Only time will tell.