Who’s winning, who’s losing?

Cricket pundits make their bold predictions ahead of the T20 World Cup

The 2022 edition of the International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 World Cup is set to begin from October 16 where Australia will be defending their crown on their home soil.

The competitions will begin with the qualifying phase where eight teams will fight for four spots in the Super 12s round.

Before the start of the competition, BOL News is bringing its readers predictions from as many as seven experts about who will shine and who will disappoint in the mega-event.

Three of the participants are from the sports desk whereas four individuals — Mazhar Arshad (Statistician), Nabeel Hashmi (Head of Player Acquisition/Manager Quetta Gladiators), Rehan-ul-Haq (General Manager Islamabad United), Haider Azhar (Chief Operating Officer and Manager Multan Sultans) — have been involved in the developments taking place in the world of cricket.

Q: Who is the favourite to win this year’s T20 World Cup?

Mazhar Arshad: I would say Australia because they are familiar with their own conditions and they have a lot of experience in the squad. Most of their players are above the age of 28 and have plenty of experience. Josh Hazlewood is the number one ranked bowler currently and he will be key alongside Pat Cummins and Adam Zampa.

Nabeel Hashmi: My favourites would be England ahead of the hosts Australia. Jos Buttler’s men have got an amazing depth in their squad even without the likes of Jason Roy, Jofra Archer and Johnny Bairstow which is crazy, to say the least. I think the four semifinalists would be England, Australia, Pakistan and India where the Three Lions will lift the title.

Rehan-ul-Haq: I think Australia are the favourites, especially while playing at home. There was a time home teams didn’t do well at World Cups but that has changed especially in ODIs. In T20Is, the trend hasn’t started yet but Australia are the team to start it. Normally being defending champions & playing at home means pressure but there is no team in the history of the sport that deals with the favourites tag as well as Australia. Kangaroos have an even scarier batting lineup with the inclusion of Tim David. Their finisher Wade is in fantastic chasing form. Their top order is sorted and their bowling has almost everything in their arsenal, a left-arm speedster in Starc, a reliable pacer in Hazlewood, an x-factor right-arm fast bowler in Cummins & a skilled leg-spinner in Zampa. They will be tough to beat in their backyard.

Haider Azhar: As far as favourites are concerned, it is difficult to look beyond Australia, especially when they are playing in home conditions. With the kind of firepower they have to exploit the home conditions, their middle order is fascinating with Glenn Maxwell, Tim David, Matthew Wade. England are there and there about as well because their players have a lot of experience playing in the Big Bash League but for me, it’s just hard to look beyond Australia. Not only that but they have very underrated fast bowling all-rounders as well in form of Marcus Stoinis and Mitchell Marsh. Both can do the dual role.

Arslan Sheikh: Seeing all the squads for this T20 World Cup, every team seem to have some kind of loopholes. Having said that, two teams look complete on paper and have been playing supreme level of cricket, England and the hosts Australia. England just beat Pakistan in the seven-match T20I series in their backyard and defeated Australia in their home ground. They have explosive batting and dynamic bowling. On the other hand, Australia too have all these ingredients and know how to win big tournaments. They are the defending champions and playing in their home make them a force to reckon with. On paper, Australia look invincible. There is no logical reason why Australia shouldn’t be declared as favourites for the tournament, it is just intuition and belief that defending a world title is not easy at all.

Azeem Siddiqui: For me, Australia look like the best out of the lot, largely because of how balance they are as a team. The arrival of Tim David definitely strengthen the side in more than one ways. The only problem for the home team will be the form of their captain Aaron Finch. Despite that, on paper, the only team that come close to the Kangaroos is England and it will be nothing less than a shock if any other team end up lifting the title.

Khizar Ghazali: Pakistan cannot be written off in any case, especially on big occasions like the T20 World Cup. There are only a few who might call the Men-in-Green as favourites heading into the mega-event but for me, whenever you corner them, they roar back and take the world by surprise, as was the case in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017.

Q: Which team will be the biggest disappointment during the tournament?

Mazhar Arshad: For me, it is going to be Afghanistan. They do not have depth in the batting order and are weak in fast bowling too. They will be heavily dependent on openers and spinners.

Nabeel Hashmi: I feel West Indies will have a disappointing campaign despite so much white-ball talent in their ranks. They are going through a rebuilding phase and playing in a mega-event Down Under will going to be tough.

Rehan-ul-Haq: West Indies are once again making their way into the main round through qualification. They are a shadow of their former selves yet still have some of the biggest names in franchise cricket available to them. Once they dominated T20 World Cups, I feel this might be another disappointing campaign for them after the 2021 edition. It wouldn’t be a surprise if they don’t do well but given their history in the format, them not doing well will be a disappointment.

Haider Azhar: I think last year’s runners-up New Zealand aren’t looking as convincing as they did previously. I would say out of the top teams, the Black Caps might not achieve the kind of success they have had in recent white-ball tournaments. However, we should not forget that the Kiwis always surprise in the mega-events.

Arslan Sheikh: India are said to be the frontrunner to clinch the championship, but I believe they will be the biggest disappointment in the tournament. They have a pretty weak bowling attack in absence of Jasprit Bumrah and the ageing Bhuvneshwar Kumar. They have quite an inexperienced fast-bowling bowling attack in the likes of Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar and Arshdeep Singh, given Mohammad Shami is not selected as Bumrah’s replacement. Also, the much-talked-about player Suryakumar Yadav has been phenomenal in recent times, but it will be interesting to see how he fares on Australian tracks with big boundaries.

Azeem Siddiqui: As hard as it may sound, I believe Pakistan will be one of the biggest failures in the mega-event. The reason is there is just too much reliance on Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. Also, it remains to be seen whether Shaheen Shah Afridi, who has returned from a serious injury, will be able to get his rhythm right despite having little or close to little match practice.

Q: Which team do you see as dark horses in the World Cup?

Mazhar Arshad: West Indies because they have some really big hitters in Nicholas Pooran, Odean Smith and Evin Lewis. Australian conditions could suit them and they have the power to clear big boundaries. Their opener Kyle Mayer is also in good form. Alzarri Joseph is bowling quick, taking wickets and is in the form of his life. Then they have a miser spinner in Akeal Hosein. Windies could surprise a few teams in this world cup.

Nabeel Hashmi: I think the dark horses in this year’s tournament will be Sri Lanka and South Africa. Both of these teams are in a rebuilding phase but their recent form has gone unnoticed. The Islanders have recently won the Asia Cup where they were not among the favourites whereas South Africa gave them a tough time to India in a bilateral series.

Rehan-ul-Haq: Pakistan for me are the dark horses. There is a never-ending discussion about their batting approach. The middle order has been scrutinised and is under extreme pressure. However, the Men-in-Green has enough in this format to surprise anyone. They are a good T20I team but no one rates them in Australian conditions given the talk of their issues playing short-bowling. However I think, it will be easier for them to deal with bouncers in Australia than in Asia, the ball has a more consistent bounce in Australia. If Pakistan can properly use Shadab & Nawaz as floaters in the batting order & somehow maximise their batting resources, their bowling can win them games.

Haider Azhar: My dark horse in this tournament would be Pakistan. I think it is appropriate to label them with such a title because critics back home are seriously doubting them. They have issues which are still to be dealt with. Their top order is being accused of batting too slow whereas the middle order is being accused of not producing the results they are expected to. But I believe if the resources are utilised properly, they can challenge even the biggest teams. Another team I believe others should keep an eye on is South Africa. They have done well recently but their performances have gone under the radar.

Arslan Sheikh: South Africa can be a surprise package in the showpiece event. The Proteas have done pretty well in the last 12 months, playing 18 games, winning 11 and losing six of them. The likes of Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Rilee Rossouw, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi and Kagiso Rabada are all match-winners on their day.

Azeem Siddiqui: I believe South Africa. They are a team going about their business slowly in the recent past and I see them qualifying for the last four at the very least. The biggest positive for them is the return of Rossouw in the batting order. His arrival has given more license to someone like David Miller who has been in instrumental form in the last couple of years.

Q: The player(s) to watch out for?

Mazhar Arshad: Well, there is not one so I will just name them. Tim David, Iftikhar Ahmed, David Miller, Odean Smith, Hardik Pandya.

Nabeel Hashmi: That’s a tough one but I will go with Pakistan’s pacer Naseem Shah, South Africa’s youngster Tristan Stubbs, England’s middle-order batter Harry Brook, West Indies’ fast-bowler Alzarri Joseph and Australia’s hard-hitting batter Tim David.

Rehan-ul-Haq: I think there are a lot of players to watch out for. Let’s start with England’s Brook for that matter. He had a really good series against Pakistan recently and has been in great T20 domestic form for a while. He can be their key player. Then we can look at Pakistan’s Naseem Shah. With Shaheen coming back from injury, there are a lot of doubts however the right-arm pacer has the potential to lead the Pakistan new-ball attack. He has all the raw ingredients to succeed. How can we not talk about Shadab Khan? If he bats in the top four, this might be his best international tournament yet. He has been extremely consistent with the ball for Pakistan however if he can convert his domestic batting form into international, he will be one of the players to watch. New Zealand’s Fin Allen isn’t that far off as well. The Black Caps have struggled with scoring quick runs at the top. That, however, can completely change if Fin Allen fires. Australia’s Tim David is the talk of the town and he adds an extra dimension to their team. India’s Suryakumar Yadav is another one who is enjoying the limelight. If India are to do well in this World Cup, they need him to fire even more than they need the likes of Sharma & Kohli.

Haider Azhar: For me, one of the first names to watch out for is Surya Kumar Yadav. He has performed well enough in the recent past for everyone to take notice of and for India to do well, he must have a great tournament with the bat in hand. He needs to be the main catalyst for India. Another player that I would be really keen to watch in this tournament is Pakistan’s Naseem Shah. It will be interesting to see how he will go about his business.

Arslan Sheikh: South Africa’s youngster Tristan Stubbs announced his arrival in style against England by scoring 72 runs off just 28 deliveries while chasing 234. He looks promising and World Cup can be the stage where he becomes the star. Then there is Australia’s Tim David who got highlighted during the Pakistan Super League’s latest edition. He was then picked by the Indian Premier League’s Mumbai Indians and then by the national side. The man, who used to play for Singapore before, has been impressive in his brief stint for Australia. He can be a game-changer for the Aussies. England’s Harry Brook is also a phenomenal player. He proved his credentials in the series against Pakistan and will be a key player for his team during their World Cup campaign.

Azeem Siddiqui: There are so many but I believe this tournament will be one to remember for Tim David. He is just too good to be true at times and he has the talent to win matches for Australia from unrealistic situations.