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tThe last match of the international T20 series between Pakistan and England will be played in Lahore tonight. The series presented an opportunity for Pakistan cricket management and captain to finalize the kit for the T20 World Cup which starts this month in Australia.
Pakistan’s squad for the T20 World Cup has already been announced. It is almost the same team that participated in the Asian Cup last month in the Emirates. The good news is that fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi has started his training and will be available for the mega event with full fitness.
The T20I series against England once again proved that only openers Babar Azam and Mohd Rizwan deliver consistent performances and bear most of the goalscoring burden.
The middle-order batsman again proved unreliable. This mediocre ranking can’t win us the World Cup.
Captain Babar Azam claimed ahead of the Asian Cup that the best team was chosen after consultation with the coach. He argued that Shoaib Malik and Imad Wasim were dropped because the other artists – Asif Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed and Khushdil Shah – were performing too well.
On paper, Pakistan’s middle order looks strong with Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah, Hyder Ali, Muhammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan, but they failed when it mattered most.
It was said that they were the kind of hitters who could chase down any target with their powerful strokes, but none of them have taken their charge lately. Most of the time they threw wickets when the team expected something big from them.
In 23 T20Is, Khushdil has only managed 282 runs at a strike rate of 111. He has played 21 innings but has failed to score fifty catches so far. His highest score is 36 not out.
Iftikhar’s 23 innings scored only fifty-one. He averages 27.33 and a strike rate of 124.24.
Asif played 46 T20Is but didn’t score a fifty. His batting average of 138.52 is the only thing going in his favour. It’s a pathetic average of 16.30.
Young Haider’s performance suffered because he was not constantly given opportunities. He has scored three fifties in 21 T20I innings at a strike rate of 125.74.
Middle-order batsmen are aggressive but unreliable. If they don’t perform in home conditions, how can we expect them to deliver in unfamiliar Australian conditions where the green jersey’s track record isn’t so good? How can this team compete in the World Cup against the top teams?
Pakistan needs at least one reliable middle-level batsman for the World Cup who can not only pace his run rate but also save one end.
Pakistani batsmen have always found short balls difficult to handle. Their repeated failures against short-range deliveries give their opponents a powerful weapon. The weapon was used very effectively by the English bowlers against the Pakistani batsmen.
Opener Fakhar Zaman missed Pakistan’s squad for the T20 World Cup due to a knee injury. But he is in the reserve squad and is a better option than Khushdel. Potter’s strike rate in T20I is over 129. He has scored eight fifties. It will come in handy on Australia’s hard and bouncy courts.
We are only a few days away from the World Cup. Shoaib Malik is a good choice to boost the middle ranking. Despite his advanced age, he is still fitter than some youngsters and could play an important role in the World Cup thanks to his 22 years of experience in international cricket. Former fast bowler Aaqib Javed says Pakistan have yet to find a replacement for Malik.
Malik is not only a good finisher, but also a useful bowler and is one of the best Pakistani bowlers of all time. He is a good batsman in spin bowling.
He last played for the national team in the T20I series against Bangladesh last year. He has played 124 T20 Internationals, scoring 2435 runs, at an average of 31.21. Overall, he played 472 T20s, scoring 11,698 runs with 71 fifties. He also has 158 wickets.
Malik, who captained the national team during the 2007 T20 World Cup, is the most experienced cricketer in the current setup and is Pakistan’s third highest run scorer in the shortest form.
Since there is no immediate option at the moment, the management can consider Malik at least for the T20 World Cup. Otherwise, with such a striking performance, it will be difficult for the green shirts to go far in the World Cup.
note: All stats updated up to 4 T20I vs England in Karachi.
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