Daily Times

Despite their less than convincing victory against the Netherlands, Pakistan remains optimistic about their chances in the upcoming World Cup match against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, enters the contest with some significant challenges and setbacks. Pakistan’s performance against the Associate nation highlighted certain shortcomings in their batting lineup, and it is evident that they need to make improvements as they progress in the tournament. This improvement journey begins with their upcoming clash against Sri Lanka, a team known for its spin bowling prowess.

Historically, Pakistan has been proficient in handling spinners, but they cannot afford to underestimate the abilities of Sri Lanka’s spinners, especially Maheesh Theekshana and the promising Dunith Wellalage. Dismissing these spinners as mere novices would be a grave mistake for Babar Azam and his team.

Despite their experience, both spinners struggled and conceded a significant number of runs during Sri Lanka’s heavy 102-run defeat to South Africa in Delhi.

Having spent more than 10 days in the city and already having played a few matches, including the two warm-up games, Pakistan is well-acquainted with the conditions at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Uppal.

However, Pakistan faced difficulties against the Netherlands’ bowlers in their tournament opener. At one point, they found themselves in a precarious position at 38/3. It was only through the partnership of Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel that they managed to stabilize their innings and ultimately reach a total of 286 all out with an over to spare.

If it weren’t for valuable contributions from Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan, Pakistan might not have managed to reach a total even exceeding 280. These are aspects that the 1992 World Cup champions would prefer not to replicate in their upcoming match against Sri Lanka, as Sri Lanka is anticipated to present a more formidable challenge compared to the Netherlands.

Despite Pakistan’s top-order struggles in their match against an Associate nation, they can find solace in Saud Shakeel’s impressive performance in his debut World Cup game.

Shakeel exhibited clarity and serenity in the company of senior partner Rizwan as they salvaged the team after the top-order failure in a match that will be remembered more for Bas de Leede’s all-round heroics than any other performance.

According to reports, Pakistan is considering bringing in Abdullah Shafique to replace the out-of-form Fakhar Zaman in the starting XI against Sri Lanka in their second World Cup 2023 match tomorrow in Hyderabad.

He was out cheaply against the Netherlands in the first match of the ICC event. Pakistan won the match, but the failure of the batter sparked a debate among past cricketers and fans who demanded a change.

“There is a chance of a single change for Pakistan’s second match against Sri Lanka on Tuesday.” There are no injury concerns at this moment, and if that remains the case, we may see one alteration. Abdullah could take over for Fakhar. The ultimate decision on whether the winning combination should be retained or Abdullah should take Fakhar’s place has yet to be made. The verdict is likely on match day, according to a source.

It should be noted that the left-hander has only scored 202 runs in his last 12 innings, with 33 coming against New Zealand in May 2023.

Zaman last hit a century in the 50-over format in Rawalpindi in April of this year. His performance has been a source of concern for team management, who are now considering making a change.

Meanwhile, the squad spent a full day of training and nets in Hyderabad on Sunday, ahead of their second encounter against Sri Lanka at the same site on Tuesday.

The team held a three-hour session during which all squad members were observed batting, bowling, and fielding.

It was also reported that the players may be able to skip today’s practice.

Pakistan arrived in India following an Asia Cup campaign that exposed flaws in their armor, but playing in the land of their arch-rivals provides an opportunity for their players to become national heroes overnight, and that must fuel them.

After doing just enough to defeat the Netherlands, Pakistan will like to step up their game against the Islanders, who are dealing with their own issues.

The 1996 champions are coming off a beating at the hands of South Africa, who just set a slew of records with the bat.

What could help Sri Lanka is that, unlike the Pakistanis, many of their players are experienced with Indian conditions, having played in the Indian Premier League on a regular basis, and they would try to capitalize on that.