Pakistan are all geared up to take on India in their final Super Six fixture of the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup. Pakistan will face arch-rivals India at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Sunday, February 1 with the first ball scheduled to be bowled at 9.30am local time.
The last time two sides met was during the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup final, where Pakistan defeated India by 191 runs to clinch the title at the ICC Academy Ground in Dubai. Sameer Minhas scored 172 runs while right-arm fast Ali Raza bagged four wickets, said a press release.
Pakistan, who currently have four points and are placed third in Group 2 of the Super Six stage, need to defeat India by a healthy margin to secure a spot in the semi-finals. England sit at the top of the table with six points and are currently playing New Zealand at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.
After arriving in Bulawayo from Harare on Wednesday afternoon, Pakistan took a day off before participating in a scenario-based practice game at the Bulawayo Athletic Club on Friday. The players were assigned specific targets by the coaching staff led by head coach Shahid Anwar.
Pakistan will also take part in a training session at the same venue on Saturday.
Usman Khan, who has scored 122 runs from four matches in the ongoing mega event, which included a half-century while talking to PCB Digital said, “Our preparations have been very good. The scenario-based match was of high quality and it closely reflected actual match conditions.
“In scenario-based matches, batters are given specific targets to score as many runs as possible, while similar objectives are set for everyone which helps us prepare better. Our fielding unit has also been very impressive.
“Before the tournament, we held several camps in Multan where a strong focus was placed on fielding. We had productive sessions there and as a result the team has improved a lot in this department. “Our next match is against India, which is very important as there is a semi-final at stake. We have clear plans for every match and we put in a lot of hard work accordingly. We will try to perform well in the next game to qualify for the next stage.”