CARDIFF: Spirited Pakistan will clash with hosts England in the first semifinal of the ICC Champions Trophy here on Wednesday (today). Sarfraz and his men are aiming to outplay England to qualify for the final, rewrite history books and silence their detractors. The second semifinal will be played between India and Bangladesh at Edgbaston on Thursday (tomorrow). England and Pakistan have not met in the knock-outs of a major one-day tournament for 25 years. England have won 12 of the last 14 ODIs against Pakistan, stretching back to their series-deciding win in a memorable encounter at the Ageas Bowl in September 2010. However, Pakistan did win their most recent ODI against England at Cardiff in September 2016, when the man of the moment Sarfraz led an impressive pursuit of 303 in a four-wicket win that prevented a 5-0 ODI series whitewash. The weather, so woeful for the first week of this competition, looks finally to have turned the corner. A scorcher is in prospect at Cardiff, which ought to mean a run-feast.
Sarfraz told media Tuesday that he hoped the team’s ‘high confidence’ in Cardiff would stand them in good stead. It will be Pakistan’s second key match at Sophia Gardens in a matter of days after a tense three-wicket victory over Sri Lanka on Monday saw them into the last four of a tournament featuring the world’s top eight one-day international (ODI) sides. Pakistan, chasing a seemingly modest 237 for victory, were on the brink of defeat at 137 for six. But Sarfraz made Sri Lanka pay for dropping him twice with a superb 61 not out and received excellent support from Mohammad Amir (28 not out) in a decisive and unbroken eighth-wicket stand of 75. “We played the last ODI here. We win that time, we chased 300, so definitely our confidence is very high playing in Cardiff,” Sarfraz said.
Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur confessed that Pakistan’s middle order is ‘exposed’. “The middle order has been exposed a bit. We may try to get Sarfraz and Shoaib Malik in a little bit earlier. We have to discuss what happens,” Arthur said, responding to a question about the fragility of the team’s batting lineup. Responding to a question, Arthur noted the emotional weight of the game. “It is emotionally tough at times. We are trying to play more and more consistent cricket, we are trying to get better in that department, but it is a tough ride every now and then,” Arthur said. At the same time, the head coach of the national team also asserted that his side’s unpredictability was its strong suit. It is interesting to note that Pakistan only needed three days to bounce back from a 124-run thrashing by arch-rivals and title-holders India in their tournament opener before defeating top-ranked South Africa in their second encounter.
On the other hand, England have arguably improved their limited overs game since the World Cup 2015 Down Under. They’ve won 11 of their last 12 matches at this level, a far cry from their woeful first-round exit at the 2015 World Cup, and Eoin Morgan’s men were the only side to exit the group stage of the Champions Trophy with a perfect played three, won three, record. “England are a very good team, a very, very good team,” said Sarfraz of the tournament hosts. “If you are playing a world-class team, definitely, you play more positive cricket, so we will do so against England,” he added.
With the solitary exception of the hapless Jason Roy, England’s cricketers are in a formidable vein of collective form. Their batting has depth and resilience while their bowling, potentially a weak area going into the tournament, has come roaring into form, with Mark Wood’s variations providing a priceless cutting edge in the middle overs, alongside Liam Plunkett’s canny deck-hitting and Adil Rashid’s googly-dominant legspin. The big decision facing England is whether to drop opener Roy, whose latest low score against Australia means he has now managed just 51 runs in eight ODI innings this season. Morgan, previously unstinting in his praise of Surrey batsman Roy, was not quite so effusive after a win at Edgbaston on Sunday where England slumped to 35 for three before their captain’s 87 and Ben Stokes’s 102 not out bailed them out, with the duo sharing a stand of 159. “It’s unfortunate that Jason didn’t get runs,” said Morgan. “We revisit it every game, everybody’s position, whether it can be changed around, can we do anything better?” England do have the in-form Jonny Bairstow waiting in the wings. Although he has never opened in ODIs, Bairstow did make 174 at the top of the order for Yorkshire against Durham in a domestic 50-over match this season. Roy apart, England appear to have all bases covered as they go in search of their first major ODI tournament title.