It seems strange considering this is a World Cup match, but just three weeks ago Pakistan and Sri Lanka played an arguably more important ODI. In the Asian Cup, the competition was fierce until the first round of the final tournament, and Sri Lanka won and decided to advance to the final. In hindsight, Tuesday’s game in Hyderabad could be just as crucial, but for now nothing feels as urgent or sweeping as all the games in Colombo.
Both teams played one match in this World Cup. First impressions were not very strong for either side, but Pakistan has two points and Sri Lanka has some scars. Of course, the mitigating circumstances were that Pakistan played against the Netherlands and still looked shaky in certain parts of the match, while Sri Lanka played against the batting powerhouse of South Africa and ultimately failed. However, for a while, he did his best in the heat of the moment. Tracking.
Sri Lanka is currently in Hyderabad, which, as Babar Azam said earlier, is already starting to feel like home to Pakistan. They have been here since arriving in India two weeks ago and will play their last match in the city before moving to Ahmedabad. They are aware that there were many imperfections in the victory over the Netherlands, especially a dip in form in the opening game, but fortunately for Pakistan, their midfield suddenly came back to life. And despite fears of losing control of the ball in the middle overs, Haris Rauf showed he was back to his best by finding wickets and smashing through the batting line-up throughout the period.
Sri Lanka may consider writing off their bowling performance against South Africa and starting over. As Australia discovered in last month’s bilateral series, there are few bowling units that can control South Africa’s onslaught in full flow. Pakistan has no such power and it is unlikely that Hyderabad will facilitate the kind of huge blow that Sri Lanka could not withstand in Delhi.
They will be encouraged by the way they chased and proved their ability to mount a relentless bowling attack over 50 overs. On the other hand, the memories of the control he gained in the cool and calculated chase against Pakistan in the high-pressure matches of the Asian Cup strengthened his belief that they could finally defeat Pakistan (0-7) in the World Cup. It should be.
form guide
Pakistan WLLWW (Last 5 completed matches, most recent first) Sri Lanka LLWLW
in the spotlight
Fakhar Zaman’s poor condition is attracting the most attention, but Imam ul Haq The orchids also seem to be tapering off. In the last seven matches of 50 overs, including the World Cup pre-game, only one score has been higher than 16. There is no reason to think he is not fully fit, but Pakistan will need to see him prove it with his suddenly depleted runs in the top order. Sri Lanka have a bowling corps that is theoretically ready to plunder following South Africa’s actions, and an opportunity to play in the World Cup matches against Pakistan and India is under his belt.
Charis Asaranka He is one of the best middle-over batsmen in the world at the moment. Since his ODI debut, no batsman number five or lower has scored more runs, with his 1327 runs at an average of over 45 and a strike rate of over 90. Time and time again, he has kept or given momentum to hitters. Sri Lanka pitched an innings till mid-innings, smashing Pakistan’s heart with a callous unbeaten 49 and eliminating Sri Lanka from the Asia Cup last month. After a few indifferent warm-ups, he returned to form against South Africa, top-scoring with a 65-ball 79. So his form, combined with the question marks over Pakistan’s spinners, will make that run of play both intriguing and possible for him. What decides the match.
team news
The only real question for Pakistan is how or whether to get Osama Mir into the eleven. But with a win at this venue on Friday, they are expected to stay the same.
Pakistan (Possible) 1 Fakhar Zaman 2 Imam-ul-Haq 3 Babar Azam (Captain) 4 Mohammad Rizwan (Week) 5 Saud Shakir 6 Iftikhar Ahmed 7 Shadab Khan 8 Mohammad Nawaz 9 Hasan Ali 10 Shaheen Shah Afridi 11 Haris Rauf
Sri Lanka may consider making one or two changes to their bowling line-up after what happened against South Africa. Mahish Teekshana did not start that game due to injury but will be available for Tuesday’s game. He could replace Kasun Rajita.
There will be some cloud cover in Hyderabad during the match, but no rain. The pitch must lead to big points. New Zealand scored 322 runs against the Netherlands in Hyderabad on Monday.
statistics and trivia
Imam is nine away from 3,000 ODI runs. If we get it tomorrow, it will take us 67 innings. Only Hashim Amla, 57, got there faster. Fakhar Zaman and Shai Hope also took 67 innings while Babar Azam took 68 innings.
Sri Lanka have never beaten Pakistan in an ODI World Cup and have lost all seven matches they have completed. The clash between the two teams in 2019 came to nothing.
Quote
“We believe that our players know what they need to do to prepare. Rather than drain their energy in training today, we have chosen to prepare in a different way. We have players, too. From a coaching standpoint, I’m very happy with that.”
pakistan head coach grant bradburn Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq support decision not to take part in optional training session on the night before the match
