SYDNEY- Formidable New Zealand appear strong on paper, but they have to defy history when they clash with an unpredictable and upbeat Pakistan in the first T20 World Cup semi-final here on Wednesday.
Unlike Pakistan’s roller-coaster and miraculous journey into the last-four, the Kiwis had a straightforward passage into the knockout stage as they finished on top of Group 1 following wins over reigning champions Australia, Sri Lanka and Ireland in a group of ‘death’.
Babar Azam and his team mates, who had lost two key Super 12 clashes against India and Zimbabwe up front, were probably thinking of their departure plans when the Netherlands favoured them by eliminating South Africa on a dramatic Sunday.
All Pakistan had to do was to beat Bangladesh in the second match of the day to make a dream semi-final.
It’s giving a sense of ‘deja vu’ as Pakistan had clashed against New Zealand in the 1992 World Cup semi-final, coming from nowhere, and went on to win the match and later trophy.
Pakistan also have history backing them as New Zealand have lost all their previous World Cup semi-finals to them in ODI (1992, 1999) and T20 (2007) formats.
The Black Caps have lost three World Cup finals in seven years (2015, 2019 in ODI and 2021 in T20).
Skipper Babar is still struggling while Mohammad Rizwan is also far from his ominous best. They were in panic mode even while chasing a modest 128 against Bangladesh.
Kiwi pace duo of Trent Boult and Tim Southee will be back at the same venue where they rattled Australia and Sri Lanka top-order en route easy wins as they would look for a strong start. Incidentally, Pakistan too have their strong point in their bowling and the key would be to seize the battle with the bat. After a quiet start, skipper Williamson has got some runs under his belt in the last two matches as he would look to steer his side to yet another final. Pakistan on the other hand would be desperate to prove that their journey to the semis is not a fluke.
Luck apart, it’s Pakistan’s bowling, superbly spearheaded by Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf, that has been the instrumental in their success.
Squads:
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (Captain), Martin Guptill, Finn Allen (wk), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee, Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Trent Boult.
Pakistan: Babar Azam (Captain), Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Khushdil Shah, Shan Masood, Mohammad Haris, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi.
Match starts at 1.30pm IST.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
