Cricket in Pakistan suffered a setback when both New Zealand and England withdrew from a series against Pakistan that was scheduled to take place just before the T20I World Cup. In the aftermath of Pakistan’s outstanding success at the World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan invited the West Indies to host a lengthy visit, which they have begun on a high note.
In the just-finished second Twenty20 International of the series, Pakistan gained the upper hand and would be hoping to complete the series sweep in this breeziest version of the game. Alternatively, West Indies will be hoping to salvage some dignity by winning the last Twenty20 international match of the series.
PAKISTAN
Pakistan suffered a significant blow when both England and New Zealand declined to visit the country due to security concerns. It is possible, however, that this pulled the squad closer together and inspired them to perform better in the remaining matches that were played. This is shown by their success in the World Cup, as they were undefeated until their semi-final match against Australia, which they lost by a somewhat small score.
No matter what format they play in, Pakistan has always been a tough team to play against at home, and this is proving to be no different in their current series against the West Indies. They began their winning streak in the series with a 63-run victory, and they finished it off with a 9-run victory in their most recent encounter.
When Pakistan batted first in the second match, despite a lacklustre performance by their top-order, they managed to post a difficult total of 172 runs on the board, which was just enough to hold off an inexperienced Windies batting line-up. Despite the fact that Pakistan was losing wickets at a regular pace, their middle-order meant that they were able to keep chipping away at the run rate.
In the end, it was Shadab Khan’s spectacular cameo of 28 from 12 balls that insured that the team reached the total they finally accomplished. While their batters contributed to their victory, their bowlers laid the groundwork for it. Shadab Khan and the other bowlers all took at least a couple of wickets apiece, and it proved to be the determining factor. Shadab
Khan, despite the fact that he did not take any wickets, was also outstanding with the ball. Shaheen Shah Afridi was the most effective of their bowlers, returning with figures of 3 for 26 in his four overs to lead them to victory. On paper, there aren’t many differences between the Pakistani team that competed in the World Cup and this one.
Despite the fact that Babar Azam has not been among the runs this season, their opening duo seems to be as rock-solid as a rock. With the exception of the duo, other players such as Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, and Iftikhar Ahmed have performed well.
Furthermore, with Shadab Khan available at number eight, they have a strong batting lineup. Likewise, they have a diverse group of bowling options in Shadab Khan, Mohammad Wasim, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Nawaz, and Shaheen Shah Afridi to choose from. Overall, Pakistan has a very well-balanced team, and the result of 2-0 in their favour should come as no great surprise to anybody. As a consequence of the wins they have achieved in their previous encounters, they will be a confident team when they go to the field at home. They should breeze to yet another victory in this series until they get complacent or do something stupid in the following match.
WEST INDIES
It wasn’t that long ago that the West Indies were a force to be reckoned with in this shortest format of cricket. Because so many of its veteran players are approaching retirement and because their board is dealing with internal off-field concerns involving players, the West Indies are now a shell of the power they once were. Having said that, they still have a great deal of skill at their disposal, which, if channelled properly, may prove to be quite deadly in this format of the game.
We have already seen some flashes of brilliance from the West Indies’ youthful players and they will be seeking to improve on their performance after suffering two consecutive losses. However, the tourists’ bowlers have done a respectable job up until this point, while their batsmen have fallen short of expectations.
In the second match, a total of 172 was chase-able on the provided surface, however careless play by their batsmen resulted in their team losing by a small margin of nine runs due to their batsmen’s actions. Up until now, their results have been heavily influenced by the fact that their sole player with significant experience of playing cricket at the highest level, Nicholas Pooran, has not yet scored a significant goal for the team. Brandon King and Romario Shephard, among others, have made strong impressions, but their contributions have been insufficient to propel their team to victory.
However, despite their lack of experience, the West Indies are a team with plenty of potential in its ranks. Once he gets going, Nicholas Pooran can be a formidable opponent, and he is just one stroke away from match-winning innings. In addition to him, the West Indies have a number of bright talents that are eligible to bat. Their bowling seems to be far better than their batting, and the results have supported this assertion as well. Having said that, there is also an obvious lack of experience or a lack of knowledge in this area.
Overall, West Indies has a lot of open spaces that they would want to close in the few days that they have left before the last match of the series against Australia. Players in the various leagues around the world have demonstrated a tremendous amount of talent and the ability to completely dominate any opponent in a matter of minutes, as has been witnessed. In this forthcoming encounter, West Indies will be a formidable opponent if they are able to maintain their composure in high-pressure circumstances and contribute to
their on-paper potential.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORDS:
Pakistan and West Indies have faced each other in 16 T20I’s. Pakistan has won 13 of them and West Indies have won just three.
PREDICTIONS:
Even though the bilateral series has lost popularity in recent years as a result of the many ICC tournaments that have been played recently, this series could not be more essential for the hosts. This series commemorates the reintroduction of cricket to Pakistan, and the national team would want to finish the T20I series on a high note. However, West Indies would want to demonstrate to the world what their young players are capable of doing.
This is certainly to be an exciting contest, with both teams likely to put forth their
best effort to come out on top. When comparing the two teams based on their previous results and their relative on-paper pairings, Pakistan seems to be the superior team. In addition, they have the advantage of playing at home, which has already played a role in
this series’ first two games. Betting for Pakistan to win should be the preferred
strategy in this situation, for the reasons outlined above and more.
Date and Time: 16th December 2021 @6:30 PM IST
Venue: National Stadium, Karachi
