It is getting tighter in the ICC World T20, 2016 Group 2 right now after India’s one-run victory over Bangladesh. There are three teams in with a realistic chance of making it to the semifinals of the tournament and all of them will be in action at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali over the next three days.
First up, it is Pakistan who will take on Australia on Friday (March 25). It is without doubt a very important game for both teams. Pakistan lost against New Zealand on the same ground, two days ago. Australia are coming in straight after a hard-fought win against Bangladesh. And although Pakistan have the advantage of knowing the conditions a little better, they seem far from a confident side at the moment.
For Shahid Afridi, this could well be the end of an illustrious career, if Pakistan lose the game. The skipper will definitely be in the mood to motivate his team to give it their best in Mohali. Coach Waqar Younis had berated Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal for not finishing off the game against New Zealand. There has been a lot of drama going on behind the scenes with respect to the batting order and they haven’t settled upon a consistent one just as yet. While problems persist with the bowling department as well, they have largely been masked by those present in the other folds. For Afridi and the think-tank, the biggest challenges would be to channelise the individual hunger of the players into collective success. If they lose the game, they will be knocked out of the tournament.
First up, it is Pakistan who will take on Australia on Friday (March 25). It is without doubt a very important game for both teams. Pakistan lost against New Zealand on the same ground, two days ago. Australia are coming in straight after a hard-fought win against Bangladesh. And although Pakistan have the advantage of knowing the conditions a little better, they seem far from a confident side at the moment.
For Shahid Afridi, this could well be the end of an illustrious career, if Pakistan lose the game. The skipper will definitely be in the mood to motivate his team to give it their best in Mohali. Coach Waqar Younis had berated Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal for not finishing off the game against New Zealand. There has been a lot of drama going on behind the scenes with respect to the batting order and they haven’t settled upon a consistent one just as yet. While problems persist with the bowling department as well, they have largely been masked by those present in the other folds. For Afridi and the think-tank, the biggest challenges would be to channelise the individual hunger of the players into collective success. If they lose the game, they will be knocked out of the tournament.
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As with Pakistan, Australia too are making their way through the tournament after a lot of changes to their batting order. The surface at Mohali might be the best-suited one for their stroke-players. It is expected to be a lot different from the other spinning surfaces that they have played on so far. Australia are yet to win a World T20 and so far they haven’t looked like a team that thinks alike. They are still adjusting to David Warner playing down the order and it might well change again if Smith sees reason in pushing Shane Watson down the order on a truer pitch. His bowlers might lack in experience but have so far performed quite creditably. Mohali will pose challenges quite different from what they have encountered so far.
Teams:
Pakistan (From): Ahmed Shehzad, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi(c), Sarfraz Ahmed(w), Imad Wasim, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Nawaz, Khalid Latif, Wahab Riaz, Anwar Ali
Australia (From): Usman Khawaja, Shane Watson, Steven Smith(c), David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, James Faulkner, Peter Nevill(w), John Hastings, Adam Zampa, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Andrew Tye, Ashton Agar
Teams:
Pakistan (From): Ahmed Shehzad, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi(c), Sarfraz Ahmed(w), Imad Wasim, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Nawaz, Khalid Latif, Wahab Riaz, Anwar Ali
Australia (From): Usman Khawaja, Shane Watson, Steven Smith(c), David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, James Faulkner, Peter Nevill(w), John Hastings, Adam Zampa, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Andrew Tye, Ashton Agar