Australia (From): Tim Paine(w), Shane Watson, Ricky Ponting(c), Mike Hussey, Callum Ferguson, Cameron White, James Hopes, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Nathan Hauritz, Peter Siddle, Adam Voges, Ben Hilfenhaus, Doug Bollinger
Pakistan (From): Kamran Akmal(w), Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan(c), Mohammad Yousuf, Umar Akmal, Fawad Alam, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq, Rao Iftikhar
Teams:
“It’s India’s fate and I would celebrate if India goes out of the event.” – Sarfaraz Nawaz shows that a career in diplomacy is not what he’s aiming for.
Soundbytes:
4 – The number of players who are likely to be in the Australian starting eleven, who are in their top-10 list for highest strike rates. Cameron White and James Hopes are at numbers 4 and 5, while Michael Hussey and Callum Ferguson are at 9 and 10.
110.81 – Shahid Afridi’s strike rate in One Day Internationals. He has sustained this rate across 283 matches and 265 innings. No international batsman has a higher strike rate than he does (Minimum – 30 innings).
Numbers Game:
For perhaps the first time in history, Pakistan will be playing a match in which the whole of India will be willing them to not only win, but win big. If they do win spectacularly, then we could say that not only does God exist, but he’s alive and kicking, and answers prayers!
Pakistan: Pakistan have been the form-team of the tournament so far. In fact, they’ve been so impressive that JP Duminy has picked them as his favourites for the title. In the two matches they’ve played so far, the bowlers did a sterling job in one (against West Indies) and the batsmen came to the party in the other (against India). And they’ve been on a roll without a major contribution from Shahid Afridi – who at some point in the tournament is sure to murder a bowling attack. Pakistan have not played Mohammad Asif yet, which is probably the right call, especially since the other bowlers have performed well so far. Asif’s match-fitness in physical and mental terms is still suspect, and while there is no doubting his talent, there is less doubt about his ability to consistently make wrong decisions. A spell of working his way back into the team might actually do him immense good, and Pakistan will profit in the long-term from it. However, considering that Pakistan have nothing at stake in this match, Asif might get his first game. Pakistan’s main weakness is their inconsistency, especially while batting. When the batting clicks, they are hard to stop, but when it falters, they resemble a house of cards falling down. Even in the match against India, Pakistan fell at least 20 runs short of what they should have achieved given the platform laid by Yousuf and Malik.
Australia: Their primary goal in this match, will of course be to win it outright, and comfortably seal their last-four spot. However, the secondary goal has to be to try to minimize the extent of defeat, so that their Net Run-Rate does not suffer and they can still make it through even if they are on level points with India. Currently they enjoy a healthy lead over India in the Net Run-Rate stakes, and are thus, favourably placed to qualify even if they lose. Thoughts of losing, though will be far from the minds of the Australians, who have been in great One-Day form for the past several weeks. They will be without Michael Clarke in this match, but they have not felt his absence so far in the tournament. Ricky Ponting will lead the batting challenge, and with a support cast of Hussey, White and Fergusson, backed by late hitters such as Johnson and Lee, they have the batting firepower to chase or set big targets. The bowlers have not really been tested so far in the tournament – not getting a bowl against India, and bowling to an under-strength West Indies team – but on the evidence displayed in England, there are no immediate worries on the bowling front. Mitchell Johnson has regained his confidence, while Brett Lee is back to doing what he does best – steaming in and hurling the ball. Peter Siddle is no slouch with the ball, while Hauritz had performed creditably. The only area that could cause concern is the question of what would happen if Ponting fails. With Clarke absent, Ponting’s success is essential to Australia’s plans, and his presence at the crease often inspires the younger batsmen to greater heights.
Team News:
As the tournament has progressed, the pitch at Centurion has seemed to ease out for batting. The forecast is for mostly cloudy weather though, which could give the seamers some hope. However, if the rains should come down, then India will be out of the semi-final race and Australia will be through.
Ground Reality: This match will decide whether India will stay with a mathematical chance of reaching the semi-finals by beating the West Indies or whether it will be curtains for the Men in Blue. Consequently, there will be a huge amount of interest generated before the match, and frantic Net Run-Rate calculations should Pakistan win.
