About the ground: The Wanderers in Johanesburg – also known as the ‘Bullring’ – boasts of an atmosphere which cannot be replicated elsewhere in the world when full. It is the traditional home of South African cricket. It also hosted the epic encounter between Australia and South Africa in March 2006, where the Proteas chased a record 434 with 1 ball to spare.
Pitch and weather conditions: The pitch generally is a batsmen’s paradise, with true bounce and carry.If the bowlers don’t make early inroads, it will be extremely difficult to come back in batsmen friendly conditions. With short boundaries on either side, the spectators can expect a treat.
Min-13C Max-25c Conditions: Mostly sunny
Team updates:
Pakistan: They couldn’t have asked for an easier start to the tournament. Having drawn some sharp criticism for their lacklustre performance against the Lankans last month, they would be hoping for a reversal in fortunes. With skipper Younis Khan not playing due to a fractured thumb, Shahid Afridi will get an opportunity to display his leadership skills in the ODI format. The onus once again would be on the old warhorses Misbah-Ul-Haq and Mohommad Yousuf to drive the middle order. A decision is yet to be taken on the inclusion of controversial fast bowler Mohammad Asif, who makes a comeback after serving his 1 year ban.
West Indies: Fresh from their drubbing against the Bangladeshis at home, West Indies enter the tournament as rank outsiders,and would be looking to spring some surprises on the way. In the midst of numerous controversies surrounding the board and the players, Floyd Reifer will lead an understrength Windies squad. The responsibility of batting will lie with Devon Smith and the hard hitting Andre Fletcher, who impressed against the Australians in the T20 WC in June, while Tino Best would spearhead the bowling attack.
Numbers game:
Nil : The number of times Pakistan have won against West Indies in South Africa. They have played a total of 4 ODIs.
17.7 : Shahid Afridi’s batting average against the West Indies in ODIs
Sound Bytes:
Shahid Afridi: In one-day cricket, we should not think that we can win easily against any team. There have been examples when big teams have lost.
Floyd Reifer: I want the people in the Caribbean to know that this is a West Indies team that is dedicated to West Indies cricket. This is not a second-string team.
Teams:
West Indies (From): Dale Richards, Andre Fletcher, Devon Smith, Travis Dowlin, Floyd Reifer(c), Kieran Powell, David Bernard, Chadwick Walton(w), Darren Sammy, Kemar Roach, Nikita Miller, Royston Crandon, Gavin Tonge, Tino Best, Kevin McClean
Pakistan (From): Kamran Akmal(w), Imran Nazir, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi(c), Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif, Younis Khan, Fawad Alam, Rao Iftikhar
