Pakistan clash with Bangladesh in the Cricket World Cup at Lords on Friday and it would need an extraordinary result for Pakistan to make the semi finals.
Pakistan:
Pakistan came through a thrilling contest against Afghanistan with a 3 wicket victory at Leeds last time out but although victory here would see them finish on the same number of log points and wins as fourth placed New Zealand, net run rate is very much against them.
Coming in to this game for Pakistan to qualify for the semis they would have to bat first and rattle up a huge score and then bowl out Bangladesh incredibly cheaply. Even if Pakistan posted 400 they would need to dismiss Bangladesh for less than 100.
Shaheen Afridi was the pick of the Pakistan bowlers against Afghanistan with figures of 4/47 and Pakistan were set 228 for victory. Although Babar Azam made 45 Pakistan were in big trouble at 156/6 and the required run rate climbed above a run a ball. Imad Wazim held firm and finished on 49 not out as Pakistan got up with just 2 balls to spare.
In earlier results Pakistan lost to West Indies by 7 wickets and beat England by 14 runs. A clash with Sri Lanka was completely washed out, they lost to Australia by 41 runs and India by 89 runs (DLS) before beating South Africa by 49 runs and New Zealand by 6 wickets.
Babar Azam is leading run scorer for Pakistan with 378 runs, Mohammad Hafeez has a total of 226 and Imam-ul-Haq has made 225. Haris Sohail is next best with 192 runs from 4 innings. Mohammad Amir is leading wicket taker with 16 and Shaheen Afridi and Wahab Riaz both have 10.
This was how Pakistan lined up against Afghanistan last time out.
Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Haris Sohail, Sarfaraz Ahmed (capt, wk), Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Shaheen Afridi
Bangladesh:
Bangladesh were in action against India in Birmingham on Tuesday and a 28 run defeat finally ended their hopes of making the semi finals. It was another gallant display from Bangladesh who were tasked with chasing a hefty 315 for victory after the Indian openers had set a platform with a 180 run partnership. Mustafizur Rahman was their top bowler with a 5 wicket haul.
Bangladesh made steady progress in the chase but they were always behind the asking rate. Shakib Al Hasan top scored again with 66 and Mohammad Saifuddin’s 51 towards the end proved to be in vain as their innings closed on 286 all out in 48 overs.
Bangladesh now have 3 wins, 4 defeats and 1 no result from their 8 outings. Earlier results comprise of a 21 run victory over South Africa and defeats to New Zealand (2 wickets) and England (104 runs). A subsequent clash with Sri Lanka was washed out, they beat West Indies by 7 wickets, lost to Australia by 48 runs and beat Afghanistan by 62 runs.
Shakib Al Hasan is the top run scorer for Bangladesh with 542, Mushfiqur Rahim has made 351 and Tamim Iqbal has 227. Mustafizur Rahman is leading wicket taker with 15, Shakib Al Hasan has 11 and Mohammad Saifuddin has 10.
This was how Bangladesh lined up against India last time out
Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Liton Das, Mosaddek Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman
Head to Head
The teams have met 36 times with Bangladesh winning 5 and Pakistan have won 31.
The most recent head to head came in the Asia Cup in Abu Dhabi in September last year and Bangladesh won it by 37 runs.
The Betting, Click here for all markets
Pakistan 5/10
Bangladesh 33/20
Note prices quoted are correct at the time of publication but are subject to change.
Verdict:
Both these teams have had their moments in this tournament and there are class acts on both sides such as Shakib Al Hasan and Babar Azam but we go with a speculative play on a man who might just sneak in under the radar.
Haris Sohail should have started more matches for Pakistan and he has done pretty well in the limited game time he has been afforded. At the 20/1 currently quoted in the Man of the Match market he could give us a run for our money.
Suggested Bets:
Man of the Match, Haris Sohail at 20/1
