Pakistan team reached the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup today. PAK will have to give their best performance against New Zealand at the Sydney Cricket Ground. By defeating New Zealand, Pakistan will have to prove that they are capable of crushing any team on the strength of hard work, not just by luck.
Looking at the figures,the New Zealand team is a strong contender for victory, but they will face Pakistan to register a victory in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. Pakistan is a strong team, which specialises in making any team dust on its own. The Pakistan team has reached this stage after going through a lot of ups and downs till the semi-final. New Zealand, on the other hand, defeated defending champions Australia, Sri Lanka and Ireland to finish on top of Group One and make it to the last four. Pakistan team led by Babar Azam was preparing to return home after defeats against India and Zimbabwe in Super 12, but Netherlands defeated South Africa and revived Pakistan’s hopes.
After defeating Bangladesh, Pakistan reached the semi-finals. Once again it seems that history is being repeated. In the 1992 ODI World Cup too, Pakistan reached the semi-finals after a lot of struggle. After reaching the semi-final, Pakistan won the title by defeating New Zealand.
Looking at the past history, the figures are in favour of Pakistan. Pakistan team and New Zealand team have faced each time the Pakistan team has the upper hand. Pakistan has defeated New Zealand in the semi-finals of 1992 and 1999 ODI World Cup and 2007 T20 World Cup.
The New Zealand team has not been able to perform well in the big tournament of limited overs matches. In the last four World Cups, the New Zealand team has reached the semi-finals. It has been the bad luck of the New Zealand team that they could not achieve the title. New Zealand have lost three World Cup finals (ODIs in 2015 and 2019 and T20s in 2021) in seven years.
Pakistan’s batsmen have been struggling to score runs so far. The New Zealand team will try to take advantage of it. The Kane Williamson-led side will try to put pressure on Pakistan by giving them shocks initially.Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have also not been able to do their best for Pakistan. against Bangladesh.The target of 128 runs was also overshadowed on the team.
New Zealand fast bowlers Trent Boult and Tim southy.On this ground, the top order of Australia and Sri Lanka have been destroyed. Pakistan’s excellent bowling is a positive aspect of it. New Zealand’s batsmen Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips and Captain Williamson are looking in good form.
In such a situation, Pakistan will have to prove that their journey to the semi-final was not a mere coincidence. For him, the role of fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf will be important. The match will start at 1.30 hrs IST.
The teams are as follows:
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c), Martin Guptill, Finn Allen (wk), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee, Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Trent Bolt.
Pakistan: Babar Azam (capt), Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Khushdil Shah, Shan Masood, Mohammad Haris, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah Shaheen Afridi.
