Pakistan vs Sri Lanka 4th ODI: It was Afridi’s Day
by admin on December 6, 2011
in Best all rounders, One day Cricket
Afridi single-handedly displayed an impregnable performance both with bat and bowl by winning the Pakistan Sri Lanka series played on the Arab soil. The 4th ODI out of the five ODI series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka at Sharjah was a treat to watch. After eight years of cricket drought at the Sharjah cricket ground, Pakistan again registered a memorable success over Sri Lanka which lost its last 7 wickets of just 19 runs. The game was almost in the hands of Sri Lanka but Afridi wrecked the lower batting order with a blend of googlies and legbreaks, successfully preyed five wickets for Pakistan. The juggling of Afridi perplexed the Sri Lankan batting where world class batsmen like Mahela Jayawardene and Kumara Sangakkara were unable to withstand the artifice of Shahid Afridi.
Pakistan batted first, struggled early in the game with 6 wickets down on 97. Afridi came at seventh position and played a magnificent inning of 75 runs off 65 balls. It is the first time ever in ODI history that a player has secured a half century and took 5 wickets in one inning twice in his career. Before that this feat was registered 15 times but none of the cricketers has repeated their performance like Shahid Afridi did.
Humaira Asad
Pakistan vs Bangladesh Series 2011: Pakistan Ready to Nail its Ex Better-half
by admin on December 1, 2011
in Concluded and future cricket series/events
Bangladesh and Pakistan cricket teams are at loggerheads on the fiddly pitch of Mirpur after 18 months. The last played against each other in an ODI in June 2010. Bangladesh is currently in full swing after beating New Zealand and Pakistan is all set to give Bangladesh a tough time after a convincing win over Sri Lanka in the recent series played in UAE. Bangladesh has improved it ODI ranking considerably as some of its team players have registered some great performances in the recent past. On the other hand, Misbah ul Haq has come up as a good ODI captain of Pakistan as the success ratio of Pakistan under his captaincy is really good. His own batting average in ODI is worth mentioning. He has registered an average of 42.42 runs in last 86 matches where he also scored 18 half centuries (no century so far). Yet again eyes are on Shahid Afridi. We hope to see an action replay of the outstanding performance from bat and ball. Shoaib Malik is still struggling since his return in the International Cricket. We hope to see a better game from him in the series. From Bangladesh, players to watch are Mahmudullah and Shakib al Hassan. We hope fro a great game in the series beginning today Humaira Asad
Cricket in April/May 2011: Pakistan vs West Indies
by admin on June 19, 2011
in Concluded and future cricket series/events
The months of April and May provided cricket viewers with plenty of reasons to get stadium tickets in West Indies, and to keep themselves glued to their television screens in Pakistan and elsewhere. Pakistan’s tour of the West Indies was preceded with a very shaky start, with celebrated captain Shahid Afridi of Pakistani cricket team announcing his decision of withdrawal from the series based on a fallout with the Pakistan Cricket Board(PCB) following the recently held World Cup in India; this decision was later reversed as Afridi was also integrated into the squad. This series picked considerable momentum and eventually provided fans dismayed over Pakistan’s cricket team loss to India in the World Cup semifinal with a focal reason to rejuvenate themselves and relinquish their pride. Pakistan steered to a very lustrous and seemingly effortless victory as they beat West Indies cricket team by seven wickets, with Ahmed Shehzad emerging as the newly hailed idol. Pakistan maintained their winning streak in the next two ODIs, grabbing victories by seven and three wickets respectively. However, their winning streak got tainted in the fourth ODI, when the Duckworth Lewis method awarded a very narrow victory to West Indies, the precedent for this decision being a mere one run. The fifth ODI enabled West Indies cricket team to further consolidate their success, as they beat Pakistan by a significant margin of 10 wickets. Yet, these two victories did not offer much of a reason to celebrate to the host nation, as the series sealed 3-2 in the favour of Pakistan. Proceeding the ODI series, the Test series constituting a test match each at Providence and Bassetere emerged to be a tie, as West Indies achieved a narrow 40 run victory in the first one, and Pakistan cruised to a 196 victory in the second. All in all, this tour provided a considerable boost to the Pakistani cricket team following their intense and shocking dismissal from the World Cup and prior to their tour of Zimbabwe in September 2011.
Semi final Analysis: India vs Pakistan cricket teams in 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup
by admin on March 26, 2011
in Team records in ICC Cricket World Cups, World cup 2011
World Cup win/loss record of India vs Pakistan:
- Total matches played: 4
- India cricket team won: 4
- Pakistan cricket team won: 0
One day international win/loss record of India cricket team against Pakistan:
- Total matches played: 119
- India cricket team won: 46
- Pakistan cricket team won: 69
- No result: 4
Second semi-final of 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup will be played between Pakistan and India on March 30, 2011 at Mohali, India. Pakistan cricket team defeated West Indies while India cricket team defeated current champion Australia in the 1st and 2nd Quarter-final respectively. Road to the semi-finals has been steady for both the teams. Here’s the analysis of strengths and weaknesses of both teams.
India’s Batting Strength and Weakness:
India possesses world’s best batting line-up. The top order has performed well in the Group round of 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup but there had been middle-order collapses in earlier stages. With the start of knock-out stage, India’s middle-order has realized its responsibility and has done well in the match against Australia. Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh are the leading run scorers in this tournament and performances are expected from trio in the semi-final. India doesn’t have any recognized batsmen after 6th position, so Pakistan will be looking to expose Indian low-order earlier.
India’s Bowling Strength and Weakness:
Though, India doesn’t have the best bowlers in the world but their current bowling line-up is ideal for the sub-continent pitches. They have the much needed variety. They have fast bowlers (right hand/left hand), off-spinners and slow left arm bowlers. Zaheer Khan has been the most successful bowler for India in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup; he has taken 17 wickets in just 7 matches. Yuvraj Singh has also contributed well with 11 crucial wickets.
Pakistan’s Batting Strength and Weakness:
Batting has always been a problem for Pakistan in big matches. Openers have failed many times and then there is sudden collapse of middle order. Till Quarter-finals, Pakistan’s batting has been steady if not the best. There was a problem with openers but they were outstanding in the quarter-final match against West Indies cricket team. Chasing might be a problem for Pakistan but they will manage anything around 250 runs in the semi-finals.
Pakistan’s Bowling Strength and Weakness:
Bowling has been the main strength for Pakistan in this world cup. Shahid Afridi is the leading wicket taker in 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup with 21 wickets. They have the best combination; they have Abdur Rehman, Muhammad Hafeez, Shoaib Akhtar, Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul in their bowling line up who can demolish any strong batting side. Moreover, Pakistan’s bowling has the capability of defending the target and also of restricting the side batting first to a low score. So, they won’t be hesitating in any situation they are put in.
The stage is all set for the match between the biggest rivalries of cricketing world. It will be jam-packed crowd there in Mohali. Pakistan has never won a match against India in the world cup till now, and Pakistan has never lost any match against India in Mohali. Pakistan cricket team will try their level best to stretch the winning streak at Mohali and to improve the world cup record books as well.
Quarter final analysis: Pakistan vs West Indies cricket teams in 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup
by admin on March 21, 2011
in Team records in ICC Cricket World Cups, World cup 2011
World Cup win/loss record of Pakistan vs West Indies:
Total matches played: 8
- Pakistan cricket team won: 2 matches
- West Indies cricket team won: 6 matches
One day international win/loss record of Pakistan cricket team against West Indies:
Total matches played: 144
- Pakistan cricket team won: 48 matches
- West Indies cricket team won: 64
- Tied matches: 2
In 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, Pakistan cricket team is to play West Indies cricket team in Quarter final. So far, the Pakistani cricket side has been brilliant in their performance and ended as the top team of Group A. As for West Indies, things haven’t been very easy although they made to the Quarter finals. Some of the key points to be kept in mind regarding the Quarter final between Pakistan and West Indian cricket teams in 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup are:
1) The batting line up of Pakistan cricket team has been the weakness so far for them. Many flaws have been pretty evident in the openers of Pakistan cricket team. The openers failed to give a good scoring base in the targets set by Pakistan cricket team in 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup. Same is the situation with West Indies cricket team. Their batting lineup has failed completely in World Cup so far.
2) The bowling attack of both Pakistan and West Indian cricket teams has been strong and consistent. For Pakistan cricket team, their bowling attack along with Umer Gul and Shoaib Akhtar was further enhanced by Shahid Afridi who is the leading wicket taker in 2011 Cricket World Cup so far. From West Indian bowling line, Rampaul, Russell and Sammy have the potential to do the damage on the field.
3) Although Pakistan chased very well in 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup but the risk is always there when it comes to chase. If Pakistan gets a chance to bat first, the match might turn in favor of Pakistan cricket team. However if West Indies bats first and puts up a huge total then Pakistan will have to play a very safe innings by saving wickets and building partnerships.
Overall, the unpredictable pattern of 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup doesn’t allow us declaring any team favorite in the quarter finals. A better team work would surely pay off.