South Africa will be up against a vigilant Pakistan side in the upcoming Group B encounter of the Champions Trophy 2017 at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham.
Keeping the current form in mind, the two sides have a good bridge between them.
The equation looks fairly simple as of now. South Africa, after winning their tournament opener against Sri Lanka, are possibility standing on the verge of solidifying their bid for a place in the semi-final. Pakistan, whereas, will be seeking to resurrect their campaign after getting rocked by arch – rivals India at the same venue.
Overview:
The weather, fortunately, looks good, as the forecast suggests a bright and sunny day. Both the teams will be pleased by the weather report.
Speaking of the encounter, South Africa will be heading into the game with a lot more confidence after the satisfying win over Sri Lanka in London. It has set the tone for them. The batting department did a fairly good job of posting 299/6 on the scoreboard despite a middle order failure and the bowlers later produced an appreciable performance.
For Pakistan, they will be busy re-working their plans. They failed in all three departments which would be a huge concern for them ahead of their clash with South Africa, a side which is more aggressive with their approach than that of India.
The talent is obviously there but things eventually boil down to the most trivial factor – confidence and proper execution of plans which Mickey Arthur chalks out keeping the potential of the side in his mind.
Tracking the strengths:
South Africa will walk out with superior batting and bowling attack. They promise to post a good total and also defend it effectively and vice versa.
Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis are in form. Opener Quinton de Kock had an off day but surely cannot be written off. Others in the batting order are yet to get proper opportunities but will likely stand up to their reputation.
Skipper AB de Villiers, David Miller Chris Morris, all had forgettable time with the bat after coming out at a time when the side was in a very comfortable position. However, it will only sensible to expect them to come back hard. They have done it on many occasions.
In the bowling department, South Africa has the No.1 –Kagiso Rabada – and No. 2 – Imran Tahir – ODI bowlers in their ranks. The former promises to pick wickets with the new ball while the latter guarantees success in the middle over. If these two get going, it will be only fair to expect Pakistan crumble once again.
To be honest, Pakistan doesn’t really have anything to count, as their strength. Might sound biased or insensibly judgemental, but that is the truth. The batsmen crumble under pressure; even if they get starts, they waste it. The bowling is far better but what’s the use when the fielders have slippery hands.
To make things worse, lead bowler Wahab Riaz has already been ruled out due to an injury, whereas, there are few arguments about Mohammad Amir’s fitness as well. The only way they can beat South Africa is with the help of a combined showing in all three departments. They know how to do it, it’s just a matter of making it happen.
Match prediction:
With in-form players and better-balanced team structure apart from the current form, South Africa clearly starts as the favourites. Pakistan listless show has made against India has made everyone sceptical about their confidence and intent.