As Pakistan look to get back to winning ways, their former cricketer Ramiz Raja has suggested one change in the playing XI. The Men in Green began their World Cup campaign with wins over the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before India thrashed them by seven wickets last week.
Pakistan had a terrible outing with both bat and ball against their arch-rivals. Asked to bat first, they were on 155 for 2 at one stage before an inexplicable collapse saw them getting bowled out for a paltry total of 191 runs. In reply, Team India chased down the total with utmost ease, crossing the finishing line in less than 31 overs and with 7 wickets in hand.
The Babar Azam-led side will be desperate to bounce back and get their campaign back on track. Their next game is against five-time world champions Australia. The match is scheduled to be played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Friday (October 20).
Ramiz Raja on Pakistan’s playing XI:
Ahead of the crucial clash between Pakistan and Australia, Ramiz Raja spoke on the importance of adapting to the conditions. He then suggested that the Pakistan team-management should make room for a special batter and drop an allrounder.
“I think Pakistan should go for the chase. Pakistan weren’t able to score even 200 runs against India while batting first on a good batting strip so they should think about chasing against Australia,” Ramiz Raja said.
“The conditions there [in Bengaluru] will suit batting so Pakistan need to strengthen their bowling bearing in mind the pitch. If you need to sacrifice an allrounder for a specialist, they should definitely do that,” he added.
Pakistan are currently at the fourth spot in the points table with 2 wins and a loss from 3 games. Australia, on the other hand, are languishing at the 7th spot after losing two of their first three games. The Pat Cummins-led side, however, will have momentum with them as they will enter the game on the back of a fine win over Sri Lanka.
