Pakistan is aiming to qualify directly for the One-day International Cricket World Cup which is scheduled in England in 2019 as it’s already languishing at the bottom of the table at number eight in ICC’s ODI team Rankings.
Pakistan is currently sitting at eighth position with 89 points and three points ahead of West Indies after bleak performances with the bat and a ball which has also become a big concern under the leadership of Ali when team slid to No. 9 in the ranking last year as Pakistan touched its lowest ebb.
The 1992 ODI World Cup Champions are two points behind Bangladesh and will take on number-one ranked Australia in a five-match One-day International series. The Azhar Ali-led side would like to improve their rankings by putting on the hard fight on Australian soil before looking to earn the crucial points during the limited-overs series.
However, it looks highly improbable to clinch the series away from home for Pakistan which received 3-0 hammering in the recently concluded Commonwealth Bank Test series.
In the head-to-head contests, Australia is leading Pakistan by 33 wins in its backyard with Pakistan settling on 16.
The scenario has been set; if Pakistan happened to trounce Australia in two matches it will join Bangladesh with 91 points each or series winning against Kangaroos will boost their chances to qualify the ICC’s 50-over major event directly.
Pakistan requires a win to settle on the points they had attained before the Australia’s limited-overs series.
On the MRF Tyres ICC ODI Team Ranking, the top eight highest-ranked sides as on September 2017 including hosts England will directly qualify for the 2019 ICC World Cup, which is scheduled from May 30 to July 15.
To complete the 10-team ICC World Cup line-up, four bottom-ranked teams will play in the WC Qualifier 2018 alongside six other teams in which two top sides will join the eight teams who will directly qualify the 10-team line-up.
Australia will yield Pakistan a point if hosts will win the series by 3-2. The visitors can pull down the hosts from the top of the table if they will clinch the series 4-1.