The moment Pakistani fans have been eagerly waiting for has arrived, on Friday the Pakistani cricket team will open the ICC World Cup in India with a match against the Netherlands at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad.
Since coming to Hyderabad, the Pakistani team, which has come to India after 7 years, has conducted training sessions and played two warm-up matches against New Zealand and Australia to acclimatize itself to the weather here. Pakistan team will play two out of nine World Cup matches in Hyderabad. The warm-up matches have given the Pakistani team plenty of opportunities to prepare their combinations and practice for all the players.
Captain Babar Azam while talking to PCB Digital said that our preparations are very good. We have been in Hyderabad for a week and we have tried different combinations in two practice matches and given every player a chance to see what he can do in every situation. We are ready to give our best.
Pakistan team is among the favorite teams in this World Cup and has won 24 out of 36 matches in the last World Cup cycle and captain Babar Azam has presented himself as the best batsman in modern ODI cricket.
He was Pakistan’s highest run-scorer in the 2019 World Cup, since then he has been ranked number one in the ICC World ODI Rankings. Over the last four years, he has scored 2196 runs in ODIs with a best average of 66 at a strike rate of 93, including nine centuries in that period. In terms of centuries, he is equal to Shai Hope who is the second batsman to have scored more than 2000 runs in this period.
Imam-ul-Haq is currently ranked sixth in the world rankings, having scored 1284 runs at an average of 45 with the help of two centuries and thirteen half-centuries in these four years.
In bowling, Shaheen Afridi will have a key role in Pakistan’s pace attack in this World Cup. He was the youngest bowler to take five wickets in a match in the last World Cup. During these four years, he has taken 46 wickets even though he was out of cricket for seven months due to a knee problem, but he has emerged as a dangerous bowler in international cricket.
Between these two World Cups, some of the best bowling talent has emerged. Haris Rauf recently completed his fifty ODI wickets in the Asia Cup. The most special thing about his bowling is his economy which is 5.68.
Babar Azam says that both bowling and batting are our strength. Our batsmen are performing well from the top order to the lower order, everyone is feeling their responsibility. Our fast bowlers have always been our strength in bowling but our spinners are also taking wickets in the middle overs which is a good sign.
Pakistan cricket team will play ODI International on Indian soil for the first time after a long period of eleven years. She will be playing one day international for the first time since 1987 in Hyderabad Deccan.
Babar Azam says that the pitches in India are good and there will be high scoring matches. Boundaries are neither too big nor too small. These are of normal size.
Babar Azam said about his four years that this journey has been very good. There have been ups and downs which are natural. There have been challenges but he has tried to meet the expectations of the fans during this period. Met people and met good teammates and tried to keep the team together. For the last three years he has been playing with these guys and we all bond and try. To show the best performance for Pakistan.
Babar Azam expressed his happiness at the reception of the team in Hyderabad and said that he is thankful to all those who gave him a warm welcome on the arrival of the team. He hopes that Pakistani fans will also support the team in the World Cup. I will be seen supporting.
He was not expecting such a reception at the Hyderabad airport. In the warm-up match against Australia, many people came to the stadium and supported their favorite players.
Babar Azam says it would have been even better if Pakistani fans were here too.
Friday’s ODI between Pakistan and Netherlands will be the seventh ODI between the two and since 1996 Pakistan have won all six matches.
The last ODI between the two was last year when the Pakistani team toured the Netherlands and swept the first bilateral series between the two.
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