Pakistan had shocked the cricketing world by beating a champion-looking South African side and Sri Lanka easily overcame the West Indian challenge to enter the finals.
The Pakistanis will rely on the individual brilliance of Shahid Afridi, who has almost suddenly become their ‘go-to’ man in this tournament, but he will need support from the likes of Kamran Akmal, Younus Khan, Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul to deliver the goods. Akmal has done well ever since he was promoted to the opening slot, while Younus Khan has been Pakistan’s best scorer. Umar Gul’s bowling at the death will test the best of the Sri Lankan batsmen, while Ajmal’s spin has almost been unplayable and it will be interesting to see how the Sri Lankans go about batting against him.
For Sri Lanka, their main worry will be the lack of form that most batsmen – save T.Dilshan – have exhibited over the time of this tournament. Sanath Jayasuriya has almost forgotten his big hits and has looked like a pale shadow of his own past, while Kumar Sangakkara had begun well in the series but has seen his form go away over the last couple of games. Mahela Jayawardene is a little patchy, while Chamara Silva hasn’t yet shone on this stage.
Where the Lankans will be counting their stars is the magnificent bowling line-up, which has had most of the opposition guessing. In M.Muralitharan, they have a spinner who is miserly as one can get, while Lasith Malinga’s free ability to bowl yorkers has had him taking bucketful of wickets. However, it will be Ajantha Mendis’ four overs which will be watched very carefully, he is not only frugal but also a very wicket-taking option for the Lankans.
To me, there isn’t much to choose from between the two teams, the one that holds its nerves better should win the tournament.
No doubt, Pakistani cricketers are buoyed by the recent wins but they need to produce more passion in order to beat a team which is yet unbeaten in the tournament. Pakistanis would once again be underdogs against Sri Lanka. What they need is to play their hearts out and they can beat the mightiest on their day. The way Pakistan team has made gradual progress in this World Cup it is hoped that Pakistan will get the better of the Sri Lankans on Sunday.
Let us keep our fingers crossed and hope that the green shirts produce one of their best performances today and defeat Sri Lanka as the did against South Africa a day earlier.
The Pakistanis will rely on the individual brilliance of Shahid Afridi, who has almost suddenly become their ‘go-to’ man in this tournament, but he will need support from the likes of Kamran Akmal, Younus Khan, Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul to deliver the goods. Akmal has done well ever since he was promoted to the opening slot, while Younus Khan has been Pakistan’s best scorer. Umar Gul’s bowling at the death will test the best of the Sri Lankan batsmen, while Ajmal’s spin has almost been unplayable and it will be interesting to see how the Sri Lankans go about batting against him.
For Sri Lanka, their main worry will be the lack of form that most batsmen – save T.Dilshan – have exhibited over the time of this tournament. Sanath Jayasuriya has almost forgotten his big hits and has looked like a pale shadow of his own past, while Kumar Sangakkara had begun well in the series but has seen his form go away over the last couple of games. Mahela Jayawardene is a little patchy, while Chamara Silva hasn’t yet shone on this stage.
Where the Lankans will be counting their stars is the magnificent bowling line-up, which has had most of the opposition guessing. In M.Muralitharan, they have a spinner who is miserly as one can get, while Lasith Malinga’s free ability to bowl yorkers has had him taking bucketful of wickets. However, it will be Ajantha Mendis’ four overs which will be watched very carefully, he is not only frugal but also a very wicket-taking option for the Lankans.
To me, there isn’t much to choose from between the two teams, the one that holds its nerves better should win the tournament.
No doubt, Pakistani cricketers are buoyed by the recent wins but they need to produce more passion in order to beat a team which is yet unbeaten in the tournament. Pakistanis would once again be underdogs against Sri Lanka. What they need is to play their hearts out and they can beat the mightiest on their day. The way Pakistan team has made gradual progress in this World Cup it is hoped that Pakistan will get the better of the Sri Lankans on Sunday.
Let us keep our fingers crossed and hope that the green shirts produce one of their best performances today and defeat Sri Lanka as the did against South Africa a day earlier.
It will be a dream come true when the Winning team lifts the T20 World Cup.
GOOD LUCK TEAM PAKISTAN
GOOD LUCK TEAM PAKISTAN
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