Islamabad Leopards v Karachi Dolphins – Faysal Bank T20 - Match Preview
Runner-ups of the previous season, Karachi Dolphins, will take on Islamabad Leopards in a group D match of the Faysal Bank T20 Tournament at the National Stadium, Karachi on September 29, 2011.
This is relatively an easier group of the tournament as compared to others. The only other team of this pool is http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Peshawar-c832 Panthers, who surprised everyone by beating the Leopards in their first match of the tournament. However, it is most
likely that the Dolphins will qualify for the semi-final stage.
The Dolphins have qualified for the final of the event a number of times, but have so far failed to clinch the trophy and they would be pumped up to prove a point this time round.
They are led by none other than Boom Boom, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760, after which he announced conditional retirement from International cricket. However, the all-rounder has
given clear signals of making a comeback ever since http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Waqar-Younis-Maitla-c96193 announced his resignation as the coach of the Pakistan team.
Afridi will be geared up to perform brilliantly in the tournament, which is going to strengthen his case for a national recall. The former Pakistani captain could turn out to be the difference between Karachi http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Dolphins-c781 and the other teams
but for that he will have to be at his devastating best.
Karachi has a number of extra-ordinary batsmen in shape of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 in the past but most of them lost their places later on. It is going
to be a huge opportunity for these cricketers to make a mark at the domestic level. All of these batsmen have the ability to change the course of the game single-handedly.
On top of that, Karachi has a very good bowling attack in the presence of Test fast bowlers, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sohail-Khan-c90647.
It provides an ideal chance to the wicketkeeper/batsman, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sarfraz-Ahmed-c88818, to claim a spot in the national team. The out of favour Test cricketer has been performing outstandingly in the domestic cricket of Pakistan but the selectors have
ignored him in the recent past. It remains to be seen whether he can make an impression or not.
On the other side of the coin, it is a do or die match for the Leopards and in case of a loss, they will no longer stay in the tournament. It must be noted that if Islamabad does not win this encounter against the Dolphins, they will not
qualify for the Faysal Bank Super Eight T20 Tournament 2012. So there is a lot to play for as far as the Leopards are concerned.
The senior players of the Leopards, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Syed-Imad-Wasim-c92287 must raise their game in order to motivate the youngsters and get the best out of them, if not, Dolphins will crush the Leopards.
Let us hope that the cricket fans do not witness a one-sided affair and a high class competition will be on display. However, chances are very high that it is going to be an anti-climax.
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