Pakistan Cricket Board announces cricket squad for New Zealand ODI series - Part 5
To read the previous part of this article, please click
http://www.senore.com/Pakistan-Cricket-Board-announces-cricket-squad-for-New-Zealand-ODI-series-Part-4-a52512.
As Pakistan’s squad for the 6-match ODI series against New Zealand is discussed in detail, the focus now comes down to the pace attack for the men in green. The first name in the list is, of course, of the biggest showman in the
team, none other than the Rawalpindi Express himself. Shoaib Akhtar has surprised many by a phenomenal revival of his career. The speedster was believed to be done and gone with the game, especially when he was left out of the team for the T20 World
Cup and he had even started working as a cricket pundit on TV. However, Akhtar kept working on his fitness and finally made his way back in the team, and even at the age of 35 he remains one of the most hard-working and committed members of the team - a quality
that was not normally associated with Shoaib in his early years. One prime example of his commitment was when he decided to play in the 5th and deciding ODI against England last year. Akhtar was not fit and had to play with injections in his hamstring
and still bowled his heart out in the game. Even though he is almost at the tail-end of his career, he remains to be one of the most feared bowlers in world cricket and even though he can go for some runs, if used wisely he can be a lethal strike bowler.
Umar Gul is the next man in the list – he is someone who brought back the art of reverse swing to the Pakistan team. Especially in the 2009 T20 World Cup, he was at his best and bamboozled all with his consistency in bowling at
the block hole and also moved the ball in late. Lately, Gul has found it a bit hard to find his best form with the ball, but was looking on song in the Test match against New Zealand. In partnership with Akhtar, he can serve Pakistan well.
Wahab Riaz is one man who has impressed many in his short career; the left-arm pacer can generate some serious pace and also took 6 wickets on his debut in England in a Test match. He still needs to work on bringing the ball back
into the right-handers, but uses his left arm across angle and pace well. In the death overs, he uses the Yorker to good effect and, not to forget, he is more than just a tail-ender with the bat. Wahab can really give it a rip as he showed in the first T20
against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 in the UAE.
Sohail Tanvir is another man making a comeback in the team; in the absence of Mohammad Amir, he is the 2nd left arm bowler in the team but no longer the first choice. Sohail came on the scene in the 2007 T20 World Cup
and with his unorthodox wrong-footed bowling action baffled many batsmen in world cricket. He went on to become the best bowler in the first edition of the Indian Premier League, but too much success too early seemed to have got to him. He lost form with both
bat and ball and long-term injuries did not help his cause either. Now fit and raring to go, Sohail Tanvir will be looking to once again make his mark in the team.
Finally there is Tanveer Ahmed; the right-hand bowler does not possess extreme pace and bowls barely close to 130 kms an hour. However, he does have experience of many years in domestic cricket behind him; he was introduced in
the team at the age of 32. It may be difficult for him to make his way in the playing eleven if Shoaib, Umar and Wahab are fit but is still a decent backup to have.
Now having looked at the 16 member squad in detail, one has to keep in mind that the final squad for the 2011 World Cup for Pakistan will not be much different from this. So the performance of this lot in New Zealand will go a
long way towards determining the prospect of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 in the upcoming World Cup, and every player will be mindful of that.
Series Prediction: (On paper) Pakistan should win the 6-match series 4-2.
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