Pakistan face World Twenty20 mission impossible against Australia
There are two matches remaining to answer what has become the big question at the pointy end of the World Twenty20: are Australia unbeatable?
Pakistan, who just sneaked through to the semi-finals ahead of New Zealand, are next to face an Australian team that have taken all before them in their first five matches in the Caribbean competition.
Shahid Afridi’s team have been on the receiving end of a 34-run defeat by Australia this tournament, as Shane Watson once again demonstrated his fondness for Pakistan’s bowlers, who helped the opener to his maiden Test century during Melbourne’s Boxing Day Test last year, by producing a man-of-the-match worthy 81 from just 49 deliveries.
Despite Australia’s recent dominance over Pakistan, who were held winless during their 2009/10 tour Down Under, Michael Clarke is not taking the semi-final against them lightly.
“Pakistan are a very strong team in this form of the game especially. They’ve got a lot of match winners and I think we’ve got to really focus on the opposition we’re up against,” said the Australia skipper.
After defeating Pakistan and Bangladesh in their group matches in the Caribbean, Australia’s victories only became more emphatic as they moved through the Super Eight stage: a 49-run win against India; an 81-run thrashing of Sri Lanka; and a six-wicket win over the West Indies, after Australia had bowled out the hosts for a meagre 105.
Looking at those performances, it becomes a genuinely tough task to pick a weakness in the Australia XI, which should go into their semi-final match unchanged.
Heading into this match at Beausejour Stadium, St Lucia, perhaps Australia’s reliance on its pacemen could be picked out as the biggest flaw in what is otherwise a team that is the model of balance and depth.
Dirk Nannes, Shaun Tait, Mitchell Johnson and Shane Watson provide speed and bounce in spades, but the pitch at St Lucia isn’t as fast as the one in Bridgetown, where the bowlers tormented India’s batsmen with their short ball tactics.
However, against the West Indies in St Lucia, Australia demonstrated that their bowlers could still thrive on the slower pitch, as young leg-spinner Steven Smith took 3-20 and man-of-the-match honours against the West Indies.
Pakistan’s mammoth task will, of course, be assisted if they can dismiss both Watson and fellow opener David Warner cheaply, but there’s no reprieve as they cast an eye down the order as all Australia’s batsmen, bar Michael Clarke, have produced game-changing innings.
The importance of Australia’s opening partnership is not lost on the Pakistan skipper, but having watched Warner and Watson in action, Afridi some ideas about how to combat the dynamic duo.
“We have played them [Australia] at this ground in the first round...there are a few areas where Shane Watson and David Warner normally play their shots, like the mid-wicket or mid-on area. We already have plans against these guys,” Afridi said.
It’s one thing to have plans, but another to execute them and Afridi will also know that against a batting line-up of Australia’s strength and depth, Pakistan can ill afford to have another off day in the field – like in their Super Eight match against England – or they can expect to pay for any missed chances.
For Pakistan, the key to unsettling the Australia batsmen rests with their spinners, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman in particular, who were crucial to their victory over South Africa in their final Super Eight match and will need to deliver a similar performance on a pitch that has already proved to their liking.
Pakistan may have reached the semis by the skin of their teeth, but as Afridi reminded reporters leading into this semi-final match, “We were in the same situation in the last World Cup in England. But we went on to win the championship”.
The difference then was that Australia were no longer in the mix, having made their exit in the group stage. In the almost 12 months since, they’ve figured out how to play this Twenty20 caper and have a proven pedigree of winning titles at ICC tournaments.
Prediction: Australia have been looking unbeatable so far this tournament, and it’s hard to see that changing against the unpredictable Pakistan.
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