Pakistan’s odds in the 3rd One Day International
After pulling off a spectacular win in the second One Day International (ODI) in Abu Dhabi, Pakistan will surely be feeling a bit more confident and relaxed going into the third One-day international in Dubai against the South
Africans.
While the victory in the second match might have put life in the series, however, still, the South African side is a much more organized and cohesive unit than their Asian opponents.
The third match will be played in Dubai, though the pitch might be similar to the one in Abu Dhabi. Nevertheless, we can expect the pitch to behave a bit different from Abu Dhabi.
South Africa might go into the third ODI with the same side, as it is quite evident that most of the players who played in the first and the second ODIs performed ably. If it had not been for Abdul Razzaq’s late blitz, the South
Africans would have clearly cruised towards a comfortable win in the second match as well.
Pakistan, who probably have a sky-high morale and confidence that they had been missing for a very long time now, need to remember that it was due to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Razzaq-c84421’s onslaught that led Pakistani to a highly unexpected victory. Otherwise,
the team’s performance was not up to the mark.
One change that we might see is the inclusion of the middle order batsman Umar Akmal. The young lad has been missing from Pakistan’s ODI squad in the first two matches because of his lack lustre performance in the two match T20
series in Abu Dhabi.
But perhaps, now is the time to recall Umar Akmal, since Pakistan are better off playing a tested player like Akmal in the middle order than a repeatedly failing batsman. We all know Pakistan have a better chance of winning in
the remaining matches because of their bowling instead of relying on another miraculous performance by an individual.
The third match is going to be a tough one for Pakistan, as they need to win just to legitimise their triumph in the second One Day International and to prove to the world that their victory was not just a fluke.
If Pakistan want to maintain their winning streak that was triggered by the belligerent batting from Abdul Razzaq, they need to make sure that they have a few batsmen, in particular, to rely on. Experienced batsmen such as Younis
Khan, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Misbah-ul-Haq-c1972 and Mohammad Hafeez need to come up with some huge performances in order to shun their critics.
The Pakistani bowlers need to take up the pressure as well, as they were unimpressive in the second One Day, where they let South Africa set a huge target of 287 runs for Pakistan to chase.
The only hope Pakistan have of winning the third match is if their bowlers restrict the Proteas to a small total for their batsmen to go after. The strength of the Pakistani side clearly depends on the its bowling. Pakistan cannot
pull off another miracle twice in back to back games and surely, this time the South Africans will be targeting Abdul Razzaq, putting him under pressure will be the top priority of the Proteas.
The South Africans might want Albie Morkel to bowl a bit better for the rest of the series since he was the one who was hammered by Razzaq in the final over.
Graeme Smith is expected to make his return as the skipper in the next match, which will ultimately strengthen the South Africans as a team since he missed the second One Day International due to an injury to his hand, which he
received in the first match.
If http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 play by putting everything at stake, the third match will definitely leave the spectators with something to talk about. Now, what remains to be seen is whether this match will be a nail biting contest
or a one-sided affair.
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