Pakistan will kick off their 2024 T20 World Cup campaign on Thursday, June 6 as they take on tournament co-hosts USA at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
USA won their opening match of the tournament at this venue, chasing down 195 against Canada with 14 balls to spare in a high-scoring encounter.
The last couple of months, during their series against New Zealand, Ireland and England, have been a period of experimentation for Pakistan, in order to settle on their best combination for the tournament. But how will they line up for their first match?
To start with, Pakistan have one forced decision; captain Babar Azam confirmed on Wednesday that all-rounder Imad Wasim would not be available against the USA, owing to a side strain which also kept him out of the final T20I against England.
Babar-Rizwan at the top?
As far as the top order is concerned, Babar had said in late May that he would bat at one down in the T20 World Cup, presumably with Mohammad Rizwan and Saim Ayub opening the batting. However, Ayub’s form has been patchy of late and he was left out of Pakistan’s latest fixture in favour of Usman Khan, who batted at three as Babar and Rizwan opened the innings.
Usman impressed with a 21-ball 38 in that match, and appears to be the front-runner for a spot in the top order ahead of Ayub. He could come in at three or open the innings as he has done several times in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), in case the team management prefers Babar to play one down. However, with Imad now out, one wonders whether Pakistan may be tempted to return to Ayub given his ability to bowl some better-than-part-time off spin.
Will Azam Khan be dropped?
Pakistan’s middle-order is largely set in stone; Fakhar Zaman will play at number four, with Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan in the lower middle-order. Azam Khan has hit a slump with both bat and the keeping gloves recently and Pakistan may have taken the risk of dropping him if Imad had been fit. But as things stand, it looks like he will slot in at number five or six.
There is an interesting alternative for Pakistan to consider, though. Should they want very strongly to drop Azam, they could open with Ayub and play Usman at five, to give them some power through the middle overs. This is unlikely to happen, but a possibility nonetheless.
Four seamers or three?
The final question mark is over Pakistan’s bowling attack; will they play four seamers or three? Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Amir and Haris Rauf are pretty much nailed on to start. The pitch in Dallas last time around had something in it for the pacers even past the Powerplay, so Naseem Shah could slot in as the fourth seam-bowling option. The alternative is mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed, who might find a spot as the support to Shadab Khan, given Imad’s absence.
Pakistan predicted XI vs USA: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam (c), Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Azam Khan (wk), Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah/Abrar Ahmed.
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