Only five days ago, Pakistan were one of the in-form teams of the tournament, They’d started their campaign on a confident note against the Dutch. They’d then created a record with the highest run-chase ever in a World Cup against Sri Lanka.
Australia on the other hand looked completely out of shape. They’d been trounced by India convincingly before suffering their heaviest defeat in a World Cup game to South Africa. So much so that they even spent one night at the bottom of the table.
As the two teams prepare to face each other at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Friday (October 20) though, you’d say the tide has certainly shifted. Even if it hasn’t technically. From their first three matches, Pakistan still have two wins and a loss while Australia still have two losses and a solitary win. But it’s difficult to deny that Pat Cummins & Co just seem to have the edge on the eve of the crucial encounter between the two sides.
That’s what a loss to India can do to the narrative around Pakistan in a World Cup. That’s what any win for Australia does to the narrative around the five-time world champions in a World Cup.
And if Australia spent their time against Sri Lanka ticking some crucial boxes en route to opening their account in the World Cup, Pakistan were left rattled and seemingly made to lose all that momentum that they’d built up in their opening encounters. Not that Cummins is ready to bite into any chat around Australia potentially heading in a direction where they might “peak” at the right time.
“We’ve probably given up the right to peak at the right time by losing the first couple but you’re always chasing that perfect game. For most of the last game we were really good. But there’s always a couple of little areas, again, they had a big partnership upfront. Took us five wickets down to knock over the total so it was a really good game, but there’s always little things you can look at,” he’d said.
This is not to say that Pakistan have turned into a team in distress just on the basis of one defeat. But it’s the nature of their collapse and the inability of their bowlers to impart any pressure on the Indians would be the biggest concern from their perspective. Either way, the match could well decide in which direction their respective journeys in this World Cup head from this point on. Pakistan at least would hope that the narratives around the two teams are just narratives and that they still haven’t lost their way after the really promising start.
When: Australia v Pakistan, October 20, 14.00 hrs Local time, 19.30 hrs AEST
Where: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
What to expect: Ok, Bangalore, you have fine weather. It’s an admission you just have to make as an outsider the moment you arrive in this fine city. And conditions only get better once you get to the Chinnaswamy Stadium, especially if you are a batter who doesn’t have to worry about bowling. Runs galore and sixes for fun has been the trend here for years. The last IPL game at this venue saw both Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli make centuries. And even though both teams have a mixed record in Bangalore-Australia are 4-5 and Pakistan 1-1-in ODIs, the toss could well have a massive bearing on what transpires in the first match of this World Cup in Bangalore.
Team Watch
Australia
Former captain turned commentator Aaron Finch was the cynosure of Australia’s practice session the day before the match. He had long discussions with several of his former teammates and chief selector George Bailey. Cummins too was seen having a lengthy chat with Bailey as they walked off the ground. But you wonder what changes they could make at this stage, especially with Travis Head set to join the team later this week. Everyone has had a hit or a bowl in the last two days except Adam Zampa, though he’s expected to play. The only possible change would happen if the leg-spinner does pull up stiff on the morning of the match, which would bring Sean Abbott into contention.
Tactics & Strategy:
As they left Lucknow, the Aussies had found runs in the middle order, courtesy Josh Inglis and Glenn Maxwell, and they’d also finally found a way to take big wickets in the middle overs, thanks to Cummins and Adam Zampa. Australia played a warm-up game against Pakistan two weeks ago where the openers went ultra-aggressive against the Pakistani fast bowlers. Expect the same here too. The Australian seamers have changed their tactics slightly in the last two games and started bowling a lot more cross-seamers and mixing them up with cutters once the balls begin to get scuffed up. And that’s a ploy that could work against a Pakistani middle-order that hasn’t fired consistently.
Probable XI: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
Pakistan
Fakhar Zaman still remains unavailable for another week while Agha Salman is recovering from an illness. The only likely change on the cards is Pakistan bringing in leg-spinner Usama Mir for Mohammad Nawaz. Mir was impressive against the Aussies in Hyderabad in the warm-up game.
Tactics & Strategy:
Pakistan’s success against Australia will depend largely on their top-order getting big runs and taking the innings deep. That’s where they failed against India despite getting an impressive start. What they’ll also need is wickets from their spinners to complement the impact of the fast bowlers, who’ve also been rather inconsistent so far despite their high-billing.
Probable XI: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir/Mohammad Nawaz, Hassan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf
Did you know?
– Australia have lost five out of the last six ODIs they have chased – all by a margin of 99+ runs
