West Indies v Pakistan | 5th ODI | Providence | Pre-Match Thread

[farhan1]

West Indies v Pakistan, 5th ODI, Providence

Pride still at stake as Windies break duck

May 5, 2011, Providence
Start time: (9:30 Local time | 13:30 GMT | 15:30 CEST | 18:30 PST)


The Big Picture
The rot has been stopped by West Indies, though it was quite a scramble to get across the line. Thanks to Dwayne Bravo's premeditated six over midwicket in the fourth ODI in Barbados, the Windies did just enough to sneak ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis calculations before the heavens opened two deliveries later. However, had the match gone the full 50-over distance, Pakistan would have been confident of defending their total of 248 for 9, the highest yet recorded in a low-scoring series.

The scoreline now stands at 3-1 instead of 4-0, and though it's not enough to get them back into the series, it is nonetheless a significant crumb of comfort for a team that had not beaten senior Test opposition for the best part of two years. Their eight-wicket victory at Kingston in June 2009 was the last such occasion, so the opportunity to claw the scoreline back to 3-2, with the two-Test series to follow, is not one that ought to be sniffed at.

Pakistan, however, look for the moment to be an enviably settled unit - and given their recent history, that arguably says more about West Indies' current turmoil than anything else, even if their chief selector Mohsin Khan is getting ready to rock their boat ahead of the Test series. The composure shown by Mohammad Hafeez in his second ODI hundred, and by Asad Shafiq in their 153-run stand for the second wicket, set the tone for what should have been a formidable total, until Devendra Bishoo's wiles derailed the latter stages of the innings.

There are clear signs of life in the West Indies squad, with Bishoo's exuberance matched by Lendl Simmons' early onslaught, in which he belted a 36-ball half-century to propel their rain-affected run-chase. But as the recall of Ramnaresh Sarwan demonstrated, not to mention the ongoing issues surrounding Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the changing of the guard in the Caribbean looks set to be a messy and protracted affair. Better times may lie ahead, but one dead-rubber victory can hardly be taken as proof of a new dawn.


Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)
West Indies WLLLL
Pakistan LWWWL


Watch out for...
One of the few positives of West Indies' disappointing World Cup campaign was the emergence of Devendra Bishoo as a genuine wicket-taking legspinner. While he does not give the ball the biggest rip of all time, his composure under fire is matched by an impressive mastery of flight, and his three wickets in the closing stages of Pakistan's innings at Bridgetown were due reward for his aggressive intent. In particular his dismissal of the centurion Mohammad Hafeez was eye-catching - late dip, appreciable turn and the pleasing sight of the middle stump being pegged back.

Mohammad Hafeez waited eight years to record his maiden ODI century, and now two have come along in the space of six months. His classy accumulation and eye for a run-scoring opportunity belie an average that remains stuck in the mid-20s, but at the age of 30, his time -it would appear - has come. When you factor in his invaluable second string as an offspinner, he is a player upon whom Pakistan can rely, especially given the range of mavericks and matchwinners who feature lower down the batting card.


Team news
West Indies took a gamble in the fourth match by reducing their bowling options to include the specialist keeper Carlton Baugh at the expense of the allrounder Andre Russell. However, seeing as they got the result they wanted, there seems little reason to veer away from the winning formula. Sarwan, who also returned for that match, will be a major drawcard for his Guyanese home support.

West Indies (possible) 1 Lendl Simmons, 2 Kirk Edwards, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Ramnaresh Sarwan, 5 Marlon Samuels, 6 Dwayne Bravo, 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Carlton Baugh (wk), 9 Ravi Rampaul, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Devendra Bishoo.

Pakistan chopped and changed their options with the series in the bag, and offered ODI debuts to Usman Salahuddin, who was run out for 5 before he could show his full repertoire, and Tanvir Ahmed, who nabbed a maiden wicket in between being tonked by Simmons and Bravo. Both men are worthy of another look, with Umar Akmal and Wahab Riaz having little to prove ahead of the Test series.

Pakistan (possible) 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Asad Shafiq, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq, 5 Hammad Azam, 6 Shahid Afridi (capt), 7 Usman Salahuddin, 8 Mohammad Salman (wk), 8 Tanvir Ahmed, 9 Saeed Ajmal, 11 Junaid Khan.


Pitch and conditions
After a relatively brisk deck in Barbados, the Providence wicket promises to be slower and lower, which may tempt both teams to bulk out their spin options. Matches in Guyana rarely pass without some interference from the weather, so the Duckworth-Lewis charts will be close at hand once again.


Stats and trivia
Misbah-ul-Haq finally has a series average after being dismissed for 5 at Barbados. Prior to that he had made scores of 73 not out, 43 not out, and 62 not out, for an overall tally of 183 runs in four innings.

This will be the 11th ODI at the Providence stadium, although West Indies have only featured in five of the previous ten, and won just twice, against England in 2009 and Zimbabwe in 2010.

Pakistan have never won more than three matches in a one-day series against West Indies


Quotes

"We needed this win. It's been a while."
Darren Sammy acknowledges the recent scarcity of West Indian victories.

"The way Mohammad Hafeez played on a difficult pitch, and Asad Shafiq, I think we should have got 270-275. We missed that chance, and didn't bat that well in the end."
Shahid Afridi rues the missed opportunities in Pakistan's innings.

[farhan1]

Pakistan need to finish the series on high note to win the this last game to win the series by 4-1 as they coudnt whitewashed.

[KingKhanWC]

What's the weather saying? Guyana is known for stormy weather.

[farhan1]

Thursday Morning Temperature: 29°C
Chance of a thunderstorm. 5 to 10 mm of rain.

Thursday Afternoon Temperature: 32°C
Chance of a thunderstorm. 3 to 7 mm of rain.

Thursday Evening Temperature: 28°C
Chance of a thunderstorm. 4 to 8 mm of rain.


Mostly
A mix of cloudy and clear skies with a few showers. Chance of a thunderstorm. 5 to 9 mm of rain.

[Watsupdoc]

So D/L will most likely come into play again.

[iHammad]

Hopefully another Hafeez century

[Fawad2010]

Someone tell the management to keep an eye on the D/L charts!

I am still not over the 1 run win by WI....

[Hamxa89]

Hope to see Umar Akmal back in the team

[Fawad2010]

Lets go with a spin-heavy attack!

Afridi, Hafeez, Ajmal, Rehman, Junaid/Sadaf

[Gollum]

it is vitally important to win this match to set the tone and momentum for test series

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by Hamxa89 Hope to see Umar Akmal back in the team

For sure. A potential superstar for the future

[farsiddiqui]

Would like to see Sadaf in for Tanveer. Other than that, they should stick with the same team. Perhaps get Usman Salahuddin to bat up the order to get some time in the middle.

[Fawad2010]

if we are going with two seamers plus azam, i think they should hve Wahab in the lineup, the seam attack can use some experience....

Junaid was good, but it was kinda painful to watch Tanvir...

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by farsiddiqui Would like to see Sadaf in for Tanveer. Other than that, they should stick with the same team. Perhaps get Usman Salahuddin to bat up the order to get some time in the middle.

Two changes need to be done.

Sadaf in for Tanveer and Umar Akmal in for Misbah or someone else.

[farsiddiqui]

Originally Posted by farhan1 Two changes need to be done. Sadaf in for Tanveer and Umar Akmal in for Misbah or someone else.

Yeah, I wouldn't mind Umar Akmal playing ahead of Misbah, but I just don't see that happening.

Misbah is the insurance policy of our batting lineup and the conservative management would want to keep him in there just in case.

[farhan1]

The batting order should be:

Ahmed Shehzad
Mohammad Hafeez
Asad Shafiq
Usman Salauddin
Umar Akmal
Hammad Azam

The rest after that.

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by farsiddiqui Yeah, I wouldn't mind Umar Akmal playing ahead of Misbah, but I just don't see that happening. Misbah is the insurance policy of our batting lineup and the conservative management would want to keep him in there just in case.

Yeah not looking like that but probably for Ahmed Shehzad and Asad to open and Usman at 3.

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by farhan1 The batting order should be: Ahmed Shehzad Mohammad Hafeez Asad Shafiq Usman Salauddin Umar Akmal Hammad Azam The rest after that.

OR

Mohammad Hafeez
Asad Shafiq
Usman Salauddin
Umar Akmal
Misbah-ul-Haq
Hammad Azam

[Gollum]

^ no reason to drop Ahmad Shehzad as he is not in the test team...grandpa has no justification for playing the last game (except increasing his chances of getting injured)

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by gollumbird ^ no reason to drop Ahmad Shehzad as he is not in the test team...grandpa has no justification for playing the last game (except increasing his chances of getting injured)

So its either Misbah or Shehzad any of them should rest no matter what.

[KingKhanWC]

Originally Posted by farhan1 So its either Misbah or Shehzad any of them should rest no matter what.

I would drop Shafiq and give Umar a go up the order. He needs a chance to play a long innings, it's unfair to have him down the order and coming in with a few overs to go.

[Hassan0987]

I would say bring back Umar Akmal for Misbah, and Wahab back for Tanvir

[anakwalajinn]

Originally Posted by Hassan0987 I would say bring back Umar Akmal for Misbah, and Wahab back for Tanvir

Sadaf if fit. Wahab can rest some more and enjoy milkshakes before the tests

[Fireworks11]

Play Umar at 4. Big game for Shez.

[Omar Malik]

Originally Posted by anakwalajinn Sadaf if fit. Wahab can rest some more and enjoy milkshakes before the tests

What happened to Sadaf?

[Omar Malik]

Originally Posted by Omar Malik What happened to Sadaf?

Ok just read on the other thread he's got a finger injury during practice so that's why!

[anakwalajinn]

Here is the other thread

http://www.pakpassion.net/ppforum/sh...d.php?t=127585

[Fireworks11]

The last chance for an Afridi cherry clubbing blitz before he returns home.

[Omar Malik]

Originally Posted by anakwalajinn Here is the other thread http://www.pakpassion.net/ppforum/sh...d.php?t=127585

Yep had seen it just before, hence had quoted my one again. Thanks!

[Fireworks11]

Hope Misbah is rested.

[Omar Malik]

^ Only if they would.

[anakwalajinn]

Originally Posted by Omar Malik Yep had seen it just before, hence had quoted my one again. Thanks!

NP bro, it was for the other awaam that is too lazy to search

Originally Posted by fireworks11 The last chance for an Afridi cherry clubbing blitz before he returns home.

Maybe we can see him open?
He did very well as an opener last time we played an ODI series in The WI. One 50 in one of the three ODI's AND a century in the warm up game

[Fireworks11]

Originally Posted by Omar Malik ^ Only if they would.

Let us await with interest.

[Theo_14]

It's vital that Shehzad and Afridi score some invidivual runs to gain confidence because right now, both of them are their own enemies and are giviing their wicket away far cheaply.

I'd like Sadaf to be given a chance before he goes back - with Umar Akmal coming in to replace Misbah and Sadaf to replace Tanvir Ahmed.

Apart from that... I want no other changes and would prefer Pakistan batting FIRST so Hammad, Salman etc get a chance with the bat.

[farhan1]

Umar Akmal should play and also given chance to Sadaf as well.

Hope Pakistan make atleast two changes then.

[thecricket]

weather?

[talha3]

Originally Posted by thecricket weather?

doesn't look good. it's the same forecast as the last match. 60% chance of rain throughout the match.

apparently it's a sell out! maybe the west indies crowd know it's going to rain and so more chances of west indies winning and so they've all come in to watch this one.

[liaqat]

i would open up with shafiq and hafeez,, and let shehzad come in abit later..,

for me shehzad is like how devilliers use 2 be ,, he couldn't score when he was opening but as soon as they dropped him down the order devillers is one of the best,,,
i feel ahmed shehzad could be the same,,

[Inswinger]

It'd be nice to see Sadaf and Umar playing instead of Misbah and Tanveer. Probably not happening though.

[Fireworks11]

Hope Pak bat first.

[cricketpassion]

Toss news?

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by cricketpassion Toss news?

No Yet so far.

[Inswinger]

Originally Posted by cricketpassion Toss news?

In about 20 minutes.

[farhan1]

Originally Posted by Inswinger In about 20 minutes.

In 6 to 10 minutes from now.

[cricketpassion]

Thanks Farhan and inswinger

[IAJ]

Toss is allways held 30 minutes before the play in ODIs, is there a change in that process now?

[farhan1]

Pakistan have won the toss and are batting first

[talha3]

pak win toss and bat first. with taufeeq umar in

[shokz1408]

Pakistan have won the toss and are batting first

[talha3]

umar akmal back in tooo!!! yess!

[Khabri420]

Use the match thread folks