Pakistan selected their 15-member squad for the ICC World Cup 2015. The squad is largely a predictable one with the sole exception of pace bowler Sohail Khan. Shiamak Unwalla analyses the 15 men who will try and win the World Cup for the traditionally inconsistent Pakistan.
To call Pakistan an unpredictable team will be an understatement. Their inconsistency is notoriously omnipresent, which in turn makes them a team that is always in with a chance to raise eyebrows, be it by losing to Ireland in the ICC World Cup 2007 or by dropping Sachin Tendulkar multiple times in the ICC World Cup 2011 or, on the other end of the spectrum, winning World Cup 1992 out of nowhere or putting Australia’s 12-year World Cup run to a halt.
That being said, the team selected for the ICC World Cup 2015 is one with a lot of promise. The batting has a good mix of flair and reliability, while the bowling is promising as always. The team has their share of experience in the form of Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, and Mohammad Hafeez, while the likes of Sarfraz Ahmed, Ahmed Shehzad, Haris Sohail, and Junaid Khan are some of the brightest young talents in world cricket.
Batting: Shehzad, Hafeez, Younis, Misbah, Umar Akmal, and Sarfraz will lead the way for Pakistan with the bat. Shehzad and Hafeez (who had an excellent, perhaps career-defining, 2013) can score quickly while at the same time batting long periods. How they do at the top will doubtless influence the fate of their side. Younis is ever reliable, and having recently enjoyed a purple patch in Tests, will be feeling good about himself. Meanwhile, Misbah has hammered the fastest Test ton late in 2014, thereby showing that “Tuk Tuk” is quite capable of bringing out the big hits (World T20 2007, anyone?). Umar and Sarfraz will be relied upon to provide a late flourish, while Haris and, obviously, Afridi will perform the roles of late-innings enforcers.
Bowling: In Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Irfan, Junaid Khan, Ehsan Adil, and Sohail Khan, Pakistan have a slew of pace bowlers to call upon. Yasir Shah will join Haris and Afridi in the spin department, leaving Pakistan a well-rounded side for the game’s big event Down Under. The one area Pakistan could lag behind is in the variety of their bowling; Wahab, Irfan, and Junaid — the likely first-choice fast bowlers — are all left-arm pacers, while Yasir, Afridi, and Haris all turn the ball away from the right-hander. With Hafeez banned from bowling, the one vital off-spinning option is not available anymore. Pakistan could find it tough to restrict the opposition with such a lack of variety.
Overall, despite their history of inconsistency, Pakistan have managed to pick a team that could potentially go the distance and give a good account of themselves in Australia and New Zealand. One must remember, the last time a World Cup was held Down Under, Imran Khan’s green brigade had emerged victorious. There is a case for history repeating itself.
Surprise picks: Sohail Khan.
Surprise omissions: Fawad Alam.
Pakistan squad for ICC World Cup 2015: Misbah-ul-Haq (c), Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Shahid Afridi, Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan, Haris Sohail, Umar Akmal, Mohammad Irfan, Junaid Khan, Ehsan Adil, Sohaib Maqsood, Yasir Shah, Sohail Khan, Wahab Riaz.
(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek and cricket fanatic. You can follow him on Twitter @ShiamakUnwalla)
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