The Asian World Cup winners face off in the City of Pearls

Match 8: Pakistan vs Sri Lanka at Hyderabad - Preview

October 10, 2023: After spending two weeks in the most hospitable venue of Hyderabad, Pakistan would like to bid adieu to this venue in style. The Lankans, coming from a hard-fought defeat against South Africa, are looking for motivation to fare well in the tournament.

In many ways, the bowling attack of Pakistan looks like that of South Africa, however, the experience of playing in Asian countries might bring in variety in lines and lengths from the Pakistani Bowlers. Sri Lanka, however, needs stable top-order partnerships to nullify any effect of the Pakistani pace battery.

Pakistan's batting, on the other hand, has vacillated between the most assured and the most fragile batting lineups. The heroics by the tail saved blushes for them against the Netherlands, but Sri Lanka is not the Netherlands in terms of international exposure, especially in India. 

Pakistan are depending heavily on Shaheen Afridi to pick wickets at the top, and then with the other bowlers, expecting miracles to happen. It is a test of Babar Azam's captaincy prowess. The key question is if the Lankans launch an onslaught similar to their innings against South Africa, how would he marshal his resources?

Head-to-head at World Cups indicate a clear upper hand for Pakistan. Sri Lanka has never defeated Pakistan in a World Cup.

This game is not going to be a test of skill, it is going to be a test of mental strength and discipline. Sri Lanka looks heavily reliant on the skipper and looks for the two talismanic bowlers to do wonders. It is cruel to expect Wellalage and Pathirana to turn up and give match-winning performances every time they take the field.

Sri Lanka should brush off their bowling performance against South Africa and stick to what they do best – Bowl variety. They have had a good batting outing even though they lost the game, and if Pereira, Dhanunjaya, and Sadeera can take off, they can create trouble for Pakistan.

These are early days in the tournament for both sides, it is important to keep winning and keeping the net run rate up, as the games against better-ranked nations might turn out to be tough encounters.

Pure Cricket take – Win the toss, Bowl first. Scoring under lights is much easier at Uppal.

- Sairam, Team Pure Cricket

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Pics: Internet