WorldCup Match Reviews (Part 4)

PAKISTAN vs AUSTRALIA

The sparkling unbeaten streak of the Aussies at WorldCup was finally brought to an end by the team that last beat them at this grand stage, Pakistan. A superb all round display by the Greenshirts, barring a few blemishes, saw them down Australia in a colorful and nerve wrecking affair at the R Premadasa in Colombo. It was the first loss of Australia in 34 WorldCup games since they went down to the same opposition at Headingley, in the previous millennium. This victory means a lot to a capricious Pakistan side that has oscillating between both extremes in this WorldCup, being stupendously good on a day and miserable on another. This win will provide just the thrust and the momentum required by this Pakistan side going into the knockout stages, this victory will give them the believe that they have got what it takes to lift the glimmering, golden Cup...

Australia: 176/10 (46.4 overs) ---  Brad Haddin 42, Michael Clarke 34 --- Umar Gul 3-30
Pakistan: 178/6 (41 overs) --- Asad Shafiq 46, Umar Akmal 44* --- Brett Lee 4-28

Match Rating: **********

Shot of the Match: Umar Akmal lifting a Johnson ball over mid-on for a one bounce four. Umar Akmal was trying breaking the shackles down at Colombo and this stroke was just another step towards it. Johnson was finding his lost rhythm and constantly bowling a nagging off-stump line from around the wicket. Umar Akmal played and missed a few but then came the flamboyance, he shuffled outside off stump, took a step towards the ball and smacked it over the mid-on fielder almost for a six as if it was a leg-stump half volley. Johnson was left dumbfounded.

Delivery of the Match: Australia had found a little opening as Brett Lee had removed YK, effectively ending the 53 run stand for the third wicket that threatened to make a meal of the chase. But still a load of work had to be done as Pakistan's middle order rock, Misbah-ul-Haq, made his way out and took guard. Lee steamed in with new vigor and bowled a perfect delivery to the veteran. It landed on good length outside off-stump, reared up and kissed the Misbah's bat through to the wicket-keeper. Lee was pumped up and followed through with his signature hill-jump. The contest had suddenly becoming alive.

Catch of the Match: After all of what we have seen from Kamran Akmal, the granite-hand wicketkeeper, it was refreshingly good to see him pouch a difficult take to dismiss Ponting. Hafeez had bowled a regulation off-spinner close to Ponting, but with the dismal run of form he is in, he went on to cut it. Mistake! A sharp deviation flew off his bat's top edge and Kamran did well to cling on to it, thanks to the webbing.

Runout of the Match: The only runout in the game was the disastrous mixup between Clarke and White just as they looked to steady the ship. Clarke clipped a bowl off his pads straight to Misbah-ul-Haq at backward square-leg and called for a single that wasn't there. White responded to the call but it proved to be a mistake as Misbah threw a perfect through to Kamran behind the stump who disturbed the woodwork with White well short of the popping crease.

Innings of the Match: Umar Akmal, Brad Haddin, Younis Khan and Micheal Clarke all played short innings that proved very valuable in the end but Asad Shafiq's calm 46 from 81 balls steals the accolades here. His perfectly paced innings is the quintessence of how one should bat when you have the deliveries on your side. A dose of his Buddha-like patience at the crease was the ultimate prescription to soothe the frayed nerves in the Pakistani dressing room. In short his innings was the anchor of Pakistan's run-chase that effectively helped the brittle Pakistani batting order evade another implosion.
  
Bowling Spell of the Match: The three-pronged Aussie pace attack which many consider to be the best in the tournament was at its agonizing worst, save for one man, Brett Lee. His fiery, gallant effort of 4-28 from 8 testing overs all but took the match away from Pakistan. The only thing he required was a back-up effort from his fellow pacemen, which they failed to provide, otherwise it would have been a match-winning spell of ruthless, Aussie-minded fast bowling.

Partnership of the Match: The 5th wicket stand between Umar Akmal and Asad Shafiq can be labelled as a match-winning partnership for this particular encounter. The Aussies had their tails up after removing Misbah and Younis from consecutive deliveries and were looking to push the initiative even further. In this scenario Umar Akmal sent them back to their initial position with scintillating, disdainful hitting, meanwhile finding good support in Shafiq who looked to give the strike back to the aggressive Akmal every chance he got.

Disappointment of the Match: The biased commentary by the grumpy Ian Chappel. Here are some excerpts. 
Whining after Afridi castled Steve Smith "I don't like Afridi's celebration for a couple of reasons. First, he hasn't done much to get the wicket, the batsman has helped me. Second, I don't think it is good with his team-mates, he just stands there in the middle of the pitch with his arms raised."
Showing how much of a sore loser he is as the Pakistani team formed huddle after bowling out Australia for 176 "They should walk off and think about getting the target rather than congratulating themselves on a job half done. This is useless stuff."
Another reason to doubt his mental health and objective commentary as he could not stand the belligerent Umar Akmal tearing the Aussie bowling attack apart "I think the school in which Umar Akmal studied removed the page from the dictionary that had the word careful in it."
Now how many of you see this Aussie idiot fit for international events? 

Though after the Match: How could Afridi be such a shrewd tactician? 

The Match in Photos:
 

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World Cup Match Reviews (Part 3)

PAKISTAN vs. NEW ZEALAND

Pakistan's WorldCup campaign was shaken to the very foundation when they suffered a heavy 110 run defeat at the hands of the Kiwis at the newly built MMI Stadium. Sloppy fielding, shoddy wicketkeeping, abysmal death bowling and a listless batting performance were a few reasons for Pakistan's downfall as the heroes of yesterday became the zeros of today...


New Zealand: 302/7 (50 overs) --- Ross Taylor 131*, Martin Guptill 57 --- Umar Gul 3-32 
Pakistan: 192/10 (41.4 overs) ---  Abdul Razzaq 62, Umar Akmal 38 --- Tim Southee 3-25


Match Rating: ********** 

Shot of the Match: Taylor's down-on-one-knee six off Razzaq. It was a breath-taking sight; Taylor giving Razzaq a taste of his own medicine. Eerily comfortable with Razzaq's medium pace, Taylor moved around his crease and coerced Razzaq into shifting his line wider of off-stump and once he was sure that Razzaq has taken the bait he shuffled across his stumps, a little shy of the wide mark, got down on his knee and hoisted the full bowl from Razzaq high above the mid-wicket boundary.

Delivery of the Match: Pakistan had both their openers back in the hut now as Pakistan's go-to-man-number-two Younis Khan was taking his guard intently. In comes Kyle Mills - ball one swings away, defended, bowl two swings away, defended. Then comes the touch of genius as Mills lands his third bowl slightly fuller, the seam perfectly presented as Younis shapes up to defend this one again but wait...instead of moving away, this one comes in, creeps through the gap between the bat and pad and smacks into the base of the off-stump, sending it cart-wheeling.

Catch of the Match: Kamran Akmal had a horrendous match. He had dropped the centurion, Taylor, twice at 0 & 8, spilled a Styris nick and was generally very erratic behind the stumps. The only thing that could apparently save his axing was a solid innings with the bat but he came out with no such thing in his mind; playing rash shots and surviving run-out and catch scares before sending down a low catch to Taylor at first slip, hoping against hope that he will return his earlier favors, but not to be, as he took the catch cleanly just inches off the ground.

Innings of the Match: A pretty easy one as there are not many contenders after Ross Taylor's hurricane 131 off 124 balls. He had a real slow and shaky start but thanks to the ineptness of Kamran behind the stumps he was able to stay at the crease, meanwhile making the most of the opportunities Pakistan's abysmal death bowling bestowed on him. He smashed 7 sixes and 8 fours in a sparkling knock that turned the game on its head as New Zealand unbelievingly pilled up a mammoth score they never were to achieve with the start they got.

Bowling Spell of the Match: The only thing a Pakistani is left to remember from this game is a stupendous spell from Pakistan's pace spearhead, Umar Gul. He kept hitting hood lengths at pace and got some good movement from the new ball before coming back again during the later stages of the game and reversing the ball beautifully. His ten overs went for just 32 runs, add to it three important wickets and you are left with the only bowling effort of substance from the entire armada of Pakistani bowlers.

Partnership of the Match: Once again New Zealand take the honors here as the Ross Taylor-Jacob Oram partnership for the 7th comes out on top. The two effectively smacked Pakistan right out of the game as they milked 85 runs from the 3.4 overs they stayed together at the crease at a whopping 23.2 rpo, blitzing Pakistan's super poor death bowling frequently out of the Pakallele for the security guards to fetch. In short, this was the partnership that helped the Kiwis to a target they never looked like achieving during the first 45 overs of their innings. 

Disappointment of the Match: Pakistani bowlers' horrid bowling effort at the end of the Kiwi innings is a real concern for both the team and the fans. New Zealand made off with a hundred runs from the last five overs of their innings and  if the Pakistnai bowlers continue to offer juicy full tosses and dish up sweet half volleys to hard-hitters at the death then in ka khuda he hafiz.

Though after the Match: Why can't we find a replacement for the a**hole Kamran Akmal?

The Match in Photos:   
  

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WorldCup Match Reviews (Part 2)

PAKISTAN vs. SRI LANKA

The WorldCup had life breathed in it today; courtesy a scintillating and nerve-wrecking game between the two subcontinental cricket giants, Sri lanka and Pakistan. The game can deservingly be labeled as the 'match-of-the-tournament', at least so far as it had got everything that makes up a classic ODI encounter - speedy starts, interesting middle overs, moments of sheer brilliance and a close finish.


Pakistan: 277/7 (50 overs) ---  Misbah-ul-Haq 83*, Younis Khan 72 --- Rangna Herath 2-46
Sri Lanka: 266/9 (50 overs) --- Chamara Silva 57, Kumara Sangakara 49 --- Shahid Afridi 4-36


Match Rating: ********** 

Shot of the Match: Hafeez's down-on-one-knee six off Kulasekra. It was an exquisite, wristy shot as Hafeez trusted the strength of Kulasekra - inswingers, and played it superbly just in front of the square leg region and into the stands. It was high and handsome, literally.

Delivery of the Match: The match was delicately poised as the two star-performers for the Lankans, Sanga and Mahela, were trying to snatch the advantage. In comes Akhter, limping and sweating, after a short respite from his opening spell. No one gives a thought to him, after all, he is well past his prime. But what he came up with is an absolute beauty of an off-cutter to send Mahela packing. It wasn't at all slow as it snaked in through Mahela's defenses and pegged back the middle stump. Suddenly, the Rawalpindi Express of '99 steamed across the Premadasa.

Catch of the Match: There was a lot of great ground fielding on display today, coupled with a few botched up fielding attempts and catches but a spectacular catch was missing. However, comparatively speaking, Umar Akmal's pouching at long-on to dismiss Kulasekara was the most difficult catch of the match. He had to run backwards with the bowl and grab it past his head, meanwhile, evading the boundary skirting.

Runout of the Match: There was only a single runout in the game and it was utter comedy. Hafeez played a sweep shot straight to Herath at fine leg and had no idea that Kamran Akmal was charging in to his end for a single. He didn't move as Herath threw to Sanga and Sanga in turn threw a wayward throw over the head of the bowler, Murlitharan. Kamran was moving towards the pavilion as Hafeez had a wild idea that he could make it to the other end before the bails were dislodged there, but had to give up the hope as Jaywardene had the presence of mind to flick an easy throw at the bowler's end, effectively putting an end to the drama. 

Innings of the Match: Misbah-ul-Haq has come to this WorldCup with a purpose, knowing that this might be the only WorldCup he plays for his country an he gave a glimpse of his stacks of experience and sense of purpose in his tranquil-until-the-end innings of 83* from 91 deliveries as he, along with Younis Khan placed Pakistan's innings right on track. He milked singles and doubles until the very end when a barrage of boundaries saw Pakistan to a competitive total after a poor batting powerplay. It is a pity that a guy like him is yet to notch up an ODI hundred.
  
Bowling Spell of the Match: Once again Shahid Afridi steals the show with a masterful and doubtlessly match-winning spell of 4-36 from his quota of overs which choked the runs as well as gave crucial breakthroughs. His lengths and lines were superb throughout the spell as he stunned the packed house at the Premadasa and the Sri Lankan team on four crucial junctures in the game.

Partnership of the Match: Not many contenders here as the 108-run 4th wicket stand between Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq comes out as a winner. The old heads of the Pakistani camp came together to steer Pakistan's swaying ship out of troubled waters with innovation, deftness and audacity. The two saw Pakistan through the crucial middle overs with no further damage, meanwhile, keeping the scoreboard ticking with the minimum of risk at just under a run-a-ball.

Disappointment of the Match: The abysmal fielding performance put up by Pakistan near the end. Despite being above average in most of the match, Pakistan fieldsmen dropped their nerve as the game bacame a bit tense. Kamran Akmal gave Kumara Sangakara two lives in the shape of missed stumpings, Abdur Rehman dropped a sitter of a catch which shook Chamara Silva out of his slumber as he threatened to take the game away from the Green Shirts, Ahmad Shahzad made a mess of a relay throw to Umar Akmal and not to mention the many missed runout chances. Pakistan really has to up their fielding standards for crunch games as sometimes a messed-up catch is all that draws the margin between victory and defeat. 

Though after the Match: What good is the UDRS without a Snicko and a Hot-Spot camera? 

The Match in Photos: 

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WorldCup Match Reviews

PAKISTAN vs KENYA

The beautiful Mahinda Rajpaksa stadium was the starting point of Pakistan's 2011 WC journey with a match against the lowly Kenya and barring a few hiccups early-on it came out as a one-sided affair.

Pakistan: 317/7 (50 overs) --- Umar Akmal 71, Misbah-ul-Haq 65 --- TM Odoyo 3-41
Kenya: 112/10 (33.1 overs) --- CO Obuya 47, SR Waters 17 --- Shahid Afridi 5-16


Match Rating: ********** 

Shot of the Match: Misbah-ul-Haq's towering, straight six off Tikolo to open up his account. It really was something special because the boundaries at the MRICS are fairly big, with the distance down to the straight boundary a shade above 90 meters.

Catch of the Match: Without doubt, Seren Waters' blinder at midwicket. Hafeez was trying to break the shackles after a sluggish start and in doing so clipped a freebie off his pads to the leg-side only slightly aerially but it was enough for the electric Waters to get a hand on as he dived to his left. He juggled the take when he made contact with the ground but in the end was successful in clinging on to it.

Runout of the Match: Umar Akmal's effort to send Waters packing just as he was beginning to settle. It was all about anticipation as Waters had stolen a slightly similar single the previous over but this time around as he dabbed to the short mid-on region, the speedy Umar was up to the challenge and flashed across to grab the ball and hit the stumps with a neat under-arm as Waters struggled yards from the popping crease.

Innings of the Match: Umar Akmal's blistering 71-off-52 as he took the Kenyan bowlers to the cleaners, especially in the Powerplay overs as, largely through his contributions, Pakistan plundered 70 runs from it. Negating the difficulties he faced early on in finding the boundaries, he looked much like the Umar Akmal we know, flamboyant, graceful and innovative.

Bowling Spell of the Match: Not many contenders here as Shahid Afridi steals the accolades with his masterful spell of 5-16 from 8 overs which cut through the Kenyan resistance like warm knife through butter. A bamboozling array of quicker ones, googlies and sliders proved too much for the fragile Kenyan batting lineup to take. These were also the best bowling figures for a captain in WorldCup matches.

Partnership of the Match: The 118-run stand between Misbah and Umar was by far the biggest spike on the partnerships' graph for the game. Add to it the fact that it came at a more-then-healthy 8.96 rpo and you don't need to look any further for partnership of the match. It really was the propulsion that Pakistan required to get past 300 after the stuttering start to their innings. This partnership was also the biggest 5th-wicket stand for Pakistan at WorldCups.

Disappointment of the Match: The sheer amount of extras; 46 of them with a record number of wides (36). I think the Kenyan bowlers really have to really work on their discipline; there were a lot of instances when the bowler sprayed down the legside for 5-wides, even the only hattrick bowl of the match!

Though after the Match: Why the hell did Afghanistan didn't qualify if the likes of Kenya did?

The Match in Photos:




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WorldCup Match Reviews will only cover matches involving Pakistan apart from the Quarters, Semis and the Finale. 
Images (c) GettyImages and AFP. 

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