Former champions Pakistan take on holders West Indies in the last league game of the ICC World Twenty20 today. Winner will play Sri Lanka in the first semi-final on Thursday. Follow live updates of the match from Mirpur.
Pakistan take on West Indies in Group 2 tie of the ICC World Twenty20 at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur. Follow live updates of the match here: (Live Scorecard | Text Commentary )
It will be a battle between two world-class off-spinners as defending champions West Indies meet Pakistan in a 'Do-or-Die' final group league encounter of the ICC World Twenty20 today.
Both teams are on four points each and it will be a virtual quarter-final clash to decide on the second semi-finalist from Group 2 after India emerged group champions with an all-win record.
The match is being billed as a battle between the mystery spinners with West Indies banking heavily on Sunil Narine while Pakistan's hopes will be pinned on Saeed Ajmal.
"The team that plays spinners well will win the match. We know that it is a match where we can't make a mistake," Pakistan captain Mohammed Hafeez said on the eve of their clash against Darren Sammy's West Indies. (Read more )
The presence of former Pakistan spinner, Saqlain Mushtaq in the West Indies camp has made the Pakistan management and players uneasy ahead of a clash between the two teams in the ICC World T20 which is expected to decide the semifinals line up.
Saqlain, 37, who took 208 Test and 288 one-day wickets for Pakistan has been working with the West Indies board as spin consultant and is with the West Indies team in Bangladesh. His role has so far got praise from West Indian spinners, Samuel Badree and Sunil Narine.
"To be honest, Saqi has been a wonderfully calming influence on the team. He is one who does not get worked up or anxious over any situation. He does not panic at all and has a calming influence on us," Badree said ahead of the match against Australia that his team won on Friday.
Sources in the Pakistan team said that having played with Saqlain for a long time, head coach, Moin Khan was aware the influence the former off-spinner could have on the coming match.
"Moin has been advising his players to pay a lot of respect to the West Indian spinners because of Saqlain's presence and has pointed out that with conditions helping slow bowlers in Bangladesh they must be well prepared for the coming match," one source told PTI. (Read more )
Saqlain Mushtaq, the pioneer of the 'doosra', is immensely proud that the delivery will always be associated with his name and also want people to stop questioning its legality as ICC never had any problems with it.
"I always feel proud when somebody bowls a doosra or a carrom ball. If any new variation is coming into world of cricket, I feel good about it. This is ICC's duty to look (into the legality) and if they are saying everything is good, then we should appreciate that," Saqlain, now working as spin consultant with the West Indies team told during a media interaction here on Monday. (Read more )
Teams
West Indies: Darren Sammy (captain), Chris Gayle, Dwayne Smith, Lendl Simons, Marlon Samuels, Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine, Samuel Badree, Krishmar Santokie, Sheldon Cotterell, Andre Fletcher, Andre Russell, Denesh Ramdin, Johnson Charles, Ravi Rampaul
Pakistan: Mohammed Hafeez (captain), Kamran Akmal, Umar Akmal, Ahmed Shehzad, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal, Zulfiqar Babar, Bilawal Bhatti, Sharjeel Khan, Sohaib Maqsood, Junaid Khan, Sohail Tanveer, Mohammed Talha, Umar Gul.
Story first published on: Tuesday, 01 April 2014 16:19
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