Pakistan U19 are all geared up to take on India in their final Super Six fixture of the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup. Pakistan will face arch-rivals India at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Sunday, 1 February with the first ball scheduled to be bowled at 9.30am local time.
The last time two sides met was during the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup final, where Pakistan defeated India by 191 runs to clinch the title at the ICC Academy Ground in Dubai. Sameer Minhas scored 172 runs while right-arm fast Ali Raza bagged four wickets.
Pakistan, who currently have four points and are placed third in Group 2 of the Super Six stage, need to defeat India by a healthy margin to secure a spot in the semi-finals. England sit at the top of the table with six points and are currently playing New Zealand at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.
After arriving in Bulawayo from Harare on Wednesday afternoon, Pakistan took a day off before participating in a scenario-based practice game at the Bulawayo Athletic Club on Friday. The players were assigned specific targets by the coaching staff led by head coach Shahid Anwar.
Pakistan will also take part in a training session at the same venue on Saturday.
Usman Khan, who has scored 122 runs from four matches in the ongoing mega event, which included a half-century while talking to PCB Digital said:
“Our preparations have been very good. The scenario-based match was of high quality and it closely reflected actual match conditions.
“In scenario-based matches, batters are given specific targets to score as many runs as possible, while similar objectives are set for everyone, which helps us prepare better. Our fielding unit has also been very impressive.
“Before the tournament, we held several camps in Multan where a strong focus was placed on fielding. We had productive sessions there and as a result the team has improved a lot in this department.
“Our next match is against India, which is very important as there is a semi-final at stake. We have clear plans for every match and we put in a lot of hard work accordingly. We will try to perform well in the next game to qualify for the next stage.”
Updated squad:
Farhan Yousaf (captain), Usman Khan (vice-captain), Abdul Subhan, Ahmed Hussain, Ali Hasan Baloch, Ali Raza, Daniyal Ali Khan, Hamza Zahoor (wk), Huzaifa Ahsan, Momin Qamar, Mohammad Sayyam, Niqab Shafiq, Sameer Minhas and Umar Zaib
Support staff:
Sarfaraz Ahmed (manager/mentor), Shahid Anwar (head coach/batting coach), Rao Iftikhar (bowling coach), Mansoor Amjad (fielding coach), Abrar Ahmed (trainer), Syed Nazir Ahmed (media manager), Dr Ali Aun (doctor), Ubaidullah (physio), Ali Hamza (analyst)
ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup Pakistan fixtures:
16 January – England beat Pakistan by 37 runs at Takashinga Sports Club, Harare
19 January – Pakistan beat Scotland by six wickets at Takashinga Sports Club, Harare
22 January –Pakistan beat Zimbabwe by eight wickets at Takashinga Sports Club, Harare
27 January – Super Six match 1 Pakistan beat New Zealand by eight wickets at Harare Sports Club, Harare
1 February – Super Six match 2 (Pakistan v India) at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
3 February – First semi-final, Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
4 February – Second semi-final, Harare Sports Club, Harare
6 February – Final, Harare Sports Club, Harare
