Yet another series that almost did not happen for Pakistan
now seems to be interestingly poised at. Despite the indifferent ODI
form of the world Champions Australia, they were expected to comfortably
beat Pakistan, a side that's woefully short on international match practice.
But the underdogs led by the mercurial Shahid Afridi upset the Aussies
in game one only to lose the next two to now trail the 5-match ODI series 1-2.
The loss in the 3rd ODI would especially rankle Pakistan as they fumbled to
lose a chase that at one stage seemed would be a very comfortable one. [They
lost 10 wickets for 76 runs]
The pitch at the stadium in Abu Dhabi is expected to
remain similar to what we've witnessed in the past three matches; its likely
to be slow and on the lower side. The Australians though not used to such conditions
seem to be enjoying the experience with Brad Haddin going on record to say how
such conditions are actually enjoyed by him personally and that the beauty of
international cricket lies in the fact that one gets to play under various conditions.
On the team front, despite all the controversies surrounding
him, Shoaib Akhtar might make the cut for the fourth ODI. It's a 'must-win'
situation for Pakistan and they are likely to trust their 'spearhead' to come
good. Brett Lee too has joined his national side after spending much
of the past week in South Africa with his IPL team, but then he's unlikely to
play any part in this ongoing series. Shahid Afridi's form with the ball means
the Australian batsman will have to find a way soon to combat the spin bowling
prowess of their opposition team which have the likes of Shoaib Malik and Saeed
Ajmal as well to fall back on. For the champions, their batting form will have
to improve if they have to post big totals and much of the responsibility for
that will depend on skipper Micheal Clarke who's only improved as the series
has progressed.
Unfortunately, the spirit in which the game is played will
also come into question with reports flying that Saeed Ajmal had accused allrounder
Shane Watson of playing a role in reporting his action to the umpires. Skipper
Younis Khan too joined the chorus thereafter by stating that it indeed
was a matter of concern as to why does the Australian team always run into controversies
whenever it plays India or Pakistan. Nonetheless, one hopes that there
will more and better action on the field rather than off it.
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