 New Zealand will take on Pakistan in the 24th game of the Cricket World Cup 2011 at Kandy. The group is rather interestingly poised with Pakistan
having played three matches and won all three of them while New Zealand having
registered wins in two out of the three games.
New Zealand have had an up and down performance. For starters, they won their
first game against Kenya by ten wickets. This was followed by a loss to Australia
equally convincingly. Then, the Kiwis bounced back with another 10-wicket win
over Zimbabwe. This shows that the side is struggling to come good against the
top nations but are crushing the minnows and the other lower ranked sides with
ease.
Click for Live Score Card of New Zealand Vs Pakistan
On the other hand, Pakistan will be over the moon. They have also played two
of their games against Kenya and Canada, but their win against Sri Lanka only
means that if they beat Zimbabwe, they will definitely be through to the next
to the next round. If they win this game against New Zealand, it will translate
into the side having a good chance of topping the group or coming in the top
two anyway and avoiding the chances of playing India in the quarter-final in
Ahmedabad.
However, if Pakistan does lose this game and the one to Australia and wins
against Zimbabwe, then it will be a dicey move for them. That is because with
four wins from their six games, there is a good chance that they may end third
- and then if the Indians end up being second, the two will play at Ahmedabad
- a daunting prospect anyway.
So, Pakistan will want to desperately win this game. They know that they had
beaten New Zealand in the previous series as well, going on to win the series
3-2 but it is a known fact that the series was played in New Zealand.
The pitches in New Zealand will be far different from those in Kandy, and that
will mean that the Pakistani spinners will have an advantage over their opposition.
There is also team news from the Pakistani perspective. In the last game Saeed Ajmal had replaced Abdur Rehman but what happens if Rehman gets fit.
Will he take the place of the bowler whose place he had himself taken in the
squad?
New Zealand will look to go into the game with a changed tactic. They may bombard
the Pakistanis with quicker bowlers who will look to get some bounce off the
track and if the pitch has anything in it, things could get interesting.
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