Last Updated on 7 years by Charbel Coorey
Preview: 2nd ODI – Pakistan v Sri Lanka, Abu Dhabi
Pakistan are flying. Seven ODI wins out of their last eight has the hosts in a really good place – a place that hasn’t been associated with Pakistan for a long time in ODI cricket.
Pakistan were said to be stuck in 80s. Not able to come to terms with how ODI cricket has changed. But, Pakistan have done the most Pakistan thing ever and did what no one thought possible – win a Champions Trophy Title and turn their ODI form around completely.
Sarfraz Ahmed has this team playing well. He’s had his critics, but surely what he’s doing for this ODI side deserves praise. Attacking by nature, he has instilled a positive attitude into this Pakistan unit.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have lost all of their last eight ODIs. Only the West Indies (18%) have a worse win rate than Sri Lanka’s 19% in 2017, and the Lions face a big ask in turning their fortunes around in Abu Dhabi.
To make matters worse, there are rumours that Dinesh Chandimal is suffering from a knee injury. Who will step up for the Sri Lankans?
Key to a Pakistan win:
Key to a Sri Lanka win:
Who has to step up?
Pakistan: 1. Ahmed Shahzad 2. Fakhar Zaman 3. Babar Azam, 4. Shoaib Malik, 5. Mohammad Hafeex, 6. Sarfraz Ahmed (c & wk), 7. Imad Wasim, 8. Rumman Raees, 9. Shadab Khan, 10. Hasan Ali, 11. Junaid Khan
Sri Lanka: 1. Niroshan Dickwella (wk) 2. Upul Tharanga (c) 3. Kusal Mendis 4. Lahiru Thirimanne, 5. Dinesh Chandimal 6. Milinda Siriwardana 7. Thisara Perera 8. Suranga Lakmal 9. Akila Dananjaya 10. Jeffrey Vandersay 11. Lahiru Gamage
Stats & Facts:
- Since 2015, Shoaib Malik has scored 1,356 ODI runs at an average of 54.24.
- Babar Azam averages 55.64 in ODIs and just 23.75 in Tests.
- Hasan Ali is just 5 wickets away from reaching 50 ODI wickets. He averages 18.97 with the ball in 2017, with 34 wickets.
- Sri Lanka have lost eight ODIs in a row, and have only won one match in 2017 against a team other than Bangladesh or Zimbabwe (India in Champions Trophy).
- Sri Lanka have won just 1 of 12 when batting first. SL average 47.31 with the ball, which is the worst by any team in a calendar year in ODI history (min. 20 ODIs).
