The road to the knockout stage for Sarfaraz Ahmed and his men is just an improbable mathematical calculation and that too provided Pakistan win the toss and bat first.
Pakistan beat England by 14 runs at Trent Bridge on Monday as the World Cup's first centuries from Joe Root and Jos Buttler were not enough to help the hosts and pre-tournament favourites overhaul the huge target of 349 set for them.
But Starc warned his bowling colleagues to not rely on the Gaddafi Stadium pitch to make their job any easier and rather rely on reverse swing, which they used expertly on Wednesday.
IMAGES from Day 3 of the 2nd Test between Pakistan and England in Multan on Sunday.
Mickey Arthur and Grant Bradburn, the foreign coaches attached with the Pakistan cricket team, are likely to continue in their respective roles
Wet outfield caused dashed prospects of victory by either side in Australia's first Test in Pakistan in 24 years.
Azhar Ali hit his fourth Test ton against Australia as Pakistan piled on 476-4 before declaring
Left-arm wrist-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi (716) is next in Rashid's sights, though Josh Hazlewood (792) boasts a strong margin at the top of the list.
On comparisons between Kohli and his younger Pakistani counterpart Babar Azam, another player destined to be a great for his country, Akram feels that Babar will eventually emulate the Indian captain in terms of achievements.
IMAGES from the Asia Cup Super 4s match played between Pakistan and Afghanistan in Sharjah on Wednesday.
Former leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed wished Khan "a long and healthy life".
No Indian featured in the top 10 of the bowlers and all-rounders' list.
Virat Kohli has 3794 runs in T20 Internationals, 927 of those have come in T20 World Cups, the third-highest by a batter in the competition.
Virat Kohli was magnificent at the death, finishing 82 not out after digging India out of trouble
England became the first Test team to complete a 3-0 whitewash in Pakistan after they won the third and final match by eight wickets in Karachi on Tuesday.
The onus will be on Pakistan's top batsmen to post competitive totals against England but batting coach Younis Khan said the team will need "a fighting tail" to win the series. Given the team is prone to inexplicable batting collapses, Pakistan roped in former captain Younis to help their batsmen for the three-Test series beginning in Manchester on Wednesday.
Kamran Akmal announced his retirement from all forms of cricket after being named on the national selection committee.
Opener Fakhar Zaman smashed his second century in as many matches as Pakistan beat a much-changed South Africa by 28 runs in the third and final One-Day International, in Pretoria on Wednesday, to clinch the series 2-1.
Matthew Hayden who is working with the Pakistan team as batting consultant, margin for error will be very little in the big match so leadership will be the key to the outcome of the match.
Pakistan looked in the hunt before being all out for 328 in the second session on day four of the contest.
Pakistan left out pace bowler Mohammad Amir from their 15-man Twenty20 international squad to face Australia.
India all-rounder Hardik Pandya was on Wednesday stretchered off the field during the Asia Cup group league encounter against Pakistan after sustaining a back injury.
Rohit & Co.'s Bharat Darshan: 9 league games, 9 cities, 8400 km
Mohammed Rizwan will fondly remember the local curator in his prayers for producing a batting beauty
South Africa will tour Pakistan next month for the first time in 13 years to play two Tests and three Twenty20 Internationals.
Shikhar Dhawan jumped two places to 16th after his unbeaten half-century in the first ODI against Lanka
The team is packed with India's Gen-Next IPL performers but stakeholders in Indian cricket will keenly observe Bumrah
The 10-team tournament will be played across 10 venues culminating in the November 19 final at the 132,000-capacity Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
India captain Virat Kohli and senior batsman Rohit Sharma retained their number one and two position respectively in the ICC rankings for ODI batsmen, while pacer Jasprit Bumrah remained at the third spot in the bowler's list.
Sri Lanka ended the day at the score of 64/3, still trailing the hosts by 127 runs.
Batting coach Younis Khan has urged fans to be patient with the new members, saying the youngsters needed at least two-three series to find their feet in international cricket.
Photos from Day 3 of the first Test played at The Gabba on Saturday
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances