One last chance for Pakistan team to redeem itself

Pakistan has one last chance to redeem itself after going down 0-2 in the series against South Africa in South Africa, a scenario a lot of teams have found themselves against the Protease while taking them on in their home conditions.

Despite having the likes of Saeed Ajmal and his lethal “Doosra” at his disposal, Pakistani captain Misbah-ul-Haq has so far struggled to deal a significant blow to the home side so far.

The touring side seems to have been lacking the confidence and energy that is essential to win any match around the globe. Instead, they have seemed a bit more defensive, looking to survive instead of taking the attack to the opposition.

Even though the attitude and negative body language of Pakistan cricket team is to blame for the results of the previous two matches, luck has not been on their side either.

In the first match, the decision to sit the tallest cricketer in history Muhammad Irfan out and play Rahat Ali in his stead did not prove to be the wisest of decisions. The conditions in Johannesburg were pace-friendly, which Junaid Khan managed to make the most of, though he got little to no help from the likes of fellow pacer Umar Gul and trickster Ajmal.

The second game found Khan missing, as he had sustained an injury prior to the match, which brought Tanvir Ahmed into the playing 11. The sight was indeed one to behold, as the replacement pacer bowled at an average pace of 122 Km/h.

Ajmal did a great job of keeping the South Africans at bay, but since he did not get any solid support, neither from the batsmen, nor the bowlers, except for Irfan during the first innings, the Protease walked away with a win.

The third test-match does not look too good for the Pakistani team either, as the home side has already gone past the 300 mark with still 4 wickets on hand. Khan is again missing from the playing 11, while Ajmal is struggling to make an impact.

If Pakistan manages to win the third and final test, they will surely head into the T20 and One-Day series a much more confident side.

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Posted by Muhammad Qasim Hassan on Feb 22 2013. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.