Billed as the battle between two of the most volatile sides in the international circuit, Pakistan and West Indies are gearing up for a fascinating series in the shortest format ahead of the ODIs and Tests. Despite being the current World T20 holders, Caribbean leg-spinner Samuel Badree has remained guarded against consistency.
Alluding to the presence of quite a few explosive players in the seventh-ranked Pakistani side, he felt, “On their day, they can demolish any opposition and we are wary of that challenge. We respect every opposition that we come up against and we are going to do the same against Pakistan. We are going to prepare well knowing that Pakistan are a very, very dangerous team.“
The 35-year old added, “Pakistan are very similar to us in terms of their consistency – or lack, thereof. One day they will give a brilliant performance, just like us. Then the next, they leave a lot to be desired.”
West Indies will be missing the services of Chris Gayle, Lendl Simmons and Andre Russell for various reasons. However, the influx of promising young talents may tilt the scales back in their favour.
Badree reckoned, “It's a different team from the team that won the World T20. We have a lot of new guys, a few players who are making their debuts on this tour. A number of our guys have been here before - the likes of (Sunil) Narine, (Dwayne) Bravo, (Kieron) Pollard. So, we are looking forward to some very good games of cricket. And, of course, we'd like to win the series and remain as one of the best T20 teams in the world.”
Also read: Pakistan retain under-fire Azhar Ali as ODI captain for West Indies series
On the other hand, the Pakistani camp will be banking heavily on fresh faces for revitalising their white-ball fortunes. Wicket-keeper batsman Sarfraz Ahmed leads the squad which also sees the explosive Umar Akmal returning to the scene.
Head coach Mickey Arthur believed, “The players we have brought in – Imad Wasim, Babar Azam, Sohail Khan, Hasan Ali, Mohammed Nawaz – they take the game on. They don't fear failure which is fantastic. They are the guys we want to build this one-day cricket brand around. We have to change this brand.”
The first couple of T20Is have been scheduled to be held at Dubai before the caravan shifts to the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
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