Pakistan and England came to the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 with contrasting results in the past few months. While England had built up an impressive head of steam with their positive approach since the 2015 World Cup, Pakistan were, well, Pakistan. They were unpredictable as they battled to cling on to a top-eight spot in the ICC rankings as played some shambolic cricket aside from firing their captain a few months before the tournament.
Sarfraz Ahmed brought with him a renewed energy and vigour in the Pakistan camp. They had the right personnel by the time the tournament took off yet came up second best against arch-rivals, India, in their first game of the tournament. More than the fact that they lost, it was the manner in which they lost that hurt fans. The fielding was terrible to watch and the batting came a cropper against a quality attack. They were expected to be routed by the Proteas and dumped out of the tournament in the next game.
But Pakistan being Pakistan, came up with a refreshing performance in the next game that saw them put Proteas on the brink of elimination. Then came the must win virtual quarter-final against Sri Lanka and they were back to their unpredictable best. Losing their way in a fairly easy chase, Pakistan were uplifted by their skipper and some sloppy fielding and catching from the Lankans. The result? Pakistan were through to the semi-finals.
England, on the other hand, present an altogether different challenge to the Pakistanis. They are among the favourites of the tournament and boast of a batting line up as long as the Great Wall of China. They have all-rounders in aplenty and two superstars in Joe Root and Ben Stokes. Their bowling, despite the loss of Chris Woakes, is steady and penetrative and their spinner (Adil Rashid) is among the top wicket-takers in the past year.
If Pakistan need to beat England they will undoubtedly need to be on top of their game. Here are a few tips they could use in the semi-final clash tomorrow.
#5 Starting well with the new ball
Pakistan will need to bring Joe Root to the crease as soon as possible in the semi-final clash. If the new ball is still shining and moving around, Mohammad Amir and Junaid Khan can have a go at the star English batsman. Amir is slowly and steadily climbing back to his best as he proved in the game against Sri Lanka.
Junaid Khan, meanwhile, has replaced Wahab Riaz in the XI and put in some good performances in the two games he has played. If these two can strangle Roy and Hales and build pressure, something is bound to give way, especially with the former's pathetic form. Once they have Root in the middle, it is imperative that they bowl tight lines to him and give as little room as possible to free his arms.
If they can start well with the new ball, the pressure will be on England in front of their home crowd.
#4 Spinners to strangle the run flow
What Mohammad Hafeez and Imad Wasim did to perfection against South Africa was bowling tight stump to stump lines and restricting the flow of runs. Eventually, the pressure built and Hashim Amla wicket was the result. Wasim then went on to dismiss De Villiers first ball and the game had turned on its head.
The duo will need to do something similar against England. If they can put a lid on the scoring rate, England will be under pressure. They aren't the best players of spin and Wasim and Hafeez have the skills to contain the run rate. Their strangling will be crucial to Pakistan's chances in the semi-final.
#3 Starting confidently with the bat
Pakistan is a team that relies on confidence. If they are in the right zone, everything clicks for them and if they aren't, things take a wrong turn. Against a strong team like England, Pakistan will need their openers to get them off to a good start. A good one isn't necessarily a flying start, but the intent matters.
Thankfully, Fakhar Zaman is partnering Azhar Ali at the top. The southpaw is an aggressive opener and is good nick after smashing a 36 ball half-century against Sri Lanka. With Azhar Ali having a tendency to get bogged down at the crease, someone like Zaman offers an attacking option upfront. If Zaman and Ali can disrupt the rhythm of the England seamers early, Pakistan will have an upper hand.
#2 Silencing Ben Stokes
Ben Stokes has time and again showed how important he is to the England line-up. The all-rounder is already being touted as one of the greats of England cricket, and his incredible talent is translating into mesmeric performances for the team. His superb century against the Aussies after walking in with his team 3 down for 35 highlighted the kind of player he can be for England.
Stokes hasn't yet been needed in full throttle with the ball given that the pace triumvirate of Mark Wood, Liam Plunkett and Jake Ball have been doing an exceptional job but Stokes can match any one of them with his bowling skills too. One way to get him derailed will be to go after him when he is bowling.
As a batsman, he loves to take on the spinners. And Pakistan could try giving him spin early in the innings to try and bait him into an unnecessary risky shot.
#1 Fielding and catching
The importance of the most ignored aspect of cricket cannot be stressed enough, especially in a semi-final. While Pakistan were shambolic in the field against the Indians, they came back strong against the Proteas with a superb display in the field. If they are to win the semis, something similar has to happen against England.
With the kind of line-up England possesses, Pakistan cannot afford even a single dropped chance. Cutting down on the twos and threes and showing intent in the field will be instrumental to their success in the semi-final clash. They can do all the right things, bowl and bat better than England, but still, lose it in the field. If Pakistan can avoid that, they might just dump the hosts out of the tournament.
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