Pakistan 2019 Cricket World Cup squad: Key players, fixtures, prediction, odds and more

Pakistan may have been quietly confident of cracking English conditions after holding Joe Root’s Test team to a 1-1 series draw last year, but a recent 4-0 ODI defeat on the back of series defeats against Australia (5-0) and South Africa (3-2) has surely dented any lingering optimism.

The resounding defeat against England prompted Pakistan to shuffle their pack and bring batsman Asif Ali into the fray, along with Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz to bolster their lacklustre bowling attack.

Asif Ali played in all five of Pakistan’s one-day matches against England, scoring a career-best 52 at The Rose Bowl, then returned to Pakistan following the tragic news that his daughter had died from cancer. He will return to England and reconvene with his teammates following his daughter’s funeral later in May.

Pakistan’s rivalry with India is one of the sport’s most intense with matches often played in the shadow of diplomatic rows. The Indian cricket team has been urged to boycott their 16 June match against Pakistan in protest at a Kashmir attack where more than 40 paramilitaries died.

An Indian boycott would see Virat Kohli’s side forfeit the points to Pakistan.

Fixtures

• Vs West Indies, Friday 31 May, Trent Bridge, Nottingham

• Vs England, Monday 3 June, Trent Bridge, Nottingham

• Vs Sri Lanka, Friday 7 June, Bristol County Ground, Bristol

• Vs Australia, Wednesday 12 June, County Ground Taunton, Taunton

• Vs India, Sunday 16 June, Old Trafford, Manchester

• Vs South Africa, Sunday 23 June, Lord’s, London

• Vs Afghanistan, Saturday 29 June, Headingley, Leeds

• Vs Bangladesh, Friday 5 July, Lord’s London

Squad

Sarfaraz Ahmed (capt & wk), Asif Ali, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Shoaib Malik, Wahab Riaz.

Key Players

Babar Azam was Pakistan’s brightest spark in the recent series against England and averaged 55.

The 24-year-old showed impressive pragmatism and discipline while constructing steady tallies in the face of England’s form bowlers.

Captain

Sarfarza Ahmed wasted little time in stirring the already-strained relationships with India when he called on his side to play every game as if they were playing India.

Ahmed will be in a less jovial mood should Pakistan suffer a poor run of results on the way to crashing out of the tournament to end a spell of sub-par ODI performances.

Series defeats against England (4-0), Australia (5-0) and South Africa (3-2) this year may result in a change of leadership should things collapse.

One to watch

Imad Wasim has steadily been climbing the all-rounder rankings and has the quality to deliver a match-winning innings.

The left-arm spinner is a very capable middle-order batter and can single-handedly win a game with either ball or bat.

Odds to win

14/1

Prediction

A strong Pakistan performance in the round-robin may put them in the mix towards the end of the tournament, but they will have to address their form against the top nations, otherwise, there is potential for this to be a forgettable campaign.