PAK vs USA: Co – Hosts United States of America are set to take on Babar Azam – led Pakistan in the group A match of the 2024 T20 World Cup. This will be the 11th match of the tournament and it will take place on 6th June at the Grand Prairie Stadium of Texas. The game will commence at 9:00 pm IST.
The United States of America began their 2024 T20 World Cup campaign on a winning note as they defeated arch rivals Canada in a dominating fashion in the very first game of the tournament by seven wickets with 2.2 overs to spare. The duo of Aaron Jones (94 runs in 40 balls) and Andries Gous (65 runs in 46 balls) helped the home team chase down the target of 195 runs easily.
The win in the opening game against Canada has boosted the confidence of the Americans and a victory against the Babar Azam – led team in the upcoming game will boost USA’s confidence even more.
Pakistan on the other hand will be kicking off their T20 World Cup campaign in the upcoming game against the Mohank Patel – led team. The Shaheens are entering the tournament on the back of a disappointing 2-0 series defeat against England and Babar Azam and company would be looking to start their T20 World Cup campaign on a positive note with a win against the Americans.
The 2022 T20 World Cup runners up haven’t found a permanent opening combo yet and it remains to be seen who comes out to open the innings alongside Mohammad Rizwan against the Americans. If Saim Ayub opens the innings then captain Babar will bat at number three or if we get to witness the regular Babar Rizwan opening combo then Fakhar Zaman is likely to bat at number three.
Ahead of the USA Pakistan group stage match, let’s take a look at players that are worth watching out for.
USA vs PAK: Players To Watch Out For
1 . Aaron Jones
Aaron Jones is a strong middle order batsman who hails from Barbados. He started his initial Cricket career in the West Indies at different levels. Aaron is known for his ability to smack spinners out of the park, evident in the recently concluded T20 International series against Bangladesh and in the World Cup group stage match against Canada as well.
Against Canada, Jones played an unbelievable unbeaten knock of 94 runs in just 40 deliveries which saw him smash 10 maximums and four fours. He completely took the world of Cricket by storm as him alongside Andries Gous helped USA execute a perfect win against their North American rivals.
Jones will now be up against one of the best bowling attacks of this world cup i.e Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Amir and Naseem Shah. These three speedsters will definitely test Aaron Jones and it remains to be seen how well the 29 year old performs against the Green Shirts.
- Andries Gous
Andries Gous is a South African born American wicket keeper batsman who played the perfect second fiddle to fellow batting partner Aaron Jones during USA’s seven wicket win against Canada in the opening encounter of the 2024 T20 World Cup at New York’s Nassau County International Cricket Stadium.
Gous came out to bat at number three and played a phenomenal knock of 65 runs in 46 balls with the help of three huge sixes and seven fours.
Gous had come out to bat at a precious moment of the game as opener Steven Taylor got out for a duck in the very first over. But, the 30 year old steadied the chase before smacking the Canadian bowlers to all parts of the ground. By the time Nikhil Dutta sent Gous back to the pavilion in the 16th over, USA had managed to get the chase in their bag. Andries rounded off his 65 runs knock with a strike rate of 141.
Gous will have an important role to play with the bat against Pakistan if USA want to get the better of them.
3. Babar Azam
Pakistani skipper Babar Azam has faced a lot of criticism in recent times due to his low strike rate in T20 Internationals. But, despite all the criticism in regards to his strike rate, Babar will still be one of the most important batters for the Green Shirts. With his ability to anchor the innings, Babar can save his team from suffering a batting collapse on the slower surfaces of the United States of America and the West Indies, like we have witnessed in the 2024 T20 World Cup so far. The 29 year old has played 119 games in the shortest format of the and has gone on to score 4,023 runs at a strike rate of 130.15 and an average of 41.05.
4. Shaheen Shah Afridi
Left arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi is regarded as Pakistan’s best fast bowler by Cricketing experts. His ability to bowl deadly in – swingers with the new ball has troubled the world’s best batters in modern day Cricket and he has been in really good form with the ball in recent times. Shaheen is someone who can pick up a couple of wickets in almost every match and he has even improved his batting as well. In the backend of the innings, Shaheen is seen hitting huge sixes which provides the Babar Azam – led team an additional bonus. Shaheen’s form with both the bat and ball will be key in Pakistan’s hopes of lifting their second T20 World Cup Trophy.
check: Pakistan vs United States T20 World Cup 2024
For Latest Updates Visit Our Site ICC, Visit ICC Official-Site for More Updates
