T20 World Cup: Teams will be scared of Pakistan's hostile bowlers on Australia's fast pitches

With their lethal combination of pace and swing, Pakistan's four fast bowlers could breathe fire on the fast and bouncy wickets in Australia

by

Rituraj Borkakoty

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Pakistan's Haris Rauf was sensational in the fourth T20 against England on Sunday. (AFP)
Pakistan's Haris Rauf was sensational in the fourth T20 against England on Sunday. (AFP)

Published: Tue 27 Sep 2022, 11:51 AM

Last updated: Tue 27 Sep 2022, 1:01 PM

With devastating pace in death overs, Pakistan’s array of intimidating fast bowlers can destroy any team in the T20 World Cup next month in Australia.

Haris Rauf proved it in the fourth T20 International against England in Karachi on Sunday.


With England needing just nine runs in two overs after a brilliant 32-run partnership for the eighth wicket between Liam Dawson (34 off 17 balls) and Adil Rasid (3) put the visitors on the brink of victory, Rauf (3/32) turned the match on its head with back-to-back wickets in the penultimate over.

Haris bounced out the dangerous Dawson before cleaning up Olly Stone for a golden duck with searing pace.


Number 11 Reece Topley survived the hat trick ball which clocked 96 miles per hour, but England didn’t survive that pace onslaught as Pakistan won by three runs defending 167.

Haris is not the only express pace bowler in the Pakistan line-up. They also have Naseem Shah and Mohammad Hasnain – both can regularly break the 90 miles barrier with the former mixing it with prodigious swing.

And when a fully-fit Shaheen Shah Afridi returns for the World Cup opener against India on October 23, Pakistan will have the most intimidating line-up of fast bowlers, a line-up that features four fast bowlers who can bowl at 90 miles per hour consistently.

With their lethal combination of pace and swing, the Pakistani fast bowlers could breathe fire on the fast and bouncy wickets in Australia.

Also, it raises an interesting question. When did the cricket world see a bowling attack featuring four pacers that can regularly hit 90 mph in the speedometer in the past?

Perhaps, only the legendary battery of West Indian fast bowlers did that in the 1970s and 1980s with unmatched success.

We are not comparing the current crop of young Pakistani fast bowlers to the iconic West Indians like Malcolm Marshal, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding and Joel Garner, but there is no doubt about the rare talent Babar Azam’s four pacers possess to bowl quick with a lot of skills.

No wonder then that Shaun Tait, the former Australian tearaway fast bowler who is now the bowling coach of Pakistan, recently revealed that he gets goosebumps watching the team’s exciting young fast bowlers in action.

“I do see myself in our bowlers, and I am sure plenty of other ex-bowlers will say the same thing you know,” Tait recently said in a video released by the Asia Cup organisers.

So buckle up and brace for a fast and furious show from Pakistan in Australia.


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