Ireland v Pakistan
June 16th, Lauderhill, Florida, 10:30am local time
The big picture: The end of two disappointing campaigns
There are parties you don’t want to go to, or parties the host doesn’t want you to come to, and then there are parties no one wants to go to.
Pakistan and Ireland are bottom of the table in extremely wet conditions in Lauderhill, Florida. Both teams are out of the T20 World Cup, and will be so no matter what happens in their final group game on Sunday. But the match must be played weather permitting, so both teams will now prepare for one more game that will have no impact on the tournament and likely little impact on qualification for the next edition in 2026.
For Pakistan, it’s just one day before their players return to the US to face the public anger that has erupted just days after losses to the US and India. Pakistan Central Committee chairman Mohsin Naqvi is in an unassailable position and is expected to make reforms in the coming weeks, with Pakistan’s central contract also due for review later this month. Babar Azam’s team can do little to change the domestic mood but another loss would not help them.
Ireland, too, have had a disappointing tournament, especially as they had looked promising. They beat Pakistan at home and then won a T20 Tri-Nations series in the Netherlands, but a loss to India on a dreadful pitch in New York set the tone for a somber campaign, while a defeat to Canada was the low point. They were in theory within reach of qualification before the match against the hosts was cancelled due to weather in Lauderhill, but now all that remains is the hope of ending the party in the US on a high.
Pakistan: WLLLL (last 5 completed matches, most recent first)
Ireland: LLWWW
This is almost certainly Imad Wasim’s His final international match. His controversial return to the team failed to deliver the star quality Pakistan had hoped for when he was persuaded to come out of international retirement. His bowling was unspectacular but solid, his batting contributions nonexistent, something his innings in the chase against India poignantly underlined. His pre-tournament remark that “nobody remembers the semi-finalists or finalists, but people remember the winners” has become as old as milk since Pakistan suffered their youngest ever defeat at a T20 World Cup, but for now, his best consolation is a memorable match in retirement.
Lorcan Tucker He hit two fifties in three matches against Pakistan last month, followed by scores of 40 and 55 in three-match series against the Netherlands and Scotland. Since then, his scores have dried up as Ireland’s T20 World Cup campaign fizzled out before it even got going. He started in each group match, reaching double figures off 13 and 15 balls respectively. With no pressure and little to lose, Tucker has a chance to recapture the form seen against Pakistan a few weeks ago.
Pakistan may start two players, Abrar Ahmed and Abbas Afridi, who have not played in a match so far.
Pakistan: (Predictions) 1. Mohammed Rizwan (wk) 2. Saim Ayub 3. Babar Azam (captain) 4. Fakhar Zaman 5. Usman Khan 6. Shadab Khan 7. Imad Wasim 8. Shaheen Afridi/Abbas Afridi 9. Naseem Shah/Abrur Ahmed 10. Haris Rauf 11. Mohammed Amir
It has been over a week since Ireland last played, making the Irish lineup difficult to predict.
Ireland: (Predictions) 1 Andy Balbirnie 2 Paul Stirling (Captain) 3 Lorcan Tucker (Weekkeeper) 4 Harry Tector 5 Curtis Campher 6 George Dockrell 7 Gareth Delaney 8 Mark Adair 9 Barry McCarthy 10 Josh Little 11 Craig Young/Ben White
Friday’s USA-Ireland match in Lauderhill and Saturday’s India-Canada match were called off without a toss due to heavy rain and a very wet outfield. The forecast for Sunday is looking better, but it will depend on the amount of rainfall overnight and the condition of the outfield in the morning.
Pakistan have never before lost a T20 World Cup after just three matches.
Ireland have now lost four consecutive T20 World Cup matches – the only times they have been worse than this were when they lost six in a row in the 2009, 2010 and 2012 World Cups.
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