Pakistan threw a curveball at fans in their final T20 World Cup 2024 match against Ireland on Sunday, June 16, at the Central Broward Park Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This game, the first without a rainout in the USA throughout the tournament, saw a surprise change in the Pakistani line-up.
Naseem Shah absent from Pakistan's playing XI
Captain Babar Azam won the toss and opted to field first. He then revealed a single change from the team that defeated Canada – star fast bowler Naseem Shah was surprisingly left out, replaced by Abbas Afridi. Notably, Babar remained tight-lipped about the reason for Naseem's exclusion. With no mention of injuries, this suggests a tactical decision by the Pakistani team management for their final group stage encounter.
Naseem Shah's omission from Pakistan's playing XI raised eyebrows. Considered one of the most exciting young fast bowlers in the world, Naseem had been a standout performer for Pakistan in the tournament. Across his three appearances, he claimed five wickets at an exceptional economy rate of 14.20, even boasting a three-wicket haul against arch-rivals India.
However, despite his impressive form, Naseem found himself benched. It's important to note that this match was inconsequential for Pakistan, as they had already been eliminated from contention for the Super 8 stage. India and USA had already secured the top two spots from Group A.
Ireland, also out of the running for Super 8s, made a single change themselves, bringing in Ben White to replace Craig Young.
After winning the toss Pakistan captain Babar Azam said:
“We'll have a bowl first. Last three days, the pitch has been covered, little bit moisture on it. As a professional, you need to prepare for every match. We'll look to play our best today. We have one change. Naseem isn't playing, Abbas is playing.”
Earlier, Pakistan won the toss and elected to bowl first. Put to bat first Ireland posted a lowly total of 106/9 riding on Gareth Delany's quickfire 31 off 19 balls. Shaheen Afridi was the pick of the bowler for Pakistan with a brilliant spell of 3/22.
After losing the toss Ireland skipper Paul Stirling said:
“That's what we would have done (bowl first). Under the covers for a while, there'll be a little bit up top. Hopefully we can through that and put a score on the board. We put one on the board, got 1-0 up in the series (against Pakistan) and then didn't manage to go on and win it. World Cup brings a different scenario, another great game hopefully. Young misses out today, Ben White is in.”
Ireland's Playing XI
Paul Stirling(c), Andrew Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker(w), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Joshua Little, Benjamin White
Pakistan's Playing XI
Mohammad Rizwan(w), Saim Ayub, Babar Azam(c), Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Shaheen Afridi, Abbas Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Amir
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