In order to qualify for the knockout stage, Pakistan will not only have to register a win against Bangladesh but at the same time will hope that England lose against New Zealand.
Waqar Younis. (Photo: Twitter/@waqyounis99)
Former Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis feels if Sarfaraz Ahmed-led Pakistan enter the semis they would be the most dangerous side.
Meanwhile, Waqar pointed out that the 1992 champions will not only have to win against Bangladesh but will have to perform better than their last game against Afghanistan where Pakistan sneaked a victory by 3 wickets in a last-over thriller.
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“It is actually becoming quite scary at this point! Is history repeating itself? I have no idea but if Pakistan do make the semi-finals then they are going to be such a dangerous side. For that to happen they will need some results to go their way, but most importantly of all they will have to beat Bangladesh,” Waqar wrote in his ICC Column.
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“To beat Bangladesh they will have to play better than they managed against Afghanistan. The win over Afghanistan on Sunday was not the performance of champions and yet, somehow and some way, they are still in contention for a semi-final spot and you can never write them off,” he added.
Pakistan face Bangladesh next on 5 July in a must-win game at Lord’s in London.
The 47-year-old also praised all-rounder Imad Wasim for Pakistan’s three-wicket win over winless Afghanistan on 29 June.
“We were so lucky to escape and survive and still be floating in this World Cup, really it was thanks to Imad Wasim. Unfortunately, it has always been this way for Pakistan, we don’t seem to be able to find that collective consistency,” he expressed.
“But there is no doubting the individual pure talent in our country, look at a guy like Imad who won us that game,” Waqar added.
With 9 points from 8 matches, Pakistan lie at the fifth position in the points table. In order to qualify for the knockout stage, Pakistan will not only have to register a win against Bangladesh but at the same time will hope that England lose against New Zealand.
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