The semifinal round of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will start tomorrow with the match between Pakistan and New Zealand. At the Sydney Cricket Ground, both teams will face each other on a mission of going to the final.
New Zealand qualified for the semifinal after being the group champion with seven points. Also, Pakistan qualified surprisingly as they were on their way to elimination from the Super 12. But South Africa’s unexpected defeat against the Netherlands kept Pakistan’s hope alive for the semifinal. After that, they beat Bangladesh to secure a place in the semifinal.
Predicted XI for Pakistan
Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan, Shan Masood, Mohammad Haris, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi
Predicted Xi for New Zealand
Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (c), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult
What has Kane Williamson said?
In the pre-match press conference, New Zealand’s captain Kane Williamson praised Pakistan. He said, “I mean, they’re experienced players for us. They’ve played for us a long time, whether that’s taking wickets or, in particular, adjusting to conditions which certainly we need them to come to tournaments, world events, that’s a big part of playing.”
The Kiwi captain added, “So they’ve been outstanding throughout this tournament. And tomorrow we’re at another venue against another opposition, and we’ll have to make those adjustments again.”
So far in this tournament, New Zealand have played two games at Sydney Cricket Ground. Therefore, the pitch is not unfamiliar to the Kiwis. Captain Kane didn’t forget to talk about the venue as well.
Williamson said, “I suppose it’s kind of interesting, the first game we played here, the wicket was a very good one. And then the second time we played here it had changed. And sometimes you can take perhaps what you were expecting the wicket to be like in the first game and think it would behave in the same way, which it didn’t.”
“Whether that’s a disadvantage or an advantage, it’s sort of hard to know. Both teams have played here. So we need to focus on our cricket really and the plans we want to look to execute and make sure we do adjust to the conditions and try and play smart,” the Kiwi captain stated.
