Wasim Akram came up with a hilarious suggestion that Pakistan should take a leaf out of Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al-Hasan's book and just time out the entire England team by locking them in the dressing room after putting up a score on the board.
Babar Azam and Co. have been inconsistent throughout the tournament and find themselves in a precarious situation where they need a miracle to seal a semifinal berth. They need an impossibly massive win over England in their final group stage match in Kolkata on Saturday.
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Four consecutive losses, including one against Afghanistan, have come back to haunt them at the business end of the tournament. Moreover, New Zealand's massive win over Sri Lanka has further complicated matters for them.
So, Akram took a jibe at Babar Azam and Co. and suggested that they must now lock the England squad to stand a chance of making it to the last four.
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What did Wasim Akram say?
A Sports TV channel revealed that Akram suggested, Pakistan should bat first and then lock the England team in their dressing room and win the match within 20 minutes.
Shoaib Malik then joined the conversation and reminded Akram that he had earlier also suggested to "go nuts".
The same suggestion was mooted in another Pakistani channel ARY News.
پاکستان سیمی فائنل میں کیسے پہنچ سکتا ہے؟؟؟ وسیم بادامی نے سیمی فائنل تک رسائی کا راستہ بتادیا#ARYNews #HLPJ pic.twitter.com/t8CRMcpQWD
— ARY NEWS (@ARYNEWSOFFICIAL) November 9, 2023
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What does Pakistan have to do against England to qualify for World Cup 2023 semifinal?
Ahead of the New Zealand vs Sri Lanka clash, Pakistan's fans and team would have been hoping for the Asian side to pull off a win, or for the match to end without a result, so that New Zealand would only be able to get zero or one point and finish on a maximum of nine points.
Had one of these scenarios unfolded, Pakistan would have been able to qualify by simply beating England on Saturday, thereby going to 10 points, although there would still be a (very slim) chance of Afghanistan beating South Africa and overtaking Pakistan's net run rate (NRR).
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However, they have been dealt the worst possible result from the New Zealand vs Sri Lanka match with the former winning, and comfortably at that.
Here's the situation Pakistan are now facing:
Case 1: If they bat first, Pakistan will need to win by around 287 runs against England in order to overtake New Zealand's net run rate — a margin of victory that is scarcely believable, even though the defending champions have struggled during this tournament and are already out.
For example, If Pakistan score 300 after batting first, they have to bowl out England for 12 runs or less. If Pakistan score 400 runs, they have to bowl out England for 112 runs or less.
Case 2: Their task is even more difficult if they bat second, though. Even if Pakistan could bowl England out for just 50, they would still need to chase that target in 2.3 overs in order to go ahead of the Kiwis.
Verdict: Therefore, for all intents and purposes Pakistan are out of the World Cup. If England bat first, Pakistan have no hope. Their only hope remaining is to bat first, attempt to score above 400 and then bowl England out cheaply. This is extremely unlikely to happen, but never say never!
Whether you think Pakistan will make the semifinal or not, you can predict the outcome for a chance to win prizes in the CWC 2023 Predictor game here (selected regions).
(The Sporting News, odds via Dafabet)
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Who will win the 2023 World Cup?
India and Australia are among the favourites for the 2023 World Cup title. The odds are as follows, and you can click here to make your bet (selected regions).
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| India | 2.00 |
| Australia | 4.50 |
| South Africa | 5.50 |
| New Zealand | 10.00 |
| Pakistan | 21.00 |
| Afghanistan | 67.00 |
Think you know who will win the 2023 Cricket World Cup? Place your bets here with Dafabet!
You can also play Dafabet's CWC 2023 predictor game, and win the latest Apple gadget and big INR prizes, by clicking here!
