Pakistan will face Ireland in their respective final games of the Super Eights, and the Pakistanis will have to win this one to stay in the competition.

Ireland, on the other hand have an outside, mathematical chance of getting through to the next round, but for that, they need to upset their opponents by a sufficiently large margin!

Pakistan (1/12 at Boylesports to win game) goes into the match as favourites, but at the back of their mind will be the loss to the same team in the 2007 World Cup in the very first round. They will not want a repeat of the same performance, but looking at Ireland’s play in the game against Sri Lanka, the Irish fans can harbour some expectations. Ireland (8/1 at Coral to shock the Pakistanis) will obviously need a miracle to win the game, especially knowing that despite the strong show against Sri Lanka, batting second is not their cup of tea.

Pakistan’s win against New Zealand was set up by their bowlers, including Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal (5/2 and 11/4 at Stan James respectively to  the most economic) and Abdul Razzaq, but mostly due to a five-wicket haul by Umar Gul (7/2 at Stan James to be most economic bowler). However, it is the batsmen who need to come to the party, as they have struggled to come to grips with the pitches that have had something to offer for the bowling side.

Shahzaib Hasan (4/1 at Stan James to be best Pakistani scorer) would have cemented his place in the Pakistani top-order with his previous knock, but I will be more interested in the comeback man, Abdul Razzaq’s (8/1 at 888Sport to be best batsman) batting if he continues to bat at number three. Razzaq had performed this role to perfection the last time a world cup was held in England, and I will not be surprised to watch him repeat the same. Salman Butt should remain out of the playing eleven after having a seemingly poor run with the bat and in the field. Younus Khan (9/2 at Boylesports to top the Pakistani batting) will remain favourite to bat through the Pakistani inning and also hit the highest score as he has been through the tournament, through thick and through the thin!

For Ireland, Jeremy Bray’s prolonged failure saw him get the axe in the Sri Lanka game, but fortunately, the Irish skipper William Porterfield (4/1 at Ladbrokes to be Ireland’s top batsman) found form. Niall O’Brien (7/2 at Stan James to top Ireland batting charts) continues to impress with the bat, and it may not come as a surprise if he does anchor his team till the very end of the inning, despite coming in as an opener.

Tips:
Favourites: Pakistan (1/12 at Boylesports)
Top Pakistani batsman: Abdul Razzaq (8/1 at 888Sport)
Top Ireland batsman: Niall O’Brien (7/2 at Stan James)
Most economical bowler: Umar Gul (7/2 at Stan James)