West Indies vs Pakistan 2016: ODI series Preview
Pakistan will be high on confidence after drubbing World Champions West Indies 3-0 in the T20 series and will next face each other in a three-match ODI series from Friday at Sharjah.
West Indies will look to restore some lost pride after the Asian giants steamrolled them in the T20 series.
Both the teams are at the bottom of the ICC ODI rankings and Pakistan will look to win the series handsomely to have any chances of direct qualification for the 2019 World Cup.
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The Caribbeans were outplayed in each and every department in the T20 series and the Jason Holder led side will look to come all guns blazing in the ODI series and put behind their T20 debacle. The pitch is expected to assist the spinners and the Pakistani spinners especially Imad Wasim who picked up 9 wickets in 3 matches in the T20 series will look to stamp his authority on the West Indies batsmen.
Their inability to rotate the strike pegged them back in the T20 series.
West Indies will miss the services of Chris Gayle, Lendl Simmons and Andre Russell. While Gayle made himself unavailable for selection, Simmons and Russell withdrew from the series due to injury and personal reasons respectively.
Test specialist Kraigg Brathwaite have been called up to the ODI squad and is in line to make his ODI debut in the series.
Youngster Alzari Joseph, who made a terrific Test debut against India, also makes the cut, along with Evin Lewis, who scored a brilliant century in the 1st T20 against India at Lauderhill in the US. The visitors will be heavily relying on the services of Marlon Samuels, Keiron Pollard and Denesh Ramdin in the batting department and on Sunil Narine in the bowling department.
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The series will provide Azhar Ali the opportunity to prove his credentials as an ODI captain after losing the ODI series against England 4-1. Umar Gul and Sami Aslam are the only members who have been dropped from the squad that played in England.
Mohammed Irfan and Hafeez remained unavailable for selection due to injuries.
Umer Akmal has made a comeback to the ODI squad after also being recalled for the T20 series. Pakistan has also brought back the services of Rahat Ali, Asad Shafiq, and Sohail Khan. Imad Wasim will be Pakistan’s trump card after his breathtaking performance in the T20 series, while Sarfaraz Ahmed will look to continue his dominant form with the bat against a bowling line-up led by spin magician Sunil Narine.
Teams (from):
Pakistan: Azhar Ali (capt), Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Umar Akmal, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Nawaz, Imad Wasim, Yasir Shah, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Sohail Khan.
West Indies: Jason Holder (capt), Sulieman Benn, Carlos Brathwaite, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Jonathan Carter, Johnson Charles, Shannon Gabriel, Alzarri Joseph, Evin Lewis, Sunil Narine, Ashley Nurse, Kieron Pollard, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Marlon Samuels.