New Zealand vs.Pakistan
cricket match live free
online on your pc with hd link .
Match scheduled
Date : 8 march 2011
Time : 11 : 40
The 24th match of the ICC Cricket World Cup, a vital clash between two quarter-final hopefuls Pakistan and New Zealand could well determine the order of the Top 4 from Group A. Pakistan, with 3 wins under their belt, have virtually ensured their place in the next round and a win in any of their remaining fixtures will confirm the inevitable. New Zealand, with 2 victories, are on the cusp of making the last eight courtesy of their crushing victory over Zimbabwe, and the focus now turns to their showcasing that they are not just minnow-bullys and can compete with the big guns as well. Hence, the stakes will be high when these two teams collide and the fans can expect a high voltage encounter.
New Zealand, after comprehensively beating Zimbabwe, will look to carry forward that momentum in the game with Pakistan. Meanwhile Pakistanis are enjoying their tag of being the favourites in this match, after having won their first 3 encounters. If not for the fact that they have routed 2 associate nations, Pakistan would undeniably have been the hot favourites to win the World Cup. But whatever be the situation, their bowling has been at its zenith so far in this World Cup and on a historically slow, sluggish Kandy wicket, the likes of Shahid ‘Golden Arm’ Afridi and Abdur Rehman can wreak havoc within the New Zealand ranks. However, since Kandy will be hosting its first match of the World Cup, it will be interesting to see how the pitch behaves.
Pakistan:
After pulling off a tense victory against Canada, the rampaging Pakistanis will be on the prowl once again. The unexpected batting collapse against an ordinary bowling line-up will certainly prop up a few acrimonious questions in the headquarters of the ICC’s anti-corruption unit; however the collapse can be attributed to overconfidence and lethargy rather than lack of application or loss of form.
On paper the Pakistan batting looks strong. However, it is only the middle order which is firing consistently. The openers Hafeez and Shehzad have failed to get going and Kamran Akmal is more of a quick-fire 30 player than anything else.
Other than his failure in the last match, Younus Khan has looked composed, determined and elegant out there and has been among the runs. Nevertheless, it will be Misbah-ul-Haq who will be the cynosure of all eyes. He has been rock solid in the middle order, piling runs like crazy and has been a stinging thorn in the opposition’s back. Along with Younus, it will be his duty to stop the likes of Vettori and Nathan McCullum from clamping down on the scoring rate. Another player who is in a good nick is Umar Akmal, however what everyone will be waiting for is a blistering innings from Afridi or Razzaq.
Pakistan has a lethal bowling attack and they have managed to spew venom on all their opponents so far. However, other than Sri Lanka, none of the other teams that Pakistan have defeated posed a threat to their bowlers. Against New Zealand too, the same scenario might be repeated.
Akhtar should be back for this match and we can expect him to play a crucial role in the early and the death overs. Nevertheless, once again a lot will depend on how Afridi bowls because when he is on song; the batsmen simply watch the ball break through their defences.
New Zealand
When the World Cup started, many had assumed that given their woeful form, New Zealand would be pushovers. However, since then New Zealand have done a lot to prove their mettle and display the huge difference between them and associate nations. One of these involved a clinical wipe out of the Zimbabwean team in their last match which has since done a world of good to the out of form New Zealand openers.
In the run up to the World Cup, it has been their batting which has been New Zealand’s Achilles heel. Although they easily dismantled Kenya and Zimbabwe, not one of their batsmen could get a decent score on the board against the quality bowling of Australia. At present, the only batsmen who seem to be having some sort of form are the openers Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill. The others squandered the only opportunity that they got to bat against Australia. However, form or no form players of the caliber of Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor can destroy any bowling line up on their day. With the ever dependable Vettori and Nathan Mccullum making up the lower order and thus helping prevent the chagrin of another batting failure, New Zealand have all the batting firepower needed to deal with an aggressive bowling unit fielded by Pakistan.
It is the bowling and the fielding department which continues to perform exceptionally well. All of their bowlers have taken wickets in one match or the other and as a unit they seem to be performing better than Pakistan. Bennett, Southee and Kyle Mills form a lethal pace combo, taking 15 wickets among themselves so far. Vettori has also played his part perfectly by breaking partnerships and containing the runs. However, it is the fifth bowler which has been a headache and on a slow Kandy wicket, they will be backing Styris and Nathan to do the job.
The only likely change is that they might field Jacob Oram in place of James Franklin in order to strengthen the batting.
Form Guide:
Pakistan (WWWLW)
Mar 3, 2011 - Defeated Canada by 46 runs
Feb 26, 2011 - Defeated Sri Lanka by 11 runs
Feb 23, 2011 - Defeated Kenya by 205 runs
Feb 18, 2011 - Lost to England by 67 runs
Feb 15, 2011 - Defeated Bangladesh by 89 runs
New Zealand (WLWLW)
Mar 4, 2011 - Defeated Zimbabwe by 10 wickets
Feb 25, 2011 - Lost to Australia by 7 wickets
Feb 20, 2011 - Defeated Kenya by 10 wickets
Feb 16, 2011 - Lost to India by 117 runs
Feb 12, 2011 - Defeated Ireland by 32 runs
Likely Playing XI
Pakistan - Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Younus Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal (wk), Shahid Afridi (c), Abdul Razzaq, Abdur Rehman, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul.
New Zealand - Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum (wk), Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram, Nathan McCullum, Daniel Vettori (c), Kyle Mills, Tim Southee, Hamish Bennett.
Watch out for:
Shoaib Akhtar - Akhtar has so far bowled wonderfully in the tournament. However, he hasn’t been in the wickets. His spell with the new ball will be absolutely vital. If he can get the openers early, it is highly likely that the rest of the batting may crumble like a deck of cards.
Ross Taylor - Whatever be the conditions or the bowlers he is facing, Ross Taylor is always a threat with the bat in hand. With his unique stroke-making ability, power packed hitting and jaw dropping athletism, he will play a crucial role in taking the Kiwis forward. He must find form if New Zealand are to do well in the World Cup.
Prediction: We have a humdinger of a contest in the making. Although neither of the teams faces the risk of elimination, the one to emerge victorious will ensure its place in the next round. A victory for Pakistan here will be their 4th consecutive in the World Cup and the chances of them topping Group A will increase exponentially. New Zealand need this win desperately because it has been a long time since they beat one of the test playing nations on sub-continental wickets. They would probably prefer chasing as much as Pakistan would prefer batting first, unless the pitch has its say. Despite the Kiwi revival, the smart money has to be on Pakistan picking up a comfortable win.
cricket match live free
online on your pc with hd link .
Match scheduled
Date : 8 march 2011
Time : 11 : 40
The 24th match of the ICC Cricket World Cup, a vital clash between two quarter-final hopefuls Pakistan and New Zealand could well determine the order of the Top 4 from Group A. Pakistan, with 3 wins under their belt, have virtually ensured their place in the next round and a win in any of their remaining fixtures will confirm the inevitable. New Zealand, with 2 victories, are on the cusp of making the last eight courtesy of their crushing victory over Zimbabwe, and the focus now turns to their showcasing that they are not just minnow-bullys and can compete with the big guns as well. Hence, the stakes will be high when these two teams collide and the fans can expect a high voltage encounter.
New Zealand, after comprehensively beating Zimbabwe, will look to carry forward that momentum in the game with Pakistan. Meanwhile Pakistanis are enjoying their tag of being the favourites in this match, after having won their first 3 encounters. If not for the fact that they have routed 2 associate nations, Pakistan would undeniably have been the hot favourites to win the World Cup. But whatever be the situation, their bowling has been at its zenith so far in this World Cup and on a historically slow, sluggish Kandy wicket, the likes of Shahid ‘Golden Arm’ Afridi and Abdur Rehman can wreak havoc within the New Zealand ranks. However, since Kandy will be hosting its first match of the World Cup, it will be interesting to see how the pitch behaves.
Pakistan:
After pulling off a tense victory against Canada, the rampaging Pakistanis will be on the prowl once again. The unexpected batting collapse against an ordinary bowling line-up will certainly prop up a few acrimonious questions in the headquarters of the ICC’s anti-corruption unit; however the collapse can be attributed to overconfidence and lethargy rather than lack of application or loss of form.
On paper the Pakistan batting looks strong. However, it is only the middle order which is firing consistently. The openers Hafeez and Shehzad have failed to get going and Kamran Akmal is more of a quick-fire 30 player than anything else.
Other than his failure in the last match, Younus Khan has looked composed, determined and elegant out there and has been among the runs. Nevertheless, it will be Misbah-ul-Haq who will be the cynosure of all eyes. He has been rock solid in the middle order, piling runs like crazy and has been a stinging thorn in the opposition’s back. Along with Younus, it will be his duty to stop the likes of Vettori and Nathan McCullum from clamping down on the scoring rate. Another player who is in a good nick is Umar Akmal, however what everyone will be waiting for is a blistering innings from Afridi or Razzaq.
Pakistan has a lethal bowling attack and they have managed to spew venom on all their opponents so far. However, other than Sri Lanka, none of the other teams that Pakistan have defeated posed a threat to their bowlers. Against New Zealand too, the same scenario might be repeated.
Akhtar should be back for this match and we can expect him to play a crucial role in the early and the death overs. Nevertheless, once again a lot will depend on how Afridi bowls because when he is on song; the batsmen simply watch the ball break through their defences.
New Zealand
When the World Cup started, many had assumed that given their woeful form, New Zealand would be pushovers. However, since then New Zealand have done a lot to prove their mettle and display the huge difference between them and associate nations. One of these involved a clinical wipe out of the Zimbabwean team in their last match which has since done a world of good to the out of form New Zealand openers.
In the run up to the World Cup, it has been their batting which has been New Zealand’s Achilles heel. Although they easily dismantled Kenya and Zimbabwe, not one of their batsmen could get a decent score on the board against the quality bowling of Australia. At present, the only batsmen who seem to be having some sort of form are the openers Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill. The others squandered the only opportunity that they got to bat against Australia. However, form or no form players of the caliber of Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor can destroy any bowling line up on their day. With the ever dependable Vettori and Nathan Mccullum making up the lower order and thus helping prevent the chagrin of another batting failure, New Zealand have all the batting firepower needed to deal with an aggressive bowling unit fielded by Pakistan.
It is the bowling and the fielding department which continues to perform exceptionally well. All of their bowlers have taken wickets in one match or the other and as a unit they seem to be performing better than Pakistan. Bennett, Southee and Kyle Mills form a lethal pace combo, taking 15 wickets among themselves so far. Vettori has also played his part perfectly by breaking partnerships and containing the runs. However, it is the fifth bowler which has been a headache and on a slow Kandy wicket, they will be backing Styris and Nathan to do the job.
The only likely change is that they might field Jacob Oram in place of James Franklin in order to strengthen the batting.
Form Guide:
Pakistan (WWWLW)
Mar 3, 2011 - Defeated Canada by 46 runs
Feb 26, 2011 - Defeated Sri Lanka by 11 runs
Feb 23, 2011 - Defeated Kenya by 205 runs
Feb 18, 2011 - Lost to England by 67 runs
Feb 15, 2011 - Defeated Bangladesh by 89 runs
New Zealand (WLWLW)
Mar 4, 2011 - Defeated Zimbabwe by 10 wickets
Feb 25, 2011 - Lost to Australia by 7 wickets
Feb 20, 2011 - Defeated Kenya by 10 wickets
Feb 16, 2011 - Lost to India by 117 runs
Feb 12, 2011 - Defeated Ireland by 32 runs
Likely Playing XI
Pakistan - Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Younus Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal (wk), Shahid Afridi (c), Abdul Razzaq, Abdur Rehman, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul.
New Zealand - Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum (wk), Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram, Nathan McCullum, Daniel Vettori (c), Kyle Mills, Tim Southee, Hamish Bennett.
Watch out for:
Shoaib Akhtar - Akhtar has so far bowled wonderfully in the tournament. However, he hasn’t been in the wickets. His spell with the new ball will be absolutely vital. If he can get the openers early, it is highly likely that the rest of the batting may crumble like a deck of cards.
Ross Taylor - Whatever be the conditions or the bowlers he is facing, Ross Taylor is always a threat with the bat in hand. With his unique stroke-making ability, power packed hitting and jaw dropping athletism, he will play a crucial role in taking the Kiwis forward. He must find form if New Zealand are to do well in the World Cup.
Prediction: We have a humdinger of a contest in the making. Although neither of the teams faces the risk of elimination, the one to emerge victorious will ensure its place in the next round. A victory for Pakistan here will be their 4th consecutive in the World Cup and the chances of them topping Group A will increase exponentially. New Zealand need this win desperately because it has been a long time since they beat one of the test playing nations on sub-continental wickets. They would probably prefer chasing as much as Pakistan would prefer batting first, unless the pitch has its say. Despite the Kiwi revival, the smart money has to be on Pakistan picking up a comfortable win.
