3 Reasons Why Pakistan Will Not Qualify In World Cup 2023 Semi-Final?

image-ln0esx7eBabar Azam will be a key player for Pakistan (X.com)

Cricket's biggest festival is here! The 50-over World Cup is the most prestigious tournament in cricket and this time, the spectacle is set to be held at the home of new superpower of world cricket, India. It is a 48-match tournament with 10 teams locking horns against each other, and one of them will be Pakistan. It is hard to predict anything about Pakistan but it would be interesting to see, how they go about their business at the home of their arch-rivals in a big tournament like World Cup.

They had a disappointing campaign in the Asia Cup recently and would be looking to make a big statement with a strong performance in the World Cup. However, do they have the arsenal and form to make it to the top four? The answer might surprise few but given the strengths of the other sides that will be competing, we might just see Pakistan missing the semifinal bus this time around. 

So, let's find out the three reasons why Pakistan might fail to make it to the top four.


Fragile Batting Line-up

Pakistan's skipper Babar Azam is one of the best batters in world cricket currently and a lot will depend on how he goes about his business in the World Cup. However, in recent times, we have seen Pakistan crumbling under pressure when Babar Azam departs early. 

The Number 5 is a big problem for Pakistan while Rizwan at number 4 has also been not that consistent. Also, Pakistan lack power-game in their batting and with pitches expected to be flat in India, Pakistan can find themselves in trouble if the opposition team puts a big score on the board. 

A classic example of it was the India-Pakistan game in the Asia Cup 2023 where India posted 356 on the board and Pakistan just could not handle the pressure in the second half and were bowled out for 356. Pakistan need to be vary of this weakness and someone needs to put his stand up.


Absence Of Quality Spinner

Pakistan have traditionally produced some world-class spinners, but in this squad, they seem short of a quality spinner. Shadab Khan is their premier spinner but have not been in best of form in ODI cricket lately. In 2023, he has picked 13 wickets in 11 matches while in 2022, he picked 5 wickets in 3 matches.

Mohammad Nawaz, the other spinner has also not done anything noteworthy in ODI cricket and this can be a worry for Pakistan against quality teams.


Lack Of Experience Of Playing In India

Pakistan and India's political tension are well known all over the world and as a result of it, India and Pakistan have not played bilateral series since 2012. Pakistan did travel to India for T20 World Cup in 2016 but except Nawaz, no other player was part of that squad from the current team. Nawaz too did not play a single game in that T20 World Cup, so none of the current lot of Pakistan players have played any international game in India.

This could be a big factor in a high-pressure environment of World Cup and Pakistan will have to find ways to tackle these odds. Teams like India, Australia, England and South Africa look better balanced and well-equipped to get through to the semis and they might just topple Pakistan in the race for the semis this time around.