Pakistan Left With Bowling Woes Before World Cup 2023

image-ln6dqfr1The Pakistan batting 


Pakistan's bowling woes in the warm-up game against New Zealand raise significant concerns for the upcoming World Cup. Despite posting a formidable total of 346 runs, Pakistan's bowlers found it challenging to defend it. The absence of Shaheen Afridi was felt, but the rest of the bowling line-up, including Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jr. and Haris Rauf, failed to make an impact.

Even the spinners, with Usama Mir being expensive initially but later picking up a couple of wickets, and Mohammad Nawaz, who had an ordinary outing, couldn't stem the flow of runs effectively. This performance raises questions about Pakistan's bowling strategy and execution, which is a crucial aspect of their game plan.

In a high-scoring tournament like the World Cup, a potent bowling attack is essential, and Pakistan needs to address these issues promptly to remain competitive. With the World Cup just around the corner, they must find solutions to their bowling woes and come up with a more effective plan to contain opposition batters and take crucial wickets.


Pakistan's Bowling Battle: Uphill Struggles

image-ln5x09v6Finest ODI Spinners in 2023 (Minimum 400 balls bowled)

The Pakistan bowling attack was one of the most feared bowling attacks going into the World Cup. They had a complete pace attack and reliable spinners in Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz. But due to a few injuries their options are looking really limited. The spin attack is something which needs a lot of work. We can see that the Pakistan spinners are one of the lowest rated among the top spinners in ODI’s this season. 

Shadab Khan might be one of the best spinners for Pakistan right now, but his performances this season have been sub-par if we compare it to the standards he has set. He has an economy of 5.58 and an average of 39.38. Usama Mir has some potential, but even his numbers are not as appealing with an economy of 5.44 and average of 35.09. Mohammad Nawaz’s numbers are an example of Pakistan’s spin trouble where he could only manage 9 wickets in 10 innings. 

The economy of 5.11 and average of 43.22 are not helping to solve any problems as well. The absence of Naseem Shah seems to be hurting Pakistan even more. Even though they were still dealing with the absence of Shaheen Afridi in the match, it was still an underwhelming performance by the pacers as well. Haris Rauf was not at his best today and failed with the new ball. 

Hasan Ali did bowl a great spell with the new ball, but went for runs at the death. Mohammad Wasim Jr had a forgettable game as well. This will make Pakistan's plans for replacing Naseem Shah in the team even tougher. They will need another bowler who can share the same duties along with Shaheen at the start of the innings and bowl well at the death.


Conclusion

With Pakistan’s campaign starting in just 6 days it is safe to say they will be under pressure. They have to bring a perfect balance to their bowling attack which has been struggling recently. 

They not only have to solve their problems in the spin department, but also try to get their pace attack back on track. In conclusion they might have to groom Usama Mir into being their second attacking spin option and try to make a wise decision on the third seam option that is very important.