Rizwan To Drop Haris Rauf; Pakistan's Probable XI For 3rd ODI Vs South Africa
Rizwan to drop Haris Rauf [Source: @TheRealPCB/X.Com]
Pakistan's ODI side under the captaincy of Mohammad Rizwan has been on a roll recently. Last month, they defeated Australia, Down Under to win the ODI series, and the Men in Green followed it up with an impressive showing against the Zimbabwe side in the 50-over format.
However, they passed their biggest test in South Africa, when the Rizwan led side did the unthinkable and defeated the Proteas in the first two ODIs to seal the series and take an unassailable 2-0 lead.
There have been several stars who made this win possible. Saim Ayub produced a fine hundred in the first ODI to seal the win, and the bowlers did the hard job in the second game to punish the Proteas batter as Pakistan will enter the third game, riding high on confidence.
Ahead of the game at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, we look at their probable playing XI, with a not so surprising exclusion on the cards.
Pakistan to go in with the same batting combination
In the second ODI, almost all the batters from the team delivered the goods. Star players in Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan scored valuable half-centuries and Rizwan nearly missed out on a terrific hundred.
However, the icing on the cake was a blistering 25-ball fifty by Kamran Ghulam, who stole the show towards the fag end of the innings. Hence, there won't be any change in the batting lineup. Saim Ayub will open alongside Abdullah Shafique, and Babar, Rizwan, Kamran Ghulam, and Agha Salman will form the middle order.
No place for Haris Rauf
Haris Rauf was outstanding with the ball on the Australian tour, but in the two ODIs against South Africa, he is yet to scalp a single wicket.
The Proteas batters quickly realised their biggest threat and they have generally played him with caution in both the games. With the series already done and dusted, Pakistan should look into Rauf's workload management and should rest him for the final match. Instead of him, Rizwan can go in with Mohammad Hasnain.
The rest of the attack should remain the same, with Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah leading the pace attack, and Abrar Ahmed leading the spin department.
Pakistan's probable XI for 3rd ODI
Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (c & wk), Kamran Ghulam, Salman Agha, Irfan Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Abrar Ahmed