World Cup 2023, Match 26 | Pakistan Predicted XI vs South Africa 

image-lo7ic9e1Pakistan will be playing South Africa in the 26th match of the World Cup 2023 (Source: AP Photos)

The 2023 World Cup is underway, and match 26 of the tournament will see Pakistan square off against South Africa in Chennai's M. Chidambaram Stadium. The match is slated to begin at 2:00 PM IST.

This year, South Africa has become a force to be reckoned with. They have been a well-poised unit that performed well together to thwart their opponents. The Temba Bavuma-led team has won four of their five matches and earned eight points. 

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The men in green and gold are currently second in the points standings. New Zealand has the same number of points as the Proteas, but their net run rate of +2.370 has kept them ahead. Their single defeat came against the Netherlands, who made history by thumping South Africa twice in a year.

Pakistan, on the other side, has lost momentum following their setback over India. It came as a big jolt to Babar Azam and his troops and they are yet to recover with a victory. After starting the season with a pair of victories, they suffered three consecutive losses. They are fifth in the points rankings with four points in the pocket.

So let us have a quick look at Pakistan's predicted XI against South Africa.


Openers: Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq

Abdullah Shafique has been a huge sigh of relief for Pakistan at the top of the order. With Fakhar Zaman being off-coloured, the right-hander batter filled the void with 255 runs from four innings. He is the second highest run-scorer for Pakistan in the coveted World Cup. Shafique's partner, Imam-ul-Haq hasn't been in the best of his touch though. Pakistan do possess a right and left hand combination at the top of the batting order but Imam's form would be a concern for Pakistan. Nevertheless, the management tends to back this pair for the openers role.


Middle Order: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel

Babar Azam, the captain of Pakistan did not have a great time with the bat in hand during the World Cup 2023. He's an elegant batter but lacked runs under his belt before the India vs Pakistan clash. The fashionable batter scored a fifty against India in Ahmedabad and a 74 runs knock against Afghanistan. 

The no. 4 spot for Pakistan is owned by Mohammad Rizwan. Having racked 302 runs from five innings, the wicketkeeper-batter is their highest run-getter in the tourney. Rizwan is one of the primary reasons why Pakistan thrashed Sri Lanka in their second game and earned valuable points. He scored a ton in that game along with Shafique and steered the chase brilliantly. 

Saud Shakeel has been quite the batter the Pakistani team would've wanted at no.5. He is a very good player of both pace and spin and has the ability to rotate strike regularly.


All-rounders: Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz

Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan scored 40 each against Afghanistan in their latest clash. The former struck at a rate over 150 whole the latter grafted the innings well. Iftikhar is more of a part-timer and may come handy with the ball. But Shadab is someone the Pakistan management backs to perfect the role of an all-rounder. He should be a good option with the ball in hand in Chennai.

Pakistan may bring back Mohammad Nawaz in this game. The conditions of Chepauk are apt for left-arm orthodox spinners. Bowlers like Ravindra Jadeja and Mitchell Santner used to be sharp for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL here. In a similar fashion, Nawaz can be a lethal weapon for Pakistan.


Bowlers: Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali and Haris Rauf

Pakistan have a pure set of three pacers where Hasan Ali is filling the shoes of Naseem Shah in the World Cup. The three horsemen of the chariot has claimed 26 wickets in five matches so far for the Pakistan side. It includes a fifer from Shaheen and three-fer from Rauf against Australia. 


Pakistan Predicted XI vs South Africa

Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam ©, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf