Pakistan face Australia for place in Junior World Cup final

ISLAMABAD: Two unbeaten teams -- Pakistan and Australia -- will be seen locking horns Thursday in the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup second semi-final at Benoni (South Africa).

The winner will take on India in Sunday’s final.

The second semi-final of the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup will feature two sides who’ve had their fair share of ups and downs in the competition.

From the prism of results, Australia and Pakistan have done little wrong. Both sides remain undefeated in the competition and have overcome feisty opponents like England, New Zealand, and Bangladesh.

But their respective journeys to the knockout stage have been far from smooth. Both teams had to overcome challenging phases of play in adverse circumstances, something that held especially true for Pakistan in their Super Six encounters.

While these jolts keep them battle-ready for the semi-finals, it also makes them aware of the areas that need improvement.

Australia and Pakistan are blessed with top-notch pace attacks and also have crafty spinners in their lineups. To add to that, their top-order batters have shown great form.

With immense talent in their ranks and a propensity to play positive cricket, a must-win contest between these two line-ups has all the makings of a nail-biter.

Pakistan were placed in Group D along with Afghanistan, Nepal, and New Zealand.

The group games were relatively smooth sailing for Saad Baig’s team. Shahzaib Khan’s 106 set the tone for a substantial total against Afghanistan, even as Saad contributed with an attacking fifty. Pacers Ubaid Shah and Mohammad Zeeshan were relentless as Pakistan won the game by 181 runs.

A valiant effort from Nepal challenged them in their second game. Nepal batted out their 50 overs, before having Pakistan in a spot of bother at 104/4. A patient 63 from Azan Awais then pulled Pakistan through to victory in East London.

But Pakistan were back to their very best in the final group encounter against the Kiwis. Ubaid’s scintillating opening spell saw the back of the top order before Arafat Minhas ran through the tail with his three-wicket haul. An attacking 80* from Shahzaib won Pakistan the game by 10 wickets.

In the Super Six phase, after bowling out Ireland for a modest 181, Pakistan’s batting was tested. Ahmad Hassan’s 57* pulled them out of trouble this time, guiding them to a three-wicket win.

A net run rate tussle brewed up in their final Super Six encounter against Bangladesh. Despite a sturdy start for Pakistan, Sheikh Jibon and Rohanat Doullah Borson bowled exceptionally well to clean up their subcontinental rivals for 155.

It took Ubaid’s 5/44 backed by some exceptional fielding to see Pakistan home by a five run margin in a low-scoring thriller. With eight points in their kitty, they finished second in Group 1, sitting behind India on the basis of run rate.

Hugh Weibgen’s side were grouped with Namibia, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka.

Led by Callum Vidler, the pacers wreaked havoc in their opening encounter against Namibia, bowling out the African side for 91. However, Namibia’s fast bowlers stood tall and had Australia in a spot of bother at 57/5. A patient knock from skipper Weibgen halted Namibia’s momentum and saw them through by four wickets.

A more rounded batting performance followed against Zimbabwe, where Harry Dixon’s 89 guided them to a strong total before Harkirat Bajwa’s 4/15 dismantled the chase. The final group clash against Sri Lanka saw a classy 77* from Ryan Hicks rescue the side after Australia’s top-order fell by the wayside at the start of the second Powerplay.