Pakistan likely to ignore Yasir at spin-friendly Oval

ADELAIDE, Australia: In cricket, a “horses for courses” approach is generally accepted as a clever tactic.
But ahead of their last Pool B game against Ireland to be played here at Adelaide Oval on Sunday (tomorrow), Pakistan seem more inclined towards adopting the “never change your winning combination” approach.
Having won three matches in quick succession, Pakistan are likely to once again take the field against Ireland with four fast bowlers with Shahid Afridi being the sole spinner even though the Adelaide Oval pitch is generally regarded as a spin-friendly track.
Adam Zampa, a leggie who serves as Queensland’s premier spinner, almost always makes his presence felt here at Adelaide Oval, his home ground.
Ireland’s weakness against quality spin is also an open secret. In their last World Cup outing, the Irish were stifled by a quartet of Indian spinners spearheaded by R Ashwin in a comfortable eight-wicket win.
But Pakistan on Friday declared that since their pace attack was clicking there was no need to change their strategy.
And the announcement came from no other than Mushtaq Ahmed, Pakistan’s spin bowling coach.
“It’s a flat wicket. In a 100 over game you can’t rely much on turn. Yes, in Tests it turns on the third, fourth day of the match. But overall, the Adelaide pitch is very flat and batting friendly,” the former Pakistan spinner told reporters on the sidelines of a training session here at Adelaide Oval.
That said, Mushtaq was quick to add that leg-spinners are vital for any team.
“Leg spinners are match-winners. In 1992, I played a vital role for Pakistan. But at the moment, Yasir Shah doesn’t look set in our situation.
When pointed out that other leading spinners like Ashwin and Imran Tahir are proving to be the shining stars for their teams in the World Cup, Mushtaq said: “We depend a lot on fast bowlers. We had match winners like Saeed Ajmal. But suddenly he is out and it makes tough for the captain. We have won the last few matches because of the fast bowlers and when you are doing well you don’t have to change much.”
But Musthaq refused to rule out Yasir’s role.
“We will take a look at the wicket. We have to see our team combination. There are still a couple of days to go before the match so let’s see what we decide.”
With Yasir Shah out of Pakistan’s plans, Shahid Afridi has been performing the duties of the lead spinner. But the veteran all-rounder is having a quiet World Cup as he has taken only two wickets from five games.
However, Mushtaq predicted that Afridi will bounce back against Ireland on Sunday.
“Afridi will bowl well (against Ireland). I think he has served Pakistan well over the years. Whenever he is under pressure and doesn’t perform in a couple of games, he always comes back hard. I’m sure he will do well for Pakistan in this match.”