Pakistan cricket team has been through to the Super 4s after a game against India ended with no result due to rain. Both the teams got one point each. And with Pakistan already beating Nepal in the first game, they advanced to the Super 4s. Pakistan cricket team has a very good bowling attack, and particularly their pace attack has been phenomenal in the recent past. The pace trio of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf made the opposition batters’ life difficult throughout the tournament.
Today, we will particularly talk about the Pakistan cricket team’s pace attack and see if they are the best in the world. We will also see some of the other team’s pace attack and compare it with the Pakistan pace attack. So let’s start.
Pakistan cricket is known for producing great fast bowlers
Pakistan cricket has a rich history of producing some great fast bowlers over the years. Pacers like Imran Khan, Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, etc. all have come from Pakistan. Even some of the pacers like M Amir, M Asif, M Sami, etc., who haven’t played much for Pakistan had so much potential and skill to become great fast bowlers.
There was a period when Pakistan cricket found it hard to form a quality pace unit. But in the last two years or so, they have formed a very potent pace attack with some youngsters like Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Naseem Shah in the team.
The leftovers also have the potential
Even some of the bowlers like S Dahani, M Hasnain, and Mohammad Wasim Jr., who is waiting in the wings are some of the quality pacers in the team. They didn’t get so much opportunity in the playing XI because of the pace trio of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf.
Set bowling unit for the Pakistan cricket team
Pakistan cricket has a set pace attack in which all three above-mentioned pacers will play.
In case there is some kind of an injury or they have to rest a pacer, then they explore other options in the team. Otherwise, the trio always starts as the first choice.
The Pakistan Pace Trio has done well recently
Not going too far behind, the pace trio of Naseem, Shaheen, and Rauf has done well recently in the last 6 to 8 months. In the recently concluded ODI series against Afghanistan, they didn’t allow the opposition to score big. In fact, in the first ODI, they bundled out Afghanistan for just 59 runs. Shaheen Shah Afridi started the proceedings with the new ball and took two wickets. And then Haris Rauf didn’t give a sniff to Afghan batters to come back into the game. He took 5 wickets in the inning. Naseem Shah also managed to take one wicket.
Restricts Afghanistan to get a big score
In the 2nd ODI, when Afghanistan was set to get a big score after a 227 runs 1st wicket stand, the Pakistan cricket team restricted them to a much lesser total.
They also defend a par total of 268 in the third ODI. The spinners also play a crucial role in that game.
Pakistan crushed Nepal in the first game | Asia Cup 2023
In the first game of the Asia Cup 2023, the Pakistan cricket team bowled Nepal out for just 104 runs. After centuries from Babar and Iftikhar, Pakistan puts 342 on the board.
After that, Pakistan’s pace attack crushed Nepal’s top order and took 5 wickets for just 82 runs. Shaheen and Rauf took 2 wickets each, while Naseem also took one wicket. And then the spinners, particularly Shadab Khan came in and got 4 wickets in the lower order.
Pakistan Pace attack haunts Team India | Asia Cup 2023
Pakistan’s pace attack showed their class against the arch-rivals India. Shaheen Afridi took two big wickets of Rohit and Virat before Haris took Shreyas and Gill in his first spell.
Pandya and Kishan put on a very good 138-run stand for the 5th wicket, but as soon as the pacers were back, India crumbled and bowled out for 266.
Is Pakistan’s pace attack the best in the world?
Other teams might have good spinners or a very good bowling unit overall. But if you only look at a pace bowling front, only three teams; India, Pakistan, and Australia come to our mind.
India and Australia also have a very good pace attack. Team India has Mohammad Shami, Mohammad Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah in the squad, who are as lethal as some other quality pace attacks. But India can’t play all three in the XI and looks to fit in an all-rounder at No. 8 in either Shardul Thakur or Axar Patel.
Australia also has M Starc, Josh Hazelwood, and Pat Cummins as a pace trio. But only Starc has done well recently. Hazelwood and Cummins have a bit of a lean patch and both will come from injuries.
Pakistan Cricket Trio Pace attack: Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Naseem Shah; are on the hot form. And they have been a nightmare to the opponent’s batting unit. People normally talk about a partnership in batting. But this Pakistani bowler, Pace’s attack partnership is frightening.
Pakistan Pace attack trio took all 10 wickets of the Indian Team in their Asia Cup 2023 match in Pallekele on Saturday, September 2. Partnership in bowling was the key to rattling team India’s batting unit.
Conclusion
So you have to decide whether Pakistan cricket has the best pace attack or not. They are undoubtedly one of the top three pace attacks. Or maybe the best in the recent past.
What’s your say on this? Thank you for reading. Keep following us for the latest updates.
