Asia Cup 2022: Big challenge lies ahead for middle-order batters – SWOT Analysis of Team Pakistan

Pakistan have always been one of the teams to watch out for in multi-nation tournaments. Their unpredictable brand of cricket has taken a number of teams by surprise. Babar Azam and Co. are now set to begin their campaign in the Asia Cup 2022.

Their first game is against Rohit Sharma’s India on Sunday, August 28 at the Dubai International Stadium. Pakistan would remember that they picked up only three Indian wickets the last time these two teams met in the Asia Cup at the same venue in Dubai.

Pakistan last won the Asia Cup back in 2012 when they beat Bangladesh by two runs in the final. Last time around, they failed to qualify for the final after losing to India and the Tigers in the second round. The upcoming edition is a golden chance for them to win their 3rd Asia Cup title.

For now, let’s take a look at the SWOT Analysis of Pakistan for Asia Cup 2022

Strengths

Opening combination: It goes without saying that Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been Pakistan’s standout batters in the T20 format for quite some time. Both batters were also among the leading run-scorers in the T20 World Cup 2021, although Pakistan failed to qualify beyond the semis.

In fact, Rizwan became the first batter to score above 2000 runs in a calendar year when he accomplished the feat in 2021. Babar and Rizwan are also in the top five in the ICC’s rankings for T20I batters. Rizwan and Babar have also been excellent for Multan Sultans and Karachi Kings in the PSL.

Batting depth: Pakistan have quite a bit of batting depth, something the team can use to their advantage. Mohammad Wasim Jr. hasn’t done much with the bat for the Men in Green, but has an average of 20.28 in T20s with a top score of 34, along with nine fours and 10 sixes.

Shaheen Shah Afridi is known for his bowling, but he can also use the long handle to good effect on his day. In one of the PSL matches, he scored an unbeaten 20-ball 39 with two fours and four sixes. Even Haris Rauf isn’t the worst, with a strike rate of 140.96 in T20 cricket.

Weakness

Fragile middle-order: Pakistan’s middle-order is a tad vulnerable. In the absence of two of their stalwarts, Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik, their batting isn’t quite the strongest after their run-scoring machines, Babar and Rizwan.

Fakhar Zaman doesn’t have happy memories while playing in the 2018 Asia Cup. Barring the knock he played in the semi-final against Australia in Dubai, the southpaw wasn’t all that consistent in the T20 World Cup 2021.

Haider Ali and Khushdil Shah are highly talented, but they are yet to live up to their potential in the national team. Iftikhar Ahmed is a dependable batter, but has even been in and out of the team.

Opportunities

Shadab Khan, the batter: Shadab Khan, undoubtedly, will be a key force in Pakistan’s bowling line-up. With two spinners in their squad, the Men in Green may well prefer Shadab over Usman Qadir. However, apart from bowling, the fact that he is more than good enough as a batter can’t be denied.

In 200 T20 matches, Shadab has scored 1289 runs at an average of 18.66 with six half-centuries to show for his efforts. If Pakistan lose early wickets, Pakistan can promote Shadab, who has the potential to counter quality bowling like he showed for Islamabad United in the PSL.

Threats

Shaheen’s injury concern: Shaheen Shah Afridi sustained a knee injury during the opening Test against Sri Lanka, after which he missed the second Test. However, Pakistan have named the speedster in the squads for the Asia Cup and the three-match ODI series against the Netherlands.

However, skipper Babar has confirmed that Shaheen won’t take the field at least in the first two matches of the Dutch tour. Shaheen is expected to lead Pakistan’s bowling attack and if he doesn’t stay fit, Babar’s men are likely to face the feat against power-packed batting units.

Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani’s lack of experience: Pakistan have made the tough call of leaving out Hasan Ali and instead, they went for young pacer Naseem Shah. While Shah has played 13 Tests and also has a hat-trick to his name in the longest format, he is yet to play limited-overs cricket for the Men in Green.

Shahnawaz Dahani also doesn’t have a whole lot of experience, having played one ODI and two T20Is for the Pakistan team. In T20s. Dahani has the tendency to leak runs as his economy rate of 8.32 is on the higher side. On batting friendly pitches, it remains to be seen how Dahani and Naseem handle themselves if they get a chance to play.

— ENDS —