Pakistan bluff may backfire against West Indies

Pakistan captain Younis Khan apparently has an injured finger, which means he is unavailable for his team’s opening clash of the ICC Champions Trophy against the West Indies in Johannesburg.

Reading between the lines though and it seems Pakistan are simply keen to rest their captain, which could quite easily backfire against the reigning Twenty20 World Cup champions.

Despite heading into the match as almost unbackable favourites at –600, Pakistan have everything to lose and complacency in a tournament in which one loss can spell the end, resting any of your top line players to combat fatigue is a risky move.

Younis was prolific in the ODI series against Sri Lanka scoring 12, 23, 44, 89 and 76 in the five match series and his leadership could be needed if the West Indies spring a surprise.

The captaincy has been handed to Shahid Afridi, no slouch by any means but if the West Indies do manage to rip a gaping hole in their batting line up or smash their bowlers about the park, you want a captain who is going to be proactive, not retroactive.

The West Indies, who is at +450, are a dangerous commodity at this event. Some argue that their place in the world top eight is at risk considering they were beaten by Bangladesh and India in their past two series at home. Add to this the humiliation of having a host of top players, including captain Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan, unavailable for selection because of contract disputes with the West Indies Cricket Board.

There are some who will try and argue that the Caribbean team won’t be a challenge for Pakistan but the West Indies players will be spurned on by this criticism. The attacks on their personnel’s experience may be justified but for each one of those players taking the field in this game, they are playing for their country, a proud moment for any international.

Pakistan haven’t had a good run this year losing eight of 13 games against Sri Lanka and Australia and they have been routinely rolled for 175 or under which is a good sign for the West Indies.

If their quicks can tear through the top order of Imran Nazir, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik (who is coming off a massive 130 not out in the warm up match), Mohammad Yousuf and Misbah-ul-Haq, the Calypso kids could spring an upset.

Don’t forget that Pakistan did lose to Ireland in the last World Cup so anything is possible.

Led by Floyd Reifer, the West Indies have a group of players that are keen to make a name for themselves. Take a look at opener Dale Richards – how many Test players do you know who can say that their first ever runs in the long form of the game was a six? Not many, if any.

Their opening bowlers will face a Herculean test of resilience.

Nikita Miller, 27, has played just 17 ODI while 21-year-old Kemar Roach has just five matches. 

Vice captain and pace-spearhead Darren Sammy, 25, has just 26 ODI to his name. David Bernard, 28, rounds out the four prong pace attack with 11 ODIs.

They will pit their inexperience yet raw pace and aggression against a top order that oozes talent but also oozes loose shots and wickets that are not treasured.

It’s all well and good to play flashy but if you are sitting back in the sheds after a reserve sweep paddle that went wrong, you might as well have just played a normal shot down leg-side.