Pakistan dented by Shoaib's absence
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India's convincing victory at Rawalpindi has revived a series which many reckoned Pakistan would sweep after their spectacular run-chase in the first match at Peshawar. India lost that game despite scoring 328, but if the defeat dampened their spirits, it certainly didn't show in the field on Saturday, as they outplayed Pakistan quite comprehensively in all three departments. Now, with the series level at 1-1, both teams have everything to play for in the next match at Lahore.
After such a thumping result, it's easy to over-emphasise its impact on the rest of the series, but both captains were quick to play down the momentum factor. "I think we played some good cricket to win," said Dravid, "so I think it's going to be a good series but it doesn't mean that we can turn up the next day in a hope that we will win." Inzamam-ul-Haq echoed those sentiments: "Getting beaten in one match doesn't really make a big difference. This team is capable of fighting back and winning again."
With the pitch expected to be another belter, the bowling attacks from the two camps will once again be under pressure. Pakistan were dealt another blow when Shoaib Akhtar was ruled out for the entire series. "We were confident that he would recover in time but when he tried to bowl during the practice he aggravated the injury and felt severe pain and that is why he is being ruled out of the one-day series," Inzamam explained. "Shoaib Akhtar is our strike bowler so his absence will be felt but we have other bowlers in the back up who would definitely come up and perform." Shoaib is likely to stay out of international cricket for four to six weeks, and Pakistan are expected to name a replacement for the last two matches.
Shoaib's absence and the insipid performance of all fast bowlers except Mohammad Asif might force Pakistan to opt for Yasir Arafat, the 23-year-old fast bowler, in place of Umar Gul. The Indians have an injury worry too, with Harbhajan Singh struggling to recover from a finger problem. If he doesn't recover in time, India could well field the same team which played the second match.
Both captains also stressed the importance of fielding in conditions where there is little help for the bowlers. "I think the team that fields well in the remaining three matches will run away with a series victory," Inzamam said, while Dravid expressed his delight with the fielding prowess of his side: "Having fielders like Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh give us edge as they are class fielders."
While the bowling has been causing headaches, neither team will be too concerned about the batting. For India, the most encouraging performance was the return to one-day form for Virender Sehwag. In his previous 15 ODIs, Sehwag had managed only one half-century, but here he blasted 67 off a mere 60 balls, and his 105-run stand with Sachin Tendulkar virtually shut Pakistan out of the contest.
Both matches in this series so far have been won by the team batting second, but if past record is any consideration, the side chasing might not have such a clear advantage at Lahore. In the last 13 matches here, the team batting first has won eight times, a statistic which might just force the captain winning the toss to think twice before inserting the opposition in to bat.
Pakistan (from) Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Kamran Akmal (wk), Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Yousuf, Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), Younis Khan, Faisal Iqbal, Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Arshad Khan, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Yasir Arafat.
India (from) Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid (capt), Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar, Ramesh Powar, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Rudra Pratap Singh, S Sreesanth, Murali Kartik.