WEST Indies captain Jason Holder is expecting a much better showing against Pakistan when the teams face off in three One-Day International (ODI) matches beginning today.The Windies have had a disappointing start to their tour of Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) so far, as they were whitewashed in their three-match T20 series. With more time to adjust to the conditions in the ODI format, Holder expects the visitors to provide much stiffer competition.
“They (Pakistan) did well in the T20 series but, having said that, there is more time with this format. Batsmen have more time to give themselves a chance to set themselves,” Holder said at a pre-match press briefing at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium yesterday.
“It is important for our top four batsmen to bat as deep as possible and lay the foundation for the middle and lower order guys to come and be powerful. As I said, you have more time to assess the conditions and play yourself in and get a score and lay a foundation. If we can do that more often, we can get a very good total,” he added.
The series could be of importance to both teams with 9th-ranked Pakistan potentially being able to leapfrog the 8th-ranked West Indies in the rankings with another 3-0 win.
The game bowls off at 3 pm (7 am Eastern Caribbean time).
SQUADS:
PAKISTAN – Azhar Ali (captain), Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Umar Akmal, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Nawaz, Imad Wasim, Yasir Shah, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Sohail Khan.
WEST INDIES – Jason Holder (captain), Sulieman Benn, Carlos Brathwaite, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Jonathan Carter, Johnson Charles, Shannon Gabriel, Alzarri Joseph, Evin Lewis, Sunil Narine, Ashley Nurse, Kieron Pollard, Denesh Ramdin, Marlon Samuels.