Pakistan knocked out of 2019 World Cup, NZ qualify for semi-finals
LONDON (92 News) – Pakistan have been knocked out of the ongoing 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup in England even before the match between Pakistan and Bangladesh ended.
New Zealand take the fourth spot and qualify for the semi-finals. Pakistan needed to dismiss Bangladesh for seven runs, after setting them a target of 316 runs at Lord’s on Friday, in order to qualify for the semi-finals of the mega event ahead of New Zealand on basis of a better net run-rate.
In the ongoing match between Bangladesh and Pakistan, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Co posted a mammoth total of 315/9 in 50 overs following a cracking century by Imam-ul-Haq and a 96-run knock by Babar Azam. However, the 315-run target posted by the Men in Green meant that they had to bundle out Bangladesh for a score of seven or less to qualify for the semi-finals of the ongoing showpiece event in England and Wales.
Net run-rate can only be boosted by so much if a team is chasing a target, and in Pakistan's case it would not be enough for them to top New Zealand.
The top four at the end of the 10-team round-robin phase advance to the knockouts. Victory would draw Pakistan level on 11 points with fourth-placed New Zealand.
If two sides are level on points at the end of the group stage, the team with more wins goes through.
But a Pakistan success would mean both they and New Zealand had won five of their nine pool matches.
The next tie-breaker is net run-rate and New Zealand have a huge advantage at +0.175 compared with Pakistan's -0.792, which is in part a consequence of Pakistan's heavy defeat by the West Indies in their opening match, when they were skittled out for just 105.
An International Cricket Council spokesman defended the use of net run-rate in major tournaments, telling AFP: “Net run-rate is the second determining factor for league stage standings, with the number of wins the first criteria. Over nine games, with each team playing one another, net run-rate provides the fairest reflection of performance across the entire tournament in the event of both sides recording equal match results.”
“All competing sides were consulted at length and agreed the playing conditions before the start of the tournament. Historically, net run-rate has been the accepted determining criteria for one-day league cricket,” the spokesman added.
Will try our best to score 500 runs, says skipper Sarfaraz
Pakistan will go all out in their final World Cup group fixture with Bangladesh despite facing a near impossible task to qualify for the semi-finals, skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed said on the eve of the match at Lord’s.
Pakistan, fifth in the table behind New Zealand who occupy the fourth and final knockout berth, have to bat first against Bangladesh and win by a margin of at least 316 runs to leapfrog the Kiwis on net run rate.
“It is very difficult, 316 runs is a big margin. Only if you’re batting first, if you score 600 runs or 500 runs,” the skipper told reporters.
“I don’t know what the study is behind this, but I can’t do anything… definitely, we’re interested in finishing on a high note. So we will try our best in tomorrow’s match.”
