• Pakistan lost their Super 12 match against India by four wickets on Sunday.
• Urooj Mumtaz, former captain of the Pakistan women’s team, believes they should field four seamers against Zimbabwe.
• The Men in Green will be looking to bounce back from their first Super 12 defeat.

Urooj Mumtaz, who formerly captained the Pakistan women’s team and now serves as the chief selector, suggested on Wednesday that the Men in Green should field four seamers when they play Zimbabwe on Thursday in their second match of the Super 12 of the Twenty20 World Cup 2022. The match will take place at the Perth Stadium.

After suffering a defeat in their first match of the tournament on Sunday against India at the Melbourne Cricket Stadium, Pakistan will be looking to get back on track with a victory against their African opponent.

In their match against India, the Men in Green fielded three fast bowlers and two spinners. On the other hand, the pace-friendly surface in Perth might force them to alter the seam-spin combination they normally use.

When asked if the Men in Green should go with four seamers, Urooj said, “A hundred percent.” In the first game [against India], I thought they blew it. They should have used four seamers instead of three. By using four seamers, one of the two spinning all-rounders will be replaced. They [spinners] provide the batting depth and firepower that Pakistan requires in the middle order. As a result, either Haider Ali or Asif Ali will be replaced. The position is for number eight, so Mohammad Wasim Jr will bat a little. Given the conditions in Perth, they must definitely go with four seamers.”

“I would pick Asif over Haider because of his ability to handle the pace,” the cricketer-turned-commentator said when asked whether she would pick Haider or Asif. I’ll stick with him against Zimbabwe and bench Haider in favour of Wasim Jr.”

The former cricketer also discussed Pakistan captain Babar Azam’s pep talk in the dressing room following the four-wicket loss to India.

“Babar’s dressing room talk was encouraging; how he supported Mohammad Nawaz by saying “he is a match winner” was fantastic.”

Pakistan will face Zimbabwe in their second Super 12 match on Thursday (tomorrow) at 4:00 PM at Perth Stadium (PST).

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