Author: Mishaal Mubarak

Albeit very closely, Bangladesh survived the group of death torture in the group stages. They defeated Nepal, Netherlands, and the favorites Sri Lanka to make it to the Super 8s second time. But none of that matters now. What matters is the ominous 1 in their defeats column and the fact that they have to face the high-flying India in their next game. India have a bowling lineup that’s more lethal than cyanide for the dearth of solid batting options in Bangladesh. But they can not afford to succumb to that. They can afford to see Bumrah making headlines once…

The co-hosts USA get hosted by the West Indian team in a game of survival. Both teams have tasted defeat in their respective first games of this stage. Though it was the first defeat for the Windies in this tournament, it still mongered worries for them. The greatest of all those worries is the injury of Brandon King. The West Indian opener suffered a side strain during the game against England a few days ago and had to leave the ground immediately. Although he was not blazing on all of the guns in the tournament, having scored an average of…

Its as simple as this. Win this game and get yourself a box seat for the semi-finals. Both teams have two points each. The winner will get another two making it four and even if that team lose their last game, the chances of them making it to the knockout stages would still be very high. But there is one thing that might make the teams wince and that is the good old Net Run Rate, which might become crucial in the next few games. Besides getting those two points, it’s necessary for the winning team to somehow get a…

The best have been strained and now is when those who have proven themselves get to put up a show. The USA have been the true underdog in the group stage. They have toppled teams, made history, and broken records – all this while on their leave from office. This may seem like they have made it to the next stage effortlessly, like doing a summer job. But in reality, it has taken them hard work and many years of it. Hard work is what will be required of them for the next stage too. Because what they are coming…

No host team has ever won a T20 World Cup and the West Indian team in this season is hell-bent on breaking this record. The Windies batters are, especially, enjoying churning runs on their home ground. During the fixture against Afghanistan as well, the Windies batters took the bowlers to the cleaners. Leading this blitz was none other than Nicholas Pooran who went all guns blazing from the word go. Winning the toss, Afghanistan asked the co-hosts to bat first, and boy did they do a good job. After Brandon King fell early, Johnson Charles and Nicholas Pooran took it…

Climate change is weird. There could be flash floods in Florida affecting people of Pakistan 8000 miles away. But nothing can be done now, the floods have unleashed how destructive they are. Houses, buildings, roads, and hopes – they take away with them everything. This is the worst Pakistan has performed in a T20 World Cup ever. Since 2007, the year of the first T20 World Cup, the men in green have always ensured to get through at least the group stages of the mega-event. There is a first time for everything they say. But no one explains how to…

Blood, toil, tears, and sweat are what it has taken Scotland to come to this point where they are threatening the defending champions. They face Australia in their last game of the group stage. Clashing with the pitiless Australia and with the ICC ensuring no behind-the-closed-door conspiracy to oust England should take place, Scotland are left with only two choices. One lies in their control but just as much out of control and it is beating Australia even by a single run (or, with apologies to New Zealand fans, boundary counts). The other is hoping for the grey clouds (which…

A 19-ball run-chase against Oman has put England in a position where they can forget all their red-face moments this World Cup. Although Jos Butler’s men still have the odds of crashing out of the contention, a victory against Namibia of any magnitude will get them all set for their next destination. The bowling display was better against Oman than their previous two outings where they conceded runs at the rate of 10 per over, losing one and thanking rain for saving them in the other. The batting, although, never was as much of an issue, it would take more…

New Zealand are out of the Super 8s contention. Uganda were never realistically expected to make it to the next stage anyway. Essentially this game is a dead rubber now. But a consolatory win could help both teams to end on a good note. For New Zealand, winning this game would be more like trying to hold the box of their bad memories with a single, flimsy thread. For Uganda, it would mean ending in third place, which for a World Cup debutant is a crack in the dam.  The Kiwis have been managing to end up in the knockout…

A tropical disturbance has caused flash flooding in Florida which could see all the matches slated to be played here getting washed out. If you are new to this sport, a washout means both teams get one point each. One point is exactly what the USA team needs to get on the train to Super 8s. Never have we ever seen a team exploiting home advantages like this. The USA reaching the next round means Pakistan would be out of the race and their game against Ireland on Sunday would potentially be a dead rubber. This would be the first…