A further boost for Pakistan might come only a few short weeks before the beginning of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup. Babar Azam’s in-form side is on the cusp of winning the No. 1 ODI team rating, and they need just one more win to do so.
As a result of Pakistan’s thrilling one-wicket victory over Afghanistan in Hambantota on Thursday, they have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-game series. This puts Pakistan in a position where they cannot be caught.
This resulted in an increase in Pakistan’s One-Day International team rating, bringing them closer to the top spot held by Australia. The Asian team has a chance to go ahead of Australia and into the top spot in the one-day rankings as early as Saturday if they win the third and final match of their series against Afghanistan.
That would prove to be a significant boost for Pakistan on the eve of this year’s 50-over showpiece, with Babar’s team already being among the favorites to win a second World Cup championship in India this year.
Pakistan’s only victory at the World Cup came in 1992 in Australia, and the Asian country might enter this year’s event with the No. 1 ODI team rating if they can continue on their current upward path. Pakistan’s only victory at the World Cup came in 1992 in Australia.
Pakistan’s performance with the bat and the ball during the present Afghanistan series has them on the edge of regaining the top spot from Australia. This year, Pakistan has played 10 one-day internationals and has only lost three of them, all of which were played against New Zealand.
Babar leads the way in the MRF Tyres ODI Batter rankings, while Imam-ul-Haq and Fakhar Zaman, both of whom are teammates, are close behind in third and fifth place respectively. Pakistan also has some of the highly ranked players in ODI.
Pakistan will compete in the Asia Cup in 2023 after the conclusion of the series they are now playing against Afghanistan. Their first match in the six-team competition will take place in Multan on August 30, and it will be against Nepal.
After that, they will play official warm-up matches for the World Cup against New Zealand and Australia. Their opening match at this year’s tournament will be against the Netherlands in Hyderabad on October 6.
