CAN vs PAK T20 World Cup 2024: Fantasy XI Prediction, teams, captain, vice-captain, toss and venue analysis

Pakistan’s match against Canada won’t be easy either because they are no pushovers and have already bagged two points with their win over Ireland. In the T20 World Cup 2024 opener against the USA, Canada posted 194 for 5 batting first, which the host chased it down. For Pakistan, it would be a do-or-die match and Canada have the potential to pull off an upset win.

CANADA LIKELY XI

BATTERS: Aaron Johnson, Navneet Dhaliwal, Shreyas Movva

ALLROUNDERS: Pargat Singh, Dilpreet Bajwa, Nicholas Kirton, Saad Bin Zafar, Junaid Siddiqui

BOWLERS: Dilon Heyliger, Kaleem Sana, Jeremy Gordon

PAKISTAN LIKELY XI

BATTERS: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam, Usman Khan/Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman

ALLROUNDERS: Imad Wasim, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan

BOWLERS: Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Amir

Player Statistics (Pakistan)

INNINGS – 15

RUNS – 484

AVERAGE – 34.57

STRIKE RATE – 113.61

50-PLUS – 5

INNINGS – 15

WICKETS – 19

AVERAGE – 20.31

ECONOMY RATE – 6.75

4-PLUS – 1

Babar Azam: The Pakistan skipper has now featured in three T20 World Cups for Pakistan and is their prolific batsman. The batting more or less revolves around him as he sets the tone for the innings. In his 15 innings so far, Babar has scored 484 runs at an average of 34.57.

Shaheen Shah Afridi: The tall left-arm quick bowler leads the Pakistan bowling attack and his team expects him to make early inroads. He is quick with the new ball and can swing it both ways. Playing in his third T20 World Cup, Afridi has picked 19 matches in 15 matches.

Players who can make a difference

Naseem Shah: The youngster has been bowling with lot of fire and has so far picked four wickets in two matches, which included three wickets against India. With Pakistan playing Canada at the same venue in New York, Shah would be quite effective on that pitch.

Mohammad Rizwan: After the skipper Babar Azam, a lot of Pakistan’s batting too depends upon the wicketkeeper-batsman. He has a responsible head over his shoulders be it any format. In T20Is he has a great record and in the clash against Canada, Rizwan would be a key player.

Player Statistics (Canada)

Nicholas Kirton in T20Is

INNINGS – 16

RUNS – 364

AVERAGE – 30.33

STRIKE RATE – 125.08

50-PLUS – 1

Nikhil Dutta in T20Is

INNINGS – 25

WICKETS – 25

AVERAGE – 21.08

ECONOMY RATE – 6.65

4-PLUS – 1

Nicholas Kirton: The batting allrounder had scored 51 off 31 balls in Canada’s match against USA. Nicholas Kirton is a vital cog in Canada’s batting order and in his last 10 matches, he has scored 286 runs at a strike rate of 141.58.

Nikhil Dutta: If the track happens to grip then the offbreak bowler will be in the thick of the things. Nikhil Dutta can get you the wickets and in the recent eight matches he has picked 11 wickets at a strike rate of 12.09 and economy of 6.45.

Players who can make a difference

Aaron Johnson: The opening batter for Canada has been in good form and in his last 10 matches, has scored 334 runs at a strike rate of 164.53. In Canada’s opening game against the USA in the ongoing T20 World Cup, he scored 23 off 16 balls before getting dismissed. Aaron Johnson at the top holds the key to Canada’s start in the Powerplay because in his short T20I career, Johnson has already scored two centuries and five fifties.

Kaleem Sana: Not played many matches for Canada, but Kaleem Sana is a wicket-taker in the T20 format as the left-arm medium pacer has picked 16 wickets in his last six matches at a strike rate of 8.56 and economy of 4.51.

HEAD TO HEAD

Last 5 matches (most recent)

PAKISTAN: LALLL

CANADA: ALLLW

*A: Abandoned due to rain

Canada and Pakistan have played against each in T20Is only once at King City in 2008, which Pakistan won by 35 runs.

Venue details

The Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York has hosted five matches, out of which the chasing team has won three. Not surprisingly, the team that has won the toss has opted to bat second here on four occasions. The team batting first has been bundled out for less than 100 on two occasions, while the average score for the team batting first is 106/9 – the lowest among all venues so far in the 2024 T20 World Cup! The average score in the second innings is 104/5. This wicket is a dream for the pace bowlers, providing significant swing and seam. The wicket too has faced some criticism due to its two-paced nature and unpredictability. Balls pitched on length have bounced significantly, making it very difficult for batters. Pacers have accounted for nearly 85% of the wickets at the venue, with an average of 15, a strike rate of 16, and an economy of 5.6.

Match Prediction

Pakistan will be under pressure to win the match against Canada. However, the New York pitch will be a challenge for both teams. Pakistan are favourites, but Canada can also win if they play good cricket.

FANTASY XI

OPENERS: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (wk)

BATTERS: Fakhar Zaman, Nicholas Kirton, Navneet Dhaliwal

ALLROUNDERS: Shadab Khan, Dilon Heyliger, Saad Bin Zafar

BOWLERS: Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Amir

BACKUP PLAYERS

BATTER: Aaron Johnson

BOWLER: Haris Rauf

ALLROUNDER: Imad Wasim