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“We aren’t able to create the momentum in our batting, we are trying to figure out how to solve that,” admits Sidra Nawaz

Madushka Balasuriya08-Oct-20250:58

Nawaz: ‘We are not being able to build momentum with the bat’

Pakistan knew they needed to be near perfect to beat Australia, an opponent they had failed to overcome on 16 prior occasions, and for around 22 overs, they were.There were diving catches, lightning quick stumpings, and your proverbial livewire acts of fielding. The conditions, too, were tailor-made; there were a few raised eyebrows when Pakistan opted to bowl first, but with the caliber of spinners they had in their ranks, they were confident of challenging Australia’s batters.That confidence was vindicated swiftly, as a combination of skillful bowling, efficient catching and some uncharacteristic errors in batting from a large chunk of Australia’s batting unit, saw the defending champions stumble to 76 for 7.Related

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Pakistan had never beaten Australia, and now they were closer than ever. But like a car crash in slow motion, the opportunity that had presented itself before them was snatched away brutally.”When they’re [Pakistan are] flying, they’re up and about. If you get a little partnership going, they can get a little bit flat, and you can open the game up that way,” Beth Mooney said after the game.”I sort of knew we had a long time to bat, so we didn’t have to do anything too rash.”That same sentiment was echoed by Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana during the post-match presentation.”We were on top after 20 overs in the first innings. After that, Beth Mooney played well and our girls’ energy came down. We need that energy until the last ball.”Mooney had struck a match-winning 109 off 114 deliveries to take the game away from Pakistan. That 109 was just five short of Pakistan’s eventual tally in their chase.Mooney’s innings also served to highlight the weaknesses prevalent in Pakistan’s batting unit. While Mooney rotated the strike – she took 44 singles across her innings – and shelved her attacking instincts to steer the game back towards her side, Pakistan lost wickets from the get-go.A game that started with ‘how good is this’ ended with ‘how did that happen’ for Fatima Sana•ICC/Getty Images

Sidra Amin struck 35 from 52, but no other batter in Pakistan’s top six reached double digits. While there is the mitigating factor that their last two games have been against Australia and India, and their first match in this tournament was against a Bangladesh outfit that is proving to be dangerous with the ball, Pakistan will know that a high score of 159 across those games is not good enough.”It is quite disappointing for us also because we were batting well previously. We did well in the Qualifiers, we did well in the series against South Africa in the lead up to the World Cup,” Sidra Nawaz said after the game.”Here, we aren’t able to create the momentum in our batting, we are trying to figure out how to solve that, and do well in our upcoming matches.”While Nawaz’s comments hold a modicum of truth – there were two scores of 287 and 255 against South Africa in Lahore – Pakistan’s unreliable batting unit has been a problem for some time now.Across 35 innings since the 2022 World Cup, they have managed a score of 250 or more just five times. Even accounting for low-scoring chases, this has been a fairly worrying record, and it’s something they will need to address sooner rather than later if they are to support the best efforts on the field.

Bangladesh, who swept Afghanistan 3-0 in the T20I series, will go into the ODI series high on confidence

Mohammad Isam07-Oct-2025Big picture: a rare ODI face-off after deluge of T20IsBangladesh and Afghanistan will have to fight the same adversary in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday: rustiness.Afghanistan last played an ODI eight months ago, in the 2025 Champions Trophy, and even that game was washed out, so they have played just two ODIs this year. Bangladesh have played six, but the last one was in July. Not as bad as their opponents, of course, but they have lost four of these games and won just one.This irregularity in playing ODIs affects how the XIs are chosen.Afghanistan have dropped Fazalhaq Farooqi, Gulbadin Naib and Noor Ahmad based on their Asia Cup – in the T20 format – performance. Hashmatullah Shahidi continues to lead, with Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran and Sediqullah Atal forming the batting core.Azmatullah Omarzai is their ODI star with bat and ball, so he will have to shoulder a significant workload. Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi will lead the bowling attack, alongside newcomers like Bashir Ahmad and Abdollah Ahmadzai, who made their T20I debuts earlier this week.Related

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Bangladesh, meanwhile, have a squad that’s based on their big-picture plan for the 2027 ODI World Cup. It means Mehidy Hasan Miraz continues as captain, with Najmul Hossain Shanto back in the picture. There will be hope that some of the batters bring their T20I form into the ODI arena. Tanzid Hasan and Saif Hassan looked good in the recent 3-0 win against Afghanistan and will be relied upon.The battle will be between Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain and Nurul Hasan for the three middle-order spots. Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman will lead the bowling attack, while it will be interesting to see whether Rishad Hossain and Tanvir Islam are both picked in the XI or not.Bangladesh would like to ride on the momentum of the T20I series sweep, while Afghanistan must get out of their five-match losing streak across formats. It is likely to be a closely fought series, but the rustiness could mean a lot of errors – in the planning and in the field – as they go adjusting to the format.Form guideAfghanistan WLWWW
Bangladesh LWLLLRashid Khan will depend a lot on Azmatullah Omarzai in either innings•Associated PressIn the spotlight: Azmatullah Omarzai and Saif HassanAzmatullah Omarzai has scored 896 runs and taken 31 wickets in the last two years in ODIs. No wonder he is currently No. 2 in the allrounders rankings. Omarzai will bat in the lower-middle order to provide cushion as well the finishing touches, and also play as the second seamer. He was one of the few to show good form in the T20Is against Bangladesh, although he would be disappointed with the way he got out in the third game in Sharjah, a wild swing that ended in a top edge that was taken by the backward point fielder.Saif Hassan will be the most anticipated ODI debutant for Bangladesh in a long time. His scintillating form in T20Is in the last two months has forced the selectors to bring him into an ODI set-up that’s crying out for a fresh approach. Saif’s attacking shots are great to watch, but as he showed in the third T20I on Sunday, he can also be clever: he played out a maiden over from Rashid Khan knowing it was the legspinner’s last and went on to score an unbeaten 38-ball 64 to take Bangladesh home.Darwish Rasooli is likely to get into the playing XI•AFP/Getty ImagesTeam news: middle-order changes in the offingDarwish Rasooli is likely to get into the XI while either Nangeyalia Kharote and AM Ghazanfar is expected to join the attack. Bashir could make his ODI debut.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Sediqullah Atal, 4 Rahmat Shah, 5 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 6 Darwish Rasooli, 7 Azmatullah Omarzai, 8 Mohammad Nabi, 9 Rashid Khan, 10 Nangeyalia Kharote, 11 Bashir AhmadSaif is likely to open the innings with Tanzid, while Nurul will fight for a place with Hridoy. Mohammad Naim has not reached UAE yet due to visa issues. Parvez Hossain has been added to the ODI squad as a back-up batter. Nurul Hasan is likely to keep wicket in the first ODI.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tanzid Hasan, 2 Saif Hassan, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Towhid Hridoy, 5 Mehidy Hasan Miraz (capt), 6 Nurul Hasan (wk), 7 Jaker Ali, 8 Tanzim Hasan Sakib, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Tanvir Islam, 11 Mustafizur RahmanNurul Hasan will have to fight for his spot•AFP/Getty ImagesPitch and conditions: bat first, win the game?The side batting first has won four out of the last five day-night ODIs at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium. The average score batting first in these matches is 274. The forecast in Abu Dhabi is of extreme heat, with some breeze expected in the evening.Stats and trivia Afghanistan and Bangladesh are tied 2-2 in the bilateral series stakes, although it’s the latter that leads 11-8 overall Nabi is the only survivor of the first ODI between Bangladesh and Afghanistan, held in 2014 in Fatullah Tanvir Islam’s five-wicket haul against Sri Lanka in Bangladesh’s previous ODI series was the first five-for by a Bangladeshi spinner in two-and-a-half years.

England have already booked their spot at the 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico and USA, with Thomas Tuchel’s side looking impressive in the qualifying stages.

The Three Lions didn’t even concede a goal in the six wins that guaranteed their place on the biggest stage, and attention will soon turn to who will be on the plane looking to win England’s first World Cup since 1966.

While there are some stars who are guaranteed to be on the way to North America, such as captain Harry Kane, Tuchel still has a lot to think about between now and June.

Of course, a lot could change between now and the summer, however, here is Chat GPT’s prediction of who will make England’s 26-player squad in Canada, Mexico and USA.

Goalkeepers

Jordan Pickford, Dean Henderson, James Trafford

Providing he remains injury free, Jordan Pickford looks set to continue as England number one in 2026 for the ninth successive year.

Providing back up to the Everton star, according to ChatGPT, will be Crystal Palace’s Dean Henderson and Man City’s James Trafford.

Defenders

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James, Myles Lewis-Skelly, John Stones, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn

One of the big decisions Tuchel made early on was to drop Trent Alexander-Arnold, however, Chat GPT feels the Real Madrid right-back will win his place back in the 26.

Chelsea’s Reece James and Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly are the other full-back options, with John Stones, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa and Dan Burn at centre-back.

Tottenham’s Djed Spence had been a regular in Tuchel’s squad, however, there’s no place for the full-back in the 26.

Midfielders

Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice, Adam Wharton, Elliot Anderson, Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, Eberechi Eze

Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson have been a regular in Tuchel’s midfield and could be the partnership that begins the World Cup campaign, backed by Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton.

Further forward, Jude Bellingham has been tipped to return to the squad after being left out recently due to fitness issues.

Chelsea, Arsenal and Aston Villa stars Cole Palmer, Eberechi Eze and Morgan Rogers make up the seven man midfield selection, with no room for the likes of Morgan Gibbs-White or Jordan Henderson.

Forwards

Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Gordon, Noni Madueke

Interestingly, ChatGPT thinks Tuchel will go with just one out-and-out centre-forward in captain Harry Kane. Marcus Rashford could also play centrally if required and his ‘revival in form’ at Barcelona sees him included.

Meanwhile, Anthony Gordon’s ’growing importance’ under Tuchel sees him included, alongside Arsenal stars Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke and Man City ace Phil Foden.

Notable exclusions from Chat GPT’s forward line include Jarrod Bowen and Ollie Watkins.