PAK vs IRE: Positives and Negatives For Pakistan Cricket Team After Their 2-1 Series Win

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PAK vs IRE: PAK vs IRE: Pakistan on Tuesday defeated Ireland by six wickets to win the 3-match T20I series against Ireland by 2-1 margin. Pakistan cricket team lost the first T20I but bounced back to win the next two games.

The defeat in the first T20I came as a shock for Pakistan and millions of their fans. It was Ireland's first defeat over Pakistan in T20Is, and first across all formats for them since March 2007. Their batting and bowling units were tested massively in the first game in Dublin.

Pakistan did bounce back with a few excellent individual performances but Ireland continued punching above their weight. Pakistan sent a strong 18-member squad to face the Irish team. Three players from the side will be sent back before the 15-member squad travels to the USA and the West Indies for the T20 World Cup 2024.

Pakistan cricket team will be facing England in a 4-T20I series from May 22. They would be aiming to iron out the flaws they had in Ireland, and build on the positives of the tour.

PAK vs IRE: Positives and Negatives For Pakistan Cricket Team After Their 2-1 Series Win

Good form of senior batters: The duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan showcased why they are the backbone of Pakistan batting line-up. They emerged as the leading run-scorers in the series. Babar and Rizwan scored 132 runs each with an average of 66 and 44 respectively. Fakhar Zaman played two innings, and scored 78 off 40 in the second innings.

Further, Azam Khan remained unbeaten in the last two games, and scored at a strike rate of 300 on both the occasions. Iftikhar Ahmed shone with the bat in the first T20I with unbeaten 37 off 15.

Failure of opener Saim Ayub: The form of young opener Saim Ayub is yet a concern. After scoring 45 in the first innings, the southpaw scored 6 and 14 in the following two innings. He registered scores of 4, 32, 20 and 1 in his preceding outings against New Zealand at home.

His form would be a concern for Pakistan, who are aiming for a quick start in the format. Ayub was brought in for the same reason. Notably, the Rizwan and Babar pair at the top was dismantled to fit in the 21-year-old.

Inconsistent Pakistan bowling unit: The famed bowling attack of Pakistan was largely inconsistent. Once the main strength of Pakistan team, the bowling unit conceded 183 runs in the first match, 193 in the second and 178 in the third game.

Shadab Khan leaked 54 runs without a wicket in the first T20I. In the second game, Shaheen Afridi picked three wickets but ended up leaking 49 runs. In the same game, Mohamamd Amir gave away 44 runs for a wicket. Hasan Ali ended up giving 42 runs from three overs in the third T20I. Abbas Afridi picked two wickets but conceded 43 in the match.

The going is expected to get tougher for Pakistan bowlers in England, and the following T20 World Cup 2024. They will need to address the problem soon.