CT 2017: Pakistan v Sri Lanka, Game 12 – Match Result Predictions

It’s the final match of the group B and the league stage where Pakistan will clash against Sri Lanka at Cardiff. We already have the semi-finalists from the Group A in the form of England and Bangladesh. India already qualified from the Group B and there is one more vacancy for the semi-final spot and it would be decided by the encounter between the two Asian sides. Not too many would have given a chance for these two teams to come this far but that’s the beauty of the ICC Champions Trophy.

Pakistan made a terrible start to their campaign when they were humiliated by their arch-rivals India in the first match. But they made a remarkable comeback and got the better of South Africa in the next match. Pakistan were being regarded as the unpredictables and that’s what they have been so far. They possess two sides to their game and you never know which side might turn up on the day.

Sri Lanka have had a similar pattern to their campaign. They first surrendered against South Africa. When they were written off by many, they pulled off a stunning victory against the defending champions India. Their batsmen just showed up from nowhere and left India in stutters. Now they have a great chance to make it to yet another semi-final of an ICC event.

Here is what Crictracker predicts for the game:

Scenario 1: Pakistan wins the toss

Toss prediction: Pakistan will choose to bowl first

First innings score prediction: 240-250

Result prediction: Pakistan will win the match by 3 wickets

Scenario 2: Sri Lanka wins the toss

Toss prediction: Sri Lanka will choose to bowl first

First innings score prediction: 260-270

Result prediction: Pakistan will win the match by 15-25 runs

Head to Head Record

Overall: Total Matches – 148, Pakistan Won – 84, Sri Lanka Won – 58, No Result/Tied – 6

Matches in England: Total Matches – 3, Pakistan Won – 3, Sri Lanka Won – 0

Both sides are equally unpredictable and it’s pretty hard to predict a winner between them. Going by the head to head record, Pakistan have dominated Sri Lanka and more so in the matches played in England. Even the teams won’t know what to expect from the game and it’s going to be one intriguing battle.

Playing Combinations

Pakistan:

The batting failed miserably against India as there was very little fight shown by any of the batsmen. They were struggling initially against South Africa as well but Shoaib Malik and Babar Azam took them to a position of safety until rain interrupted and they won by DLS method. Fakhar Zaman was impressive in the last match but rest of the batsmen need to step up in the big game.

Their bowlers who received a hammering against India made a stunning return against the Proteas. Hasan Ali was the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets. Junaid Khan and Imad Wasim also bagged 2 wickets apiece. It’s high time that the spearhead of the line-up – Mohammad Amir needs to raise his game a notch and win it for his side.

Predicted XI: Azhar Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfaraz Ahmed(c & wk), Imad Wasim, Junaid Khan, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Amir, Shadab Khan

Sri Lanka:

Sri Lankans failed miserably against South Africa but it was their batting that won them the game against India. Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Angelo Mathews and Asela Gunaratne all were brilliant. Perera will miss out this time due to the hamstring injury he succumbed to. Once again, they will rely on their batting to do the job for them.

Bowling wise, the team has talent but just hasn’t shown what it’s capable of. Lasith Malinga has looked nowhere close to being the bowler he once used to be. Nuwan Pradeep and Suranga Lakmal have bowled well in patches but need to do a lot more than that in the crunch game. Seekkuge Prasanna might be slotted in as the spinner in the side.

Predicted XI: Niroshan Dickwella(wk), Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Matthews(c), Asela Gunaratne, Thisara Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Lasith Malinga, Seekkuge Prasanna

There is very little to choose between the sides. Going by the history of the matches between two sides, Pakistan might have an edge over Sri Lanka. They have won all 3 games that were played between them in England.

The unpredictable Pakistan might just come out with their A game and we put our bet on them to win the match.

You can follow the live scores of the match here

Do let us know your predictions in the comments section below.