Pakistan face Australia with T20 top ranking at stake

Pakistan face Australia in the first match of the three-match T20 series in a bid to defend their world number one ranking starting today in Abu Dhabi.

Skipper Sarfraz Ahmed led Pakistan to a tri-series triumph by beating Australia in the final at Harare in July this year and needs to win at least one match to remain at the top of the rankings.

Pakistan will be without senior batsman Shoaib Malik who was with his tennis star wife Sania Mirza in India for the birth of their first child.

“Malik will join the team on Wednesday but will not be part of the eleven, so we are ready for Australia who are a very strong T20 side,” said Sarfraz.

Australia, who beat Pakistan in the group match of the tri-series, need to win 3-0 if they want to jump from their current third position to the top.

Since Sarfraz took over the captaincy, Pakistan have won 23 of the 27 matches they have played — a momentum the skipper wants to maintain.

“We know that Australia have good bowlers like Mitchell Starc, Billy Stanlake and hitters in Chris Lynn and D’Arcy Short so we have to be at our best to beat them,” said Sarfraz.

Stanlake took 4-8 in a lively spell in Australia’s victory in the tri-series group game.

AFP