BULAWAYO: Tayyab Tahir and Abrar Ahmed will make their One-day International debuts in Pakistan’s second match against Zimbabwe on Tuesday as the visitors look to avoid a series loss.

Mohammad Rizwan’s Pakistan were subjected to shocking 80-run loss against the hosts in the rain-affected first one-dayer on Sunday, which saw Zimbabwe — who had posted 205 — take six Pakistan wickets for 60 runs before rain intervened.

The result was a quick turnaround for Pakistan, who were coming into the series after winning one in Australia weeks ago.

Pakistan have taken a host of youngsters to Zimbabwe in an attempt to identify their best playing XI with the ICC Champions Trophy less than three months away.

While Tayyab takes the place of Haseebullah, who was dismissed without scoring in the first ODI, Abrar is set to replace pacer Mohammad Hasnain, who took one wicket in the opener.

Abrar may have been included given the spin-friendly conditions at the Queens Sports Club, which helped Zimbabwe spinners Sean Williams (2-12) and Sikandar Raza (2-7) leave Pakistan’s batters clueless.

“The new-look batting line-up was unable to handle the pressure,” Rizwan had said after the first match. “Being reduced to 58 for 6 was far from the ideal start to the series.

“We gave away easy runs in the latter stage of Zimbabwe’s innings. Sikander Raza and Richard Ngarava played pivotal roles in adding crucial runs, which shifted the momentum in their favour. The target wasn’t unachievable; we simply didn’t rise to the challenge,” he added.

An average innings total of 217.2 in the last 10 ODIs at venue hints the dominance of bowlers here lately. The fact that the 300-run mark hasn’t been crossed twice in the same match confirms the same.

Having said that, as was seen in the first ODI, there will be enough for both the pacers and the spinners. Hence, whosoever sticks to the basics, will stand a chance to benefit from the conditions on offer.

Abrar, known as a “mystery” spinner, has been in and around the Pakistan dressing room with eight Tests and three T20Is under his belt.

The right-armer will provide support to chinaman Faisal Akram, who shined with three wickets on his debut in the first one-dayer. The combination may help Pakistan discover a spin duo.

Winning the series, however, will be Pakistan’s primary goal with Rizwan and co expected to overcome an opponent of Zimbabwe’s level.

According to reports from Accuweather.com, Bulawayo may experience significant disruptions due to impending rain showers, which may deal a blow to Pakistan.

PAKISTAN XI: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Kamran Ghulam, Tayyab Tahir, Mohammad Irfan Khan, Aamer Jamal, Haris Rauf, Faisal Akram, Abrar Ahmed.

Published in Dawn, November 26th, 2024