Sarfaraz explains how difficult semi qualification would be
If Bangladesh bat first, Pakistan will be eliminated and New Zealand will be the fourth team to qualify for the semi-finals along with Australia, India and England.
When Pakistan and Bangladesh face each other in their last game of the World Cup group stage in Lord’s on Friday, there will be little to no chance of Pakistan making the semi-finals, even if they win the match.
If Bangladesh bat first, Pakistan will be eliminated and New Zealand will be the fourth team to qualify for the semi-finals along with Australia, India and England.
If Pakistan bat first, they have to defeat bangladesh by a margin of 316-runs or more to qualify, which seems a near-impossible task.
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Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed also expressed at how difficult qualification for the semis would be, but he also added that they would try their best.
"Obviously we are here to win all the matches. We will do our best to win the last game as well. We will do our best but we need to be realistic. If you score 600, 500 or 400 score on a pitch then you think you can get the other team out for 50? It will be tough but we will still give it a try,” Sarfaraz said at the pre-match press conference.
"The target is in front of us, there are no secrets that [we have] to score 500, 550 and then win by 316-run margin. But if you look at the tournament then, realistically it is a 280-300 tournament," Sarfaraz explained.
On the other hand Bangladesh head coach Steve Rhodes has been making media appearances instead of captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, as it will be his last World Cup match, and an emotional farewell can be expected.
Rhodes has expressed that playing at Lord’s in a World Cup would be a special occasion for the team and they would be desperate to win this match.
“Both teams are desperate to beat each other. We certainly are. I'm pretty sure they are. They've got a lot to play for as well. We're looking to obviously win. We want to win. We've practiced well today. We've come up with some good plans. When we lost against India, we were out of the tournament, but we all recognise that there's one more game to go and one special occasion at Lord's and a very good, tough team to beat as well. So if we can take the scalp of Pakistan in the World Cup, we'll be very, very proud of the boys," Rhodes explained.
