Pakistan Vs South Africa in UAE : Pakistan Vs South Africa, 4th ODI Live scorecard at Abu Dhabi- Nov 8, 2013
Teams : Pakistan Vs South Africa
Venue: Played at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Pitch report : South Africa, however, could break the pendulum swing of the score line because their batting has improved more than Pakistan's. On the Abu Dhabi pitch, which has proved the most conducive for run-scoring, South Africa seem to have an advantage but whether they have the temperament to make it count remains to be seen.The two bowling attacks, who tore into opposing batting line-ups in the first two matches, were somewhat nullified by an unhelpful pitch in the third game. Pakistan were blunted more severely by batsmen who were willing to apply themselves. Mohammad Irfan still caused problems and Pakistan will need him and the spinners to be at their best to level the series.
South Africa will be happier but not entirely satisfied with the changes they made to their line-up. They will still demand more from the batsmen, especially as the bowlers cannot be asked to do much more. Should they win on Friday, it will be the first time South Africa would have won an ODI series before the final game since they blanked New Zealand 3-0 in 2011-12.
Pakistan need more competent performances from their two Umars, Amin and Akmal, if they keep their places. Both batsmen have been guilty of needless soft dismissals - think Akmal handing Imran Tahir a return catch off a full toss - and Amin needs to tighten up outside his off stump. They need to make their adjustments quickly or the series could fall out of Pakistan's grasp.
South Africa's improvement with the bat in the third match included two of their batsmen getting half-centuries, and with the fourth fixture being played on the same placid surface in Abu Dhabi, they will be looking for someone to score a hundred. JP Duminy appears the likeliest candidate. As South Africa's top scorer from the previous match and the most comfortable batsman against the spinners, he may be the man to score the first century of the series.
Pakistan moved Mohammad Hafeez back to the top of the order for the third match and will probably keep him there with Ahmed Shehzad. With the middle order still a concern, it may be time to consider handing Sohaib Maqsood a debut and bringing in Sarfraz Ahmed as wicketkeeper. Wahab Riaz has been unsuccessful with the ball, and Junaid Khan could be a handy replacement.
Last Five Match Result :
Pakistan LWLWW (last five completed games, most recent first)
South Africa WLWLL
Match Stats :
AB de Villiers is 148 runs behind Jacques Kallis as South Africa's leading run-scorer in ODIs against Pakistan.
Shahid Afridi has played in more ODIs than anyone else in Abu Dhabi, with 19 appearances to date.
Teams:
South Africa team: GC Smith, AB de Villiers, M Morkel, DW Steyn, HM Amla, JP Duminy, RJ Peterson, VD Philander, LL Tsotsobe, WD Parnell, R McLaren, DA Miller, CA Ingram, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, Quinton de Kock
