The Pakistan cricket team is just one step away from booking an ICC men’s T20 World Cup semi-final berth. Facing Namibia in a Super 12 Group 2 match, Pakistan will be keen on maintaining its consistency.

After a chaotic build-up to the World Cup with England and New Zealand pulling out of Pakistan tours, the Babar Azam-led side has defied the odds and has become the team to beat in the tournament.

Pakistan started their tournament with an emphatic 10-wicket win over arch-rivals India and then followed it with comfortable victories against New Zealand and Afghanistan.

As far as the batting is concerned, both the top-order and the middle-order have come to the party whenever captain Babar Azam needed them. In the middle, they have their six-hitting machine Asif Ali, who is a force to be reckoned with.

However, the team would be expecting more runs from veteran Mohammad Hafeez’s bat. He is the only one to have not made a significant contribution in the top six.

In the bowling department, Pakistan is powered by Shaheen Afridi in the pace attack and Imad Wasim in the spin department. While the bowling unit is polished, there is always room for improvement.

After reducing the Afghans to 76/6, Pakistan allowed them to score a challenging 147 and if it wasn’t for Asif Ali’s six-hitting ability from ball one, the outcome of the game could have been different.

The team would also be expecting a lot more from Hasan Ali, who has proved to be its weakest link in the bowling department.

Namibia, who were blown away by Afghanistan on Sunday, will be looking to compete against a top side.

The debutants had no answer to Afghanistan bowlers, especially the pacers, on Sunday afternoon. Despite main spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman not playing due to injury, Namibians found the bowling attack too hot to handle.

Six Namibian wickets were worryingly taken by the pacers and Pakistan have a much better attack than Afghanistan.

“We are aware of the challenges. We need to make use of this level. This is a stepping stone for the future,” said Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus.

The performance of leggie Loftie Eaton was a big plus for Namibia from the last game. Lead pacer Ruben Trumpelmann too would be aiming to provide the early breakthroughs which could be a plus point for them.

Squads (from)

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Shaheen Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shoaib Malik.

Namibia: Gerhard Erasmus (c), Stephan Baard, JJ Smit, Karl Birkenstock, Jan Frylinck, Ben Shikongo, Bernard Scholtz, Craig Williams, Michael van Lingen, Ruben Trumpelmann, Zane Green, David Wiese, Pikky Ya France, Michau du Preez, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton

The match starts 7.30 IST.