Pakistan came into the World Cup besieged by a corruption scandal and doubts over Shahid Afridi's captaincy but they now stand on the verge of the last eight with the tournament's only perfect record. Inspired by Afridi, who has led from the front with a tournament-high 14 wickets, Pakistan sit on top of Group A with six points after wins over Kenya, Sri Lanka and Canada. Now they face New Zealand in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, on Tuesday, who are in fourth place in the group with two wins. Pakistan started their World Cup bid under a cloud after former Test captain Salman Butt and pacemen Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer received lengthy bans on charges of corruption relating to last year's Lord's Test against England. But they have regrouped and Afridi, who is also known for his devastating hitting, has turned the side into genuine contenders for their first World title since 1992.
Amid the focus on the 31-year-old, Test skipper Misbah-ul-Haq urged his team-mates to take the pressure off Afridi, who took 5-16 against Kenya and followed up with four wickets against Sri Lanka and five against Canada. "It's really very good for a team that its captain is doing well, but other players are also required to play well, take responsibility and ease pressure off the captain," said Misbah.
Misbah said Afridi has led from the front in the tournament. "I think in all conditions, especially here, Afridi is a difficult bowler to handle, he has got variation and doesn't give the batsmen time. With that kind of aggression he has led from the front," he added. Misbah said Pakistan's recent one-day series win over New Zealand would count for nothing. "We have done well against them in World Cups and in the recent series there but that win will count for nothing as it's a new game at a new place," said Misbah, of Pakistan's 3-2 win in New Zealand last month. Pakistan are set to bring in paceman Shoaib Akhtar after resting him for the previous match against Canada, while left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman is also available after missing that game due to a leg muscle injury.
New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori said he was aware of how good Pakistan's bowling attack could be. "They can probably defend any score because of the nature of their bowlers. They bring a lot to the table," he said. New Zealand, who lost to Australia by seven wickets but eased past Kenya and Zimbabwe by 10 wickets in each game, have four points after three matches. "It's a matter of stepping up against the harder teams," said Vettori, whose country has lost six World Cup matches against Pakistan since winning their first in 1983. The hill town of Kandy has suffered from persistent rains and the only international match here, a Test between Sri Lanka and the West Indies in December, was drawn without a single innings completed in five days.
The warm-up matches before the World Cup were also moved because of bad weather. Meanwhile, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has criticised Bangladeshi fans for stoning the West Indies team bus after the home side was humiliated against the Caribbean side, in an apparent case of mistaken identity. The attack on the West Indies bus was "undesirable" and such behaviour could affect Bangladesh's chances of hosting further major events, Hasina told a political rally late Monday. The Prime Minister urged fans to be patient after any home defeat, saying it was "not acceptable that you will garland the players if they win and pelt them with stones if they lose," she said.
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