Former West Indies cricketer Brian Lara spoke about the chances of Pakistan and the United States of America (USA) for the Super 8 stage of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. He supported the co-hosts to reach the next stage of the tournament. .
Pakistan has found itself in the middle of nowhere in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. Babar Azam’s side are also almost eliminated from the tournament as they played torrid cricket in the tournament and struggled to get going with both bat and ball. .
Pakistan started the T20 World Cup 2024 on a rather poor note as they suffered a disappointing defeat against the United States of America. It was the biggest surprise in cricket as the Babar Azam-led team could not handle the pressure and lost the game in the super final of the tournament.
To make matters worse, Pakistan lost the match against arch-rivals India. The team led by Babar Azam also suffered a bad defeat against India. They were the favorites to win the game as they lost it from the winning position, accruing a 6-run loss.
Pakistan finally made a strong comeback by winning the match against Canada. But the victory was of no use to them as they are still likely to face early elimination from the T20 World Cup as their qualification depends on how Pakistan performs.
The United States, on the other hand, is second in the points table. They won their first match against Canada and then defeated Pakistan before losing to India. However, they are very much in contention for the Super 8 stage as all they need to do is win.
If the United States wins their final match of the 2024 T20 World Cup against Ireland, they will advance. If they lose and then Pakistan beat Ireland, they will qualify for the next phase. A failure will also favor the co-hosts, since they have more points than Men in Green.
My money is in the United States – Brian Lara
Brian Lara, in making his prediction for the Super 8 phase of the tournament, stated that the United States has a great chance of qualifying and opted for the co-hosts. He believes that the Monak Patel-led team is very confident and it will be a historic moment for them if they qualify. Speaking to Star Sports, he explained:
“Of course mathematically they (Pakistan) have a chance. I think the United States should just take it upon themselves to win in their last match, they do it and they qualify. But we expect them to win and the United States to lose.” “So my money is on America, I think they are full of confidence and would want to get to the Super 8, which will be so big and historic for American cricket.”
From Group A, India have qualified for the Super 8 phase. It remains to be seen who will join them.
