Pakistan likely to stick with winning combination

Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi indicated on Tuesday he would retain the side who defeated Australia in the World Cup group stages for Wednesday's quarter-final against West Indies.

Pakistan took the field for the Australia match without fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar and opened the bowling with left-armer Abdur Rehman as the defending champions were beaten for the first time at a World Cup since 1999.

"We want to go with the winning combination. We will see, but I think we are happy with this winning combination," Afridi told a news conference.

Afridi said the victory over Australia had given the 1992 champions a welcome confidence boost before the knockout stages.

"We worked hard before this World Cup. We are taking the practice sessions very seriously," he said. "I think we are feeling more confident now, it's a good sign before the quarter-final."

Afridi paid tribute to his bowlers, signalling out pace bowler Umar Gul for particular praise.

"He was struggling a little bit with his ankle before but I think he is 100 per cent fit," Afridi said.

"He is doing a great job with the ball, especially with the new ball."

TRIAL BY SPIN

Afridi has led from the front throughout the group stages, taking five wickets twice with his quick wrist-spin and heading the wicket-taking list with 17 victims.

"I am just trying to bowl wicket to wicket," he said.

"The conditions are very good especially for the spinners so I am not trying any experiments. Whatever the plan I make I try to stick with it."

West Indies captain Darren Sammy said his team were looking forward to returning to the ground where they defeated in Bangladesh in the group stages in a match which effectively ensured they reached the knockout stages.

He said his two key players Chris Gayle and Kemar Roach were ready to return to the side after missing the final group game against India.

"Both Gayle and Roach participated in our practice today. Roach bowled and Gayle batted and I liked the way they looked, so obviously everybody is in good spirits," he said.

"I know we will come out with the best combination to go out there and win us the quarter-final."

Sammy said West Indies expected a trial by spin.

"Their captain has been the leading wicket taker in the tournament with 17 wickets," he said.

"I think we should pay attention to that. They have two off-spinners and a left-arm spinner, we watched them play, we know what we are going to face."

He said the team had no problem returning to the city where the team bus had been stoned by angry Bangladesh fans who thought the vehicle contained their team.

"Since we have been back here we felt loved by the people," he said.

"It's unfortunate what happened but we left that behind us. We know Bangladesh people are loving people. They support the cricket, no doubt tomorrow will be an exciting game and hopefully West Indies will come out on the victorious end.

"We played here and it was a perfect demonstration of a plan being executed. We will be taking confidence from that and looking to put in a good performance."

Not thinking of India yet, says Pakistan's Afridi

Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi is not concerned about a possible World Cup semi-final showdown against India, saying his immediate focus was on beating the West Indies.

Pakistan start firm favourites in Wednesday's quarter-final against Darren Sammy's men at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium after topping Group A with five wins in six matches.

One of those wins broke Australia's unbeaten streak of 34 World Cup matches over a 12-year period after the three-time defending champions went down by four wickets in Colombo on Saturday.

A win over the West Indies could had Afridi's men a mouth-watering semi-final against arch-rivals India, if the co-hosts beat Australia in Thursday's quarter-final in Ahmedabad.

"Our entire focus is on winning the quarter-final, I am not even thinking of the next match, whether it is India or Australia," Afridi told a packed news conference.

"We will not take the West Indies lightly. Any team is capable of winning on their day, there are no second chances in a knock-out match. I think they are a very good side."

The West Indies collapsed from winning positions against England and India, and only qualified for the quarter-finals on superior run-rate after ending the league level with Bangladesh on six points.

The impressive run by Afridi's team would have delighted their volatile nation, which has been stripped of big-time cricket at home due to security concerns and tainted by an unsavoury spot-fixing scandal.

The absence of former captain Salman Butt and pace spearheads Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif due to the controversy was not felt as the team has rallied superbly under their inspirational captain.

All-rounder Afridi is the tournament's leading bowler with 17 wickets with his fastish leg-breaks, while seamer Umar Gul has kept the pressure on at the other end with 13 wickets.

Afridi may have failed with the bat so far with just 65 runs in six games, but young guns Umar Akmal and Asad Shafiq have shone brightly in their first World Cup.

Akmal has scored 211 runs at 52.75 and Shafiq averages 124 in the two games he has played so far, while seasoned seniors like Misbah-ul Haq and Younis Khan have lent solidity to the middle-order.

"Our success so far has been entirely due to the bowlers, who have done a very good job," said Afridi. "I myself have not batted well and will focus on that tomorrow.

"I know how important my batting is for the team and I will try to get some runs on the board."

Afridi played down suggestions that the West Indies will be hard to beat at a venue where they shot out Bangladesh for their lowest one-day total of 58 in the league to romp home by nine wickets.

"That was Bangladesh, this is Pakistan," the captain said. "It's not that we are playing for the first time in these conditions. We feel at home anywhere in the sub-continent."

Afridi said he had never seen Pakistan work so hard at their cricket, which has been rewarded by the good results so far.

"I have played for 14 years and never seen the team train so seriously and focus on their game," he said. "The entire team is together in the dream to do well in the World Cup.

"Our aim at the start was to make the semi-finals and I am confident we can achieve that. The expectations back home are high and we are determined not to let our supporters down."

Pakistan v West Indies head to head

Head-to-head record for the World Cup quarter-final between Pakistan and the West Indies at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium on Wednesday:

Matches: 114

Pakistan wins: 48

West Indies wins: 64

Tied: 2

First meeting: June 11, 1975, Birmingham - West Indies won by one wicket.

Last meeting: September 23, 2009, Johannesburg - Pakistan won by five wickets.