Every game counts for Pakistan and Azhar Ali as 2019 Cricket World Cup looms

With qualification for the 2019 World Cup now decided on points, Pakistan and West Indies look to get off to winning start.

Pakistan's Azhar Ali. Reuters / Lee Smith

SHARJAH // Azhar Ali, Pakistan’s one-day international captain, says his side face a crucial series against West Indies in their bid to qualify for the 2019 World Cup in England.

After Pakistan thrashed the Caribbean side 3-0 in the 20-over format, they now meet in a 50-over series with much riding on it.

Friday’s game in Sharjah arrives exactly a year until the cut off for qualifying for the next World Cup, which will involve just 10 teams, is set to happen.

It is the first time in history the Test nations will have to worry about attempting to qualify, without their place in the competition being granted automatically. England, as hosts of the event in just under three years’ time, are guaranteed a place.

The next seven qualifiers will be decided by the top placed sides in the ICC’s one-day international rankings as of September 30, 2017.

The final two places will be settled by a qualification tournament, which could also involved the UAE national team, in Bangladesh in March and April 2018.

West Indies currently sit eighth in the table, so just within the qualifying places, given that England are fifth.

Pakistan are ninth, and Azhar is aware of the need to make up lost ranking points against the Caribbean side in this three-match series.

“It is very important considering qualification for the 2019 World Cup,” Azhar said. “Teams are contesting it, but we are very confident we have the ability to do well in this series, and we can perform to the potential.

• Read more: Pakistan retain under-pressure Azhar Ali as ODI captain for West Indies series in UAE

“In limited-overs cricket, West Indies are a dangerous side and have players who can win games on their day. We are aware of that, but we need to focus on our own game and take that aggressive mode from the Twenty20 into the ODIs as well.”

Pakistan have won five matches in succession in limited-overs formats, having taken the last match of their ODI series in England, and the lone T20 which followed.

Azhar said his side are full of confidence after the 20-over series cleansweep of West Indies with which they started their UAE tour. “We have to take that confidence of the three good T20 wins,” Azhar said.

“We also had a good win at Cardiff, we chased 300 plus outside Asia for the first time,” a reference to the final match at the end of the 4-1 series loss to England.

“We bowled well in that last game so we had set good standards in the last few limited-overs games, so we have to keep improving.”

Jason Holder, the West Indies captain, said his team are aware that each fixture matters in relation to 2019 qualifying.

“Obviously the way ICC has structured the World Cup, we have to take each game as very serious game,” Holder said.

“Every game is points related and points are very important for the team. We can control only us by playing good cricket, so we want to start this series well.”

Holder has taken on the captaincy armband after Carlos Brathwaite led in the T20 series. The side is still without a head coach, after the West Indies Cricket Board parted company with Phil Simmons on the eve of the tour.

“We are professionals,” Holder said. “We have got to be professional. At the end of the day, we have nothing to worry about it but playing cricket.”

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