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Abu Dhabi: Pakistan captain Younis Khan finds himself under pressure as his team heads into the series-deciding third and final One-day against New Zealand here on Monday.
Pakistan, who have not won a One-day series since beating the West Indies in Abu Dhabi last year, achieved a thumping 138-run win in the first match on Tuesday before New Zealand hit back with a 64-run win in the second on Friday.
Moreover, Younis is having a lean patch with the bat, scoring nought and 19 in the two matches -- but coach Intikhab Alam backed his captain to come good when it matters.
"It can happen to any player," said Alam of Younis's wretched form which saw him scoring only two half-centuries in the last 18 matches. "I am sure that he can come good anytime, maybe in this crucial, must-win game."
The 31-year-old replaced Shoaib Malik as captain after Pakistan lost a One-day series against Sri Lanka at home in January last year.
Under Younis, Pakistan lost One-day series against Australia in the United Arab Emirates and against Sri Lanka (on tour) earlier this year.
Although Pakistan won the World Twenty20 in England in June and then reached the semi-final of the Champions Trophy, Younis had to offer his resignation over unproven match-fixing allegations last month and questions on his form.
Pakistan Cricket Board rejected his resignation, saying that Younis, if fit and performing, can continue as captain until the 2011 World Cup.
Alam said both Pakistan and New Zealand will be under pressure in the final match.
"Since it's a must win game for both the teams, whoever wins takes the series so both teams will be keen to perform and I hope my players raise their confidence and win this series, it's very important for us."
New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori said he would try to put more pressure on Pakistan.
"We look for more improvement and make sure that we head into this final game with more confidence and put more pressure on Pakistan," said Vettori, whose team finished runners-up to Australia in the Champions Trophy last month.
"We did well throughout the Champions Trophy as most of the games we played were must win games and we stepped up, so I hope the team does it one more time."
Vettori feared Pakistan can hit back after the loss.
"Pakistan can come back hard on us, so we must be ready for that, but I think there's something left for us as lot of guys who, I suppose, need to perform on this tour and those who have performed need to do that once more."
Middle-order batsman Ross Taylor, who failed to score in both the matches, faces one more test.
After the One-day series both teams move to Dubai where they play two Twenty20 matches on November 12 and 13.
Team news
Pakistan: They might make a number of changes, or none at all. The younger Akmal should play though whether he will is altogether a different thing.
Squad (likely): Salman Butt, Khalid Latif, Younis Khan (capt), Mohammad Yousuf, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal (wk), Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Aamer, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal.
New Zealand: There wouldn't be much reason for New Zealand to change their line-up. Perhaps Nathan McCullum's dropping for Neil Broom was a little hasty, though, Vettori as a spinner is more than enough for Pakistan to handle.
Squad (likely): Aaron Redmond, Brendon McCullum (wk), Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Neil Broom, Jacob Oram, Daniel Vettori (capt), Tim Southee, Kyle Mills, Shane Bond.
Pitch and conditions
Not likely to be different from the surfaces for the first two games so batting first will be the preferable option. There was some talk of drizzle, but snowballs in hell sound more likely.
Stats and trivia
Match facts
Monday, November 9, 2009
Start time 15:00 local (11:00 GMT)
