pakistan managed to live another day at the World Cup, courtesy a seven-wicket win over Bangladesh which kept their semifinals still alive. Bangladesh were knocked out of contention. Here is a look at how their semifinals prospects are placed.
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How Pakistan would need a helping hand from India and Afghanistan to reach the semifinals
Where are they now?
Their third win, which ended their four-game losing streak, helped them to jump past Afghanistan into the fifth spot. They have six points now, same as Afghanistan, who have a game in hand. They are set to play New Zealand and England, which are must-win games.
Is their fate in their own hands?
With just two more matches remaining and 10 being the maximum points they can get to, Pakistan need help from elsewhere to make it to the last-four.
You can try your hand at solving our Cricket World Cup crossword
First up, pray for India to win
Yes, come Thursday, the whole of Pakistan would be cheering for India who take on Sri Lanka. If India wins, it will eliminate Sri Lanka, which means one less competition to fend off.
Then hope Afghanistan's juggernaut ends
If Afghanistan win all of their three matches, then even two wins will not be enough for Pakistan to go through. So apart from winning both their remaining matches against New Zealand and England, they need Afghanistan to win only one of their three remaining matches against the Netherlands, Australia and South Africa, which will keep them to 8 points. If Afghanistan win two and have 10 points on board, then it could come down to net run-rate.
Matches in hand:
India: vs Sri Lanka, vs South Africa, vs The Netherlands
South Africa: vs New Zealand, vs India vs Afghanistan
New Zealand: vs South Africa, vs Pakistan vs Sri Lanka
Australia: vs England, vs Afghanistan, vs Bangladesh
Pakistan: vs New Zealand, vs England
Afghanistan: vs The Netherlands. vs Australia vs South Africa
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