This evening at the Dubai International Stadium, Pakistan will play a match they have to win. A victory in the third and final One-day International against New Zealand will not just give Pakistan an elusive series victory against the Black Caps it would also, more importantly, lift their ODI morale.

They really need it.

The ICC World Cup in England is less than six months away. Barring Friday’s second ODI in Abu Dhabi, Pakistan’s form in the 50-over format has been poor, to say the least. They turned out to be mere pushovers for India in September’s Asia Cup in the UAE and were unable to really challenge New Zealand in the opening ODI last Wednesday when they crashed to their 12th consecutive defeat against the Black Caps.

But Friday’s game saw a different Pakistan. It saw the sort of spirit from Sarfraz Ahmed and his men that helped them swim against the tide and win the ICC Champions Trophy in England last year. They need a repeat performance tonight in Dubai.

Personally, I believe that New Zealand have a stronger ODI line-up than Pakistan. They would once against start as favourites. But the hosts would have the momentum after their emphatic triumph in Abu Dhabi, where their bowlers were up to the task and their batters didn’t disappoint.

Pakistan must be fully aware that a victory against New Zealand would give them much-needed confidence. Pakistan are languishing at No. 5 in the ODI rankings and the way they played in the Asia Cup forced many to question their 50-over credentials ahead of World Cup 2019. A series-winning triumph against New Zealand, ranked No. 2 and one of the top sides for the World Cup, should instill more self belief in Pakistan’s ODI squad.

Our T20 line-up is brimming with confidence while the Test squad is also regaining lost ground after the exit of Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan. But in the ODIs, the Pakistanis have been struggling following their stunning victory in the ICC Champions Trophy last summer.

The biggest reason is their unreliable batting. Chasing anything above 250 or even 230 seems like a very tough task for our batsmen. And the rot starts at the very top. One of the key reasons behind Pakistan’s Champions Trophy success was the rise of Fakhar Zaman as a big-hitting opener. But in recent months he had been flopping miserably. The left-hander regained his form on Friday and the end result was a comfortable win for Pakistan after his 88 which made the chase of New Zealand’s 209-9 almost like a walk in the park. Fakhar and the other top order batsmen will need to become more consistent especially when Pakistan are chasing a bigger target that 209. Babar Azam has to play the key role while Shoaib Malik also needs to be more prolific.

Many believe that despite their overall poor run of form in ODIs Pakistan will be a dangerous team in the World Cup because of their potent bowling attack. The World Cup begins in May and there are chances that conditions could help our pace attack. But unless our batsmen start putting enough runs on the board, the bowlers won’t be able to single-handedly do the job. After all, long drawn tournaments like the World Cup aren’t won by single-dimensional teams.