Pakistan surprised everyone by reaching the final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022. They will now face England in the final of the tournament this Sunday in search of their 2nd T20 World title. Matthew Hayden, who is the mentor of the side has praised the duo of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan.
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Babar and Rizwan are the backbones of Pakistan’s batting, and this tournament has not been kind to them. Although, they showed their class in the game against New Zealand, and they would want to continue their form at the MCG as well. Shan Masood, Mohammad Haris and Iftikhar Ahmed have been great in the middle order.
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The bowling is the strength of the side, and the way Shaheen Afridi has bounced back is brilliant to watch. Afridi struggled in the first few matches, but he has now picked 9 wickets in the last three matches. Shadab Khan has been the leading all-rounder of the side.
Matthew Hayden hails bonding of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam
Pakistan’s team mentor Matthew Hayden has hailed the bonding of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 final against England at the MCG. Hayden has said that both of them have shared some amazing partnerships on the ground. He insists that both of them share a great bond off the field as well.
Both Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have struggled in the tournament, but the way they batted in the semi-final is a huge sight of relief for Pakistan. They stitched a century partnership against New Zealand in Sydney, and Rizwan also won the Man of the Math award.
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“The stats are amazing when you look at those two and their performances,” Matthew Hayden said as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
“And it just speaks volumes for not their on-field relationship, but you know, very much their off-field chemistry and relationship. Both [are] very good leaders under their own rights.”
Matthew Hayden excited about Pakistan vs England final
Matthew Hayden has expressed his excitement about the match between Pakistan and England. He said that everyone wants to see a fight between express pace bowling and a potent batting attack. Hayden believes that the Pakistani side has some best bowlers in the world.
Hayden insists that both England and Pakistan have equal balance in the team, and it can be a close final. He said that he knew that the English side is the most threatening team in the tournament from the start only.
“You’ve got quality fast bowling versus quality batting. It’s why you want to watch the game,” Hayden added.
“I think both sides actually have got very equal set-ups. So you look at the England set-up as well, they’ve got genuinely six bowling options and a handy option of having batting allrounders as well.”
