Pakistan captain Babar Azam has refrained from terming the current Playing XI as their best in the ongoing eighth edition of ICC T20 World Cup. Azam, who laid emphasis on each player of this current squad being a match-winner, hasn’t given up on Pakistan’s chances of qualifying for the semi-finals.
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Azam, who leads an unpredictable team in a “funny game”, has been eyewitness to them losing and winning two consecutive matches respectively. Scheduled to face Bangladesh in Adelaide for their last Super 12 match on Sunday, Pakistan will have to win their third match in a row if they want their limited chances of qualification to work in their favour.
This is for my entire team who have supported me throughout. I try to give it my all for them and for the fans of Pakistan cricket. Will always keep believing and working hard no matter what. #PakistanZindabad pic.twitter.com/aO6QAe9IKl
— Shadab Khan (@76Shadabkhan) November 3, 2022
Babar Azam admits dip in form for himself and Mohammad Rizwan in T20 World Cup 2022
An honest assessment of his current form led to Azam from pointing fingers at himself and his opening partner Mohammad Rizwan. Having built a reputation of doing the heavy lifting in this top-heavy Pakistani team, both Azam and Rizwan have been found wanting on Australian pitches in this World Cup.
Second-highest T20I run-scorer behind Rizwan in the last two years, Azam acknowledged a significant dip in form for both of them but was pleased to see how other batters took the South African bowling attack to the cleaners in the recently concluded T20 World Cup 2022 Match 36 in Sydney.
“We are not up to the mark – me and [Mohammad] Rizwan. But the way [Mohammad] Haris played, different player, set the momentum. And the way Shadab [Khan] and Ifti [Iftikhar Ahmed] finished the innings, [they were] outstanding,” Azam told the broadcaster during the post-match presentation ceremony tonight.
A normal glance at Azam and Rizwan’s last 10 T20I innings is enough to observe how these two right-handed batters have failed to provide Pakistan with solid starts in this tournament.
Pakistan’s most complete victory in T20 World Cup 2022 became a possibility primarily due to a match-winning 35-ball 82-run sixth-wicket partnership between batter Iftikhar Ahmed and vice-captain Shadab Khan.
Playing only his second T20I, batter Mohammad Haris justified his promotion from standbys to the Playing XI by batting at a strike rate of 254.54 during his 11-ball stay inside the powerplay. All in all, the trio scored a combined total of 131 (68) comprising of eight fours and nine sixes at a strike rate of 192.64 on Thursday.
