Perth: Pakistan captain Babar Azam has defended the decision to play an extra pacer in the form of Mohammad Wasim Jr. against Zimbabwe. Pakistan suffered a second consecutive defeat against Zimbabwe in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022, putting the team in danger of an early exit from the tournament. Days after a heart-wrenching loss to arch-rivals India, 2009 champions Pakistan suffered a one-run loss to Zimbabwe on Thursday.
Babar Azam said after the match, “To be honest, we were not able to perform as expected in all three departments. It’s a very difficult time as a team and as a captain.” Pakistan came in this match with an extra fast bowler in the form of Wasim and he also proved his selection right by taking four wickets for 24 runs. Due to his sharp bowling, Zimbabwe’s team could score only 130 runs for eight wickets.
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Pakistan’s batting order, however, did not show depth and the team lost by one run chasing a small target. Defending the addition of fast bowlers, Babar said, “There was a need for fast bowlers on this pitch, so we planned that way and went with extra fast bowlers.”
“When Rizwan and I got out, Shaan (Masood) and Shadab (Khan) shared a partnership. But after the dismissal of Shadab, our batting order collapsed and we could not finish the match properly.
After losing the first two matches, Pakistan will take on the Netherlands in a do or die match on Sunday and Babar promised a strong comeback. “We have two days and we will sit together and discuss our mistakes and then come back strong,” he said. (agency)