Former captain Shahid Afridi was not happy in the slightest following Pakistan’s embarrassing 6-run loss to India in the T20 World Cup on Sunday, and the all-rounder sounded off on skipper Babar Azam for the same.
Pakistan, who have lost to USA and India, are not set to face Canada in a must-win game on Tuesday to keep their T20 WC hopes alive.
“I think now is the time for Gary Kirsten and Babar Azam to make some changes. I would like to see Salman Ali Agha come into the side in place of Usman Khan and Abrar Ahmed to come in for Shadab Khan,” Afridi stated in talks with ICC.
Pakistan’s pacers reigned supreme over the batting order of the Men in Blue who, after making an impressive stand of 81/3 in the first 10 overs, were bundled out for a meagre 119 runs, the first time India were bowled out by Pakistan in T20Is.
What seemed like an easy win for Pakistan turned out to be a nightmare, as talisman pacer Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Hardik Pandya brought down hell on the Pakistan batting order as well, leading to a debilitating 6-run loss for Pakistan at the end of it all.
In Afridi’s eyes, a big culprit was none other than skipper Babar Azam, who he believes must be demoted down the batting order, to allow the likes of batters such as Fakhar Zaman to open the innings.
“Most of all, I believe Fakhar Zaman should be promoted to open the innings alongside Mohammad Rizwan, with Babar dropping down to number three.
“There are some tough conversations and choices to come but we need to remember that there is still hope: Pakistan are not out of the tournament yet.”
Despite their fall of wickets, Pakistan were still on track to possibly win the match, needing a doable 37 runs in the last 5 overs. But, once Bumrah scalped the likes of Rizwan in the 14th over, the batting order crumbled, failing to reach their target.
“The key difference between the two teams was India’s consistency, self-belief, discipline and attitude on the field. The Pakistan batting line-up simply isn’t clicking and what we saw was a weak display of power hitting.
In Afridi’s opinion, Pakistan simply could not handle the pressure of a game as big as the one on Sunday.
“On the big days, you have to have nerves of steel until you make it through.
“India stayed positive and calm until the last ball and the pressure of the run chase was not handled well by Babar Azam’s side,” he added.
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