Pakistan crashed out of the Asia Cup after a last-ball defeat to Sri Lanka in what was virtually a semi-final match with the loser getting knocked out. Pakistan bowling attack’s lack of precision and poor tactics from skipper Babar Azam in the tail-end of the match were widely discussed. Babar Azam and Co. will have a lot to worry about in their plans for the World Cup, as they might end up losing the services of two of their top bowlers due to injury.
Pakistan’s spinners failed to make any noteworthy impact on their game and at times leaked runs in the middle overs as a result of which the team mostly fielded only a single spinner, Shadab Khan. Shadab started off their campaign with a 4-wicket haul against Nepal but has failed to deliver on his expectations since his form would be a worry for Pakistan going into the World Cup.
Shadab, who is also the vice-captain of the team, only registered 4 wickets in the Super 4 stages, scalping two wickets each against India and Sri Lanka and going wicketless against Bangladesh. The skipper also had some special praises for Zaman Khan
Second thing, yes Zaman Khan has shown character and is doing well in the past, in the PSL and in two PSL finals, where he bowled in the last over – Babar Azam
Babar Azam also made a comment on the rising pacer Zaman Khan and said that the right arm pacer has shown a lot of promise. Babar was quite optimistic that Shadab Khan would come good in the ODI WC 2023. Babar pointed out that Zaman Khan almost won the match for the team but at the same time Babar said that International cricket is a different thing.
“Second thing, yes Zaman Khan has shown character and is doing well in the past, in the PSL and in two PSL finals, where he bowled in the last over. So he has full confidence but the international match is a different thing” said Babar Azam.
Pakistan finished in the last spot of the Super 4 after Bangladesh defeated India in the final match of the stage.