Babar Azam led side humiliating defeat by India in the Super 4 match in Colombo, which was a result of an underwhelming performance in both batting and bowling departments. Adding to Skipper Babar Azam‘s woes, Pakistan lost its two frontline pacers – Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah to injury, both of them have been ruled out of the remaining matches as a precautionary measure. Babar Azam-led Pakistan will face Sri Lanka, in what would be a virtual semi-finals, as the winner will play India in Sunday’s final. Babar Azam perhaps will have to change his gameplan and play fearlessly if the Men in Green wants to post big totals on the board.
Team India with 4 points and a healthy net run rate has secured a spot in the finals, after their win against Sri Lanka in the last match. This offered Pakistan a realistic chance of qualifying, as a Sri Lankan victory would have made things difficult for Pakistan. Both teams have 2 points with a win each, and a defeat in the upcoming match would knock either of them out of the tournament. Recent injuries have slightly derailed Pakistan, but former cricketer Ramiz Raja asked the team to be confident and not to point fingers at each other.
If anyone needs special practice, they can take it. Go to the pool, relax. Don’t touch social media, don’t watch television channels. There won’t be anything good there because the whole Pakistan is disappointed – Ramiz Raja
Ramiz Raja was speaking on his YouTube channel and asked the team to get united, relax, make good use of the break day and focus on the next match. He urged the players to stay away from social media and news channels, as the whole country is upset with their team’s performance, and that could prove to be a distraction.
“If anyone needs special practice, they can take it. Go to the pool, relax. Don’t touch social media, don’t watch television channels. There won’t be anything good there because the whole of Pakistan is disappointed. Get united. You point fingers at each other after such defeats, that too against India. That shouldn’t happen” said Ramiz Raja.
Earlier, India defeated Pakistan by 228 runs in a game that took place over two days, thanks to centuries from Virat Kohli and KL Rahul along with a fifer from Kuldeep Yadav.
Pakistan announced replacements for injured Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf, this deprives them of their biggest strength going forward in the tournament. Nevertheless, Ramiz Raja was confident about Babar Azam rallying his troops, and inciting high spirits among the players to give their best.
“I’m sure Babar Azam has united this team really well, and his work is to assure his players and get the team-high in spirit ahead of the Sri Lanka clash,” he stated.
Pakistan has announced their team for the game against Sri Lanka, with Fakhar Zaman being dropped for his sub-par performance with the bat.
Also Read: Asia Cup 2023: Sri Lanka And Pakistan To Face Off In A Thrilling Virtual Semi Final