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Leading Markhors in the absence of Mohammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed conceded a five-wicket defeat in Champions One-Day Cup 2024 final at the hands on Panthers on September 29. In the post-match press conference, Iftikhar was irked by the media in the country calling a player sensation after just one big performance. Iftikhar wants media to have patience and not praise or criticise someone on the basis of one game. The veteran all-rounder went on to blame the media for spoiling the atmosphere in the country.
"I want to tell you media guys that please don't hype players after one good innings. Let them prove their worth in domestic cricket. Let them top in domestic cricket for two to three times and then speak about bringing them in the Pakistan team. You hype someone after one innings and then when he fails for Pakistan, you start questioning his selection and then you guys only talk about them. For God's sake let a player top in all three formats and then speak about him. You guys start saying that we have found the new Inzamam-ul-Haq and things like that," the 34-year-old said in the post-match press conference.
"I am not against anyone. I am just telling you to show some respect to domestic cricket. Once a player performs well across the three formats in domestic cricket, you, me, everyone will speak about him. Aap log ki wajah se saara cricket ka mahaul kharab ho gaya hai (You guys have spoilt the atmosphere)," he added.
Easy win for Shadab’s Panthers
Iftikhar could not lead from front as Markhors needed a partnership in the middle overs after the wickets of Haseebullah Khan and opener Fakhar Zaman. He scored just three runs from 14 balls and was dismissed lbw by Mohammad Hasnain. Markhors were bowled out for 122 in 33.4 overs with Arafat Minhas and Hasnain bagging three-fers.
In the run chase, Panthers lost five wickets but they did not suffer a collapse. After Abdul Bangalzai's 41-run knock, Rizwan Mehmood and skipper Shadab Khan ensured Panthers chased down the non-threatening target in just 18 overs to win the inaugural edition of the domestic tournament.
Iftikhar’s numbers in Champions Cup
Iftikhar played a crucial knocks in the tournament but was overall disappointing. He scored 193 runs from six innings averaging 38.60 with two fifties. There is a question mark over whether he will be selected for the limited-overs tour of Australia in November.
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