Former Pakistan speedster Sarfaraz Nawaz slammed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for their selection of the squad for the T20 World Cup 2024. He pointed out that Pakistan need to work hard in their fielding considering their performance in the T20I series against England and Ireland.
Pakistan's World Cup team recently featured in the T20I series against Ireland and England where they beat the Irish by 2-1 and the faced a 0-2 defeat at the hands of defending champions England.
"The matches we have seen in England and before that in Ireland, it is evident that the Pakistan team urgently needs to work hard, especially in fielding. You can see that the fielding has not been up to the mark, and in T20 matches, fielding plays a significant role. Also, the performance of the middle-order batting is not clear from the start, and even the openers' performance is not guaranteed. Looking at all this, I would say that the current planning of the Pakistan team doesn't seem very impressive to me. They also seem to have missed the mark in developing the right combination, as they kept trying different players, bringing some in and dropping others. Instead of developing a regular combination, they are stuck in experiments," Sarfaraz said.
Sarfaraz for Pakistan's wicketkeeper-batters
Sarfaraz also questioned why there are three wicketkeeper-batters in Pakistan's World Cup squad. He wants Rizwan to don the wicketkeeping gloves in the marquee event. He also opined that adding Salman Ali Agha to the team would add balance to the side.
"You have three wicketkeepers: Usman can also do wicketkeeping, Azam is there, and you have Rizwan as well. You should have Rizwan do regular wicketkeeping; he should be the regular keeper. Besides this, you can add another batsman in the middle order. Salman Ali Agha, you have dropped him from the team, but in my opinion, he was the best fit for the middle order," he said.
Sarfaraz Nawaz on favouritism
The former Pakistan pacer also questioned Azam Khan's selection in the squad. He suggested that players like Aamer Jamal Sahibzada Farhan are more deserving candidates than Azam. Moin Khan's son Azam is yet to prove his mettle on the international stage. The wicketkeeper-batter has played 13 matches and scored just 88 runs with a high score of unbeaten 30 which came against Ireland.
"Azam Khan is there due to favouritism; what can we do when there's favouritism here and there? Nadeem Khan, the Director of Sports, is also involved. These kinds of favouritism should not have been there from the start. I would say that Sahibzada Farhan should have been in the team; he was the most deserving. Then, in Australia, you took an all-rounder, Aamer Jamal. Why didn't you develop him? He gave such a good performance there, and he can bowl with good speed and bat bravely. He could have been a match-winner. I am surprised that you are choosing only two all-rounders: Shadab and Imad. If you think having just two all-rounders is enough, then the team cannot run like this," he concluded.
Babar Azam & Co. will enter the tournament as last edition's finalists where they lost the title clash against England in Australia. Pakistan will play their T20 World Cup opener clash against the co-hosts United States which is scheduled to take place at Grand Prairie Stadium on June 6.
Pakistan's T20 World Cup 2024 squad
Babar Azam (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan.
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