Pakistan’s dry run in the cricket circuit continued as they ended their Champions Trophy campaign in the group stages. After that dismal exit from such a high-profile event, the ‘Men in Green’ are ready to put everything behind and look forward to their upcoming T20I series against New Zealand.
After that horrendous outing at the Champions Trophy, the team did come under heavy criticism from the experts regarding team selection. The T20I series against New Zealand will be quite different as the team has also made some major appointments, and the coach, Aqib Javed, shared quite a few key points.
Thereafter, before stepping into the upcoming five-match T20I series, they have undergone some major changes and declared a whole new squad. Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam have been excluded from the T20I squad, and Shaheeh Afridi is also missing out on the entire limited-over schedule. The interim head coach gave his views on what he called bold selections, suggesting that the team is to embark on a new premise.
“It can never be the case. There’s a cross placed here and that would never put a discussion on that on a permanent basis. Currently, we feel that it’s time to introduce a younger group of players and, hence, a change in the style of play and mindset. Many teams have separated their T20I squads to an extent of 80-90%. While I also believe that we will still need to consider one or two players, possibly from this setup,” he said.
They were also dealt with quite a huge blow just before the Champions Trophy began with the ankle injury to Saim Ayub leaving him out of the tournament. But that was nowhere in sight, with Fakhar Zaman ruled out due to injury halfway through the tournament. Such comments added a lot of pressure on the team. Their experience renews hope for the squad and gives weight to Aqib Javed’s comments.
“When you look at this squad, once Saim and Fakhar recover, it will be a truly strong unit. The goal is to test core strength by getting 24-25 players to stay together and not to drop out of the system before the Asia Cup and World Cup, that they are confronted by these tournaments with a mindset,” he said
Pakistan’s bowling sensation Shaheen Afridi was sweating his form while playing at the Champions Trophy. He could take only 2 wickets in two matches. As the ‘Men in Green’ are into the limited-over series, Afridi now finds himself out of the ODI squad. Javed has explained this
“Sometimes in ODIs, we do assess how good a player really is on the basis of the needs and demands of the team: If a player doesn’t fulfill those, it creates a problem,” he said.
“But conversely, both Haris and Shaheen, I think, are very good bowlers for T20 and will give the team much more return. Now, it is not that Shaheen will play only T20 cricket and that’s it for life. But it’s our job, as selectors, to take the decision at the right time,” he added
Meanwhile, as it transpired recently, the omission of Usama Mir stirred controversy. It was considered timely by team management to give Azam Khan and Khushdil Shah a shot, simply because they had performed better during the franchise leagues. The management was heavily criticized for this move, and Pakistan’s coach took the opportunity to expound on this matter.
“Every team usually includes seven batsmen, which also includes all-rounders, and the remaining four players are bowlers—typically three fast bowlers and one spinner. Similarly, when forming a T20 team, you need all-rounders.” Javed said.
“Usama Mir’s exclusion was primarily due to fitness concerns. We had discussions with him and met him regarding this issue. When making a comeback, you need to leave no room for doubt. For example, we included Sufiyan Muqeem in the T20 squad because he is a left-arm wrist spinner, providing a different angle. Alongside him, we have Abrar Ahmed, who is a mystery spinner and has been performing exceptionally well,” he added.
After the Champions Trophy horror, Pakistan is ready for its next assignment as they are all set to face New Zealand in the upcoming five-match T20I series starting from March 16. After consecutive setbacks, Pakistan will be eyeing a stronger comeback.
