Babar also defends wicketkeeper-batsman Rizwan, who missed out on his century by just two runs
RAWALPINDI: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-April 25th, 2023) Pakistan captain Babar Azam said that dropping Mark Chapman's catch at a crucial juncture proved to be the turning point of the game during clash with Kiwis in the fifth and final match of T20I series at Rawalpindi ground on Monday night.
Addressing a post-match press conference, Babar Azam stated that the dropped catch had cost them the game. However, he defended Shadab Khan, stating that he gave many performances in the past and one poor series wouldn't make a difference to the team's support for him.
Babar also defended wicketkeeper-batsman Rizwan, who missed out on his century by just two runs. He believed that the team was on track to score 200 runs after the start they had and Rizwan and Iftikhar's partnership. However, in the last three overs, Rizwan couldn't accelerate the run-rate as desired. Babar said that Rizwan performed well in the past and the team should have done better in those two overs to score ten more runs, but it wouldn't be fair to blame the loss solely on him.
Mark chapman scored unbeaten century leading his side to level the series 2-2.
Chapman attempted a big shot against Shaheen in the 14th over but ended up splicing the ball, sending it straight to Shadab Khan who was fielding at wide long-on. However, Shadab dropped the catch, which proved to be costly.
At that point, Chapman was batting on 67 and eventually finished his innings with an unbeaten 104 runs off 57 balls.
The next five-match ODI series between the two teams will begin on April 27 in Rawalpindi.
