The Pakistan skipper admits that they have not been able to perform consistently in all departments.
CHENNAI: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-Oct 24th, 2023) Pakistan's captain Babar Azam didn't mince words when addressing his team's shortcomings after an eight-wicket loss to Afghanistan.
Babar expressed his profound disappointment, specifically targeting his bowlers for their inability to take wickets during the middle overs and his fielders for their lack of focus and proactiveness.
In the first innings, Pakistan managed to post a total of 282 for 7, but Afghanistan comfortably chased it down with an over to spare. Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran provided a strong start with 130 runs, and Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi sealed Afghanistan's victory with an unbroken 96-run partnership. This marked Pakistan's first failure to defend a target exceeding 275 at the World Cup.
Babar commented, “The defeat has deeply affected us. We had set our sights on a total between 280-290. However, once we achieved that, our bowling and fielding performance fell short. Our spinners failed to execute their plans, particularly during the middle overs."
“We began well in the middle overs but lacked wickets. The pitch was still assisting the spinners in the second innings, but we, especially our spinners, failed to find the right lengths. Conceding a boundary every over meant there was no pressure on their batsmen,”.
On the Chennai pitch, where Afghanistan's spin quartet - Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mohammad Nabi, and Noor Ahmad - collectively claimed 4 for 176 in their 38 overs, Pakistan's spinners - Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, and Iftikhar Ahmed - couldn't manage any wickets and conceded 131 runs in 21 overs.
According to Babar, Pakistan's bowlers had plans in place but struggled with execution, resulting in an inability to build pressure. He also acknowledged the team's fielding deficiencies.
Babar said, "We haven't been able to perform consistently in all departments. When our bowling is on point, our batting falters, and vice versa. Fielding is about attitude, and I see a lack of it in the team. Fielders need to put in extra effort, maintain fitness, and stay focused on the ball. They should be proactive. I believe we're lacking in these aspects as a fielding unit."
“In bowling, we've had trouble executing our plans. When you can't hit your desired lengths and concede boundaries, your focus shifts to restricting runs, leading to more mistakes and added pressure. The margin for error for bowlers is quite small here. Even a slight deviation results in boundaries. We're lacking in these areas,”.
Despite scoring 74 runs in the recent match, Babar's form with the bat in the World Cup has been subpar. In five innings, he has accumulated 157 runs with an average of 31.40, which falls short of his career average of 56.79. When asked if captaincy affected his batting, Babar dismissed the notion, stating, "Captaincy doesn't place significant pressure on me or my batting. I always strive to give my best and focus 100% on batting when I'm at the crease. My thoughts are on scoring runs for the team during batting, while captaincy is a consideration during fielding."
