Test cricketer Ahmed Shehzad has raised questions over Pakistan batters’ intent after the defeat in the first T20I against South Africa in Durban.
Pakistan, while chasing a target of 184 runs, fell short by 11 runs as they were restricted to 172-8 in their allotted 20 overs.
The visiting side lost Babar Azam (0) early on before Saim Ayub scored a quick 31 off 15 balls with the help of seven boundaries.
Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan held on to one end, playing an anchoring knock of 74 runs from 62 balls, which featured five boundaries and three sixes, before falling in the last over.
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However, he could not find much support from the other end with Tayyab Tahir (18) being the only third batter to cross the double figures.
Following Pakistan’s narrow loss, Ahmed Shehzad took to his official X (formerly Twitter) account and criticised the batting approach while chasing a massive target.
“Close but not good enough. Pakistan cricket team not learning from their past mistakes,” Shehzad posted. “Firstly letting South Africa to 180+ from where they were in the game was unbelievable, and then how we went to chase about this target was bizarre from the beginning.”
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Shehzad credited dot balls and lack of intent as the major reason behind Pakistan’s loss, while also urging senior players to take more responsibility.
“Too many dot balls & lack of intent in the chase cost us what could have been a victory for Pakistan. Seniors should be leading from the front not hiding behind youngsters,” he added.
However, he pointed out that Saim Ayub, Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed’s performances were the only positives for Pakistan in this game. Shaheen and Abrar took three wickets, while Saim played a quick 31-run knock from 15 balls.
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