Former Pakistan pacer, Shoaib Akhtar, shared his sentiments after Pakistan was knocked out of the 2023 Asia Cup after their defeat to Sri Lanka in the Super Four stage in Colombo on Thursday.
However, Akhtar expressed admiration for the young Pakistan pacer, Zaman Khan, who was brought into the squad due to injuries to Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah. Akhtar couldn’t help but laud the budding talent.
“You’ve seen the match. Pakistan is out of the tournament. The match that was made in favor of Pakistan, it was all done by Zaman Khan. Whatever chances Pakistan had of winning the match were all because of him. Shaheen Afridi also got a few wickets, but credit goes to Zaman. He bowled really well,” Akhtar said on his YouTube channel.
While acknowledging Pakistan’s rightful place in the Asia Cup final, The Rawalpindi Express accepted that Sri Lanka outperformed them on the crucial day.
“Pakistan deserved to go to the Asia Cup final, but they are now out of the tournament. They will be criticized a lot as they were touted as the ‘favorites.’ Unfortunately, there won’t be a Pakistan vs. India match in the final, it has never happened. This was the chance, but Sri Lanka deserved to be the finalists,” he further added.
In the aftermath of this crushing defeat, Akhtar labeled it as ’embarrassing’ and called upon Babar Azam’s men to regroup, tighten their laces, and prepare rigorously for the upcoming ODI World Cup, set to begin next month.
“Having said that this is a very embarrassing loss. The fact that Pakistan is out of the tournament doesn’t look nice. Pakistan has a lot to think about. The captaincy needs to sharpen up a bit. I am very disappointed. Can’t say more,” he concluded.
