Pakistan were off to a good start in the semifinal of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022, facing New Zealand at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday. With the courtesies of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan’s batting while chasing, the men in green managed to thumb up in the all-important clash in order to become the first team to qualify for the World Cup 2022 final.
Where Rizwan amassed an enchanting 57, Azam scored 53, building the base to reach 153. At the same time, Mohammad Haris totalled crucial 30 runs to contribute to the triumph. The skipper had been in hot water for not performing throughout the tournament, but he had saved the art of showing mastery in the crucial semifinal clash.
Azam is now praised for his inning alongside Rizwan, and while opening up on the encounter, he did not only credited his star inning but narrated that he finds the teamwork as the reason behind Pakistan’s powering up on Wednesday.
Giving the massive credits to his bowlers, Azam said,
“We had a good start in the first six overs, and later on, we had a good spin attack. The fast bowlers also finished very well. Our plan before going inside was to utilise the first six overs, and later on, everyone can come and chip in,”
While heaping praises on Haris, who has proved himself as a vital cog in the recent encounters, Babar said,
“I think he [Haris] is a young guy and showing his aggression,”
“Thanks to the crowd, it feels like we are playing at home. We will enjoy this moment, but at the same time, we will focus on the final.”
Meanwhile, the losing skipper Kane Williamson, who did not come across the upset times for the first time in ICC events, said,
“I thought Pakistan played nicely, and then we managed to wrestle back some momentum. At the halfway mark, we thought we had a competitive total but disappointing not to make Pakistan work harder [in the chase],”
“It’s a tough pill to swallow. Fielding was okay, but I think if we wanted to be honest, we wanted to be more disciplined with our areas. As I said, Pakistan deserved to win. Throughout the round-robin stages, we played nicely, and today, we weren’t at our best. Having said that, we know the fickle nature of T20 cricket,”
