Following Pakistan’s 84-run defeat to New Zealand in the second One-Day International, which dropped them to 0-2 in the series, Mohammad Rizwan addressed the media in the post-match conference. The captain of Pakistan acknowledged that the home team outperformed his team in every aspect of the match. Rizwan commended Naseem Shah and Faheem Ashraf for his tenacity at bat.
Because of the surface’s strong bounce and speed, the star player thought it was difficult to bat for an Asian team. He acknowledged, though, that the players felt compelled to put in effort and had no space for excuses.
“Although painful, it’s a necessary component of the game. As a batting group, we struggled and didn’t use the swing. The battle between Faheem Ashraf and Naseem Shah was excellent. The pace and bounce were different from those in Asia, so it was a little difficult, but as professional cricketers, we shouldn’t make excuses and should work hard,” the Pakistani captain remarked.
Regarding the playing conditions in the third ODI, Mohammad Rizwan said, “We don’t know much about the pitch in Tauranga.”
He said Pakistan wasted crucial opportunities in the series and commended the Kiwi bowlers for hitting the hard lengths. “The cricket players from New Zealand were well-behaved and regularly hit the hard distances. In the past few months, we have been losing at crucial times. “Mitch Hay deserves praise for his outstanding batting style,” Rizwan continued.
The WK batter said he was unaware of the conditions for the third game of the series when questioned about it. “Our knowledge of the Tauranga pitch is limited. We’ll examine the circumstances and take the necessary actions (for the upcoming game),” Mohammad Rizwan continued.
NZ batted first and scored 292/8 against difficult batting conditions. After being reduced to 132/5 after 26.3 overs, Mitchell Hay’s 99*(78) helped New Zealand mount a tremendous comeback. Pakistan had dropped to 114/8 and was on the verge of a humiliating defeat. Faheem and Naseem, however, made sure the losing margin was lowered to 84 runs.
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