Legendary cricketer Wasim Akram of Pakistan has harshly criticised his nation’s squad for their surprising defeat to the United States of America on Thursday, June 6, in the opening match of the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024. After the scores in ordinary time were level at 159 runs apiece, the USA overcame Pakistan in a super over.
Former Pakistani player Akram criticised the team’s performance at the 1992 World Cup. He believed that Pakistan was struggling at 30/3 at the end of the powerplay and that the USA’s early wicket-taking was the game’s turning point. Pakistan failed to take advantage of the momentum despite Babar Azam and Shadab Khan’s 72-run partnership.
“Absolutely awful performance. The game involves both winning and losing. However, you must battle to the very last ball. It was detrimental to Pakistani cricket, Akram stated to Star Sports.
The renowned bowler also criticized Pakistan’s fielding. He congratulated USA captain Monank Patel on his fifty-run score that won the game and on his efficient use of bowling resources. Akram emphasised how well the USA fielded, which was a major factor in their triumph.
“USA’s early wicket-taking was crucial to the game’s turning point. Babar and Shadab had a brief partnership in Pakistan, but after that, no one was seen. Pakistan’s cricket overall was mediocre, while their fielding was below average. I was confident when I played against the USA, and everyone who supports Pakistan was convinced that they would win given how they performed in the opening inning,” he remarked.
“They (the USA) started to chase in the second inning. Congratulations, USA. For me, Monank Patel’s innings and the way he batted and carried his bat were the highlights of the day. He led from the front with his clothing, in that sense. They played extremely excellent cricket from the USA, and their fielding was impeccable every time,” he continued.
“Pathetic performance” – Wasim Akram on Pakistan’s loss against USA
#T20worldcup2024 #T20WC2024 #USAvPAK #BabarAzam #PakvsUSA pic.twitter.com/7a6Z6hOirK
— Krazy_Khadija 2.0 (@krazykhadija_) June 7, 2024
Pakistan will find it difficult to move on to make the Super Eight. Wasim Akram
With challenging matches against Ireland, Canada, and India coming up, Akram thinks Pakistan will have a difficult time making it to the Super Eight stage of the competition. The fact that Pakistan gave up 18 runs in the Super Over destroyed their chances of winning the match, he underlined.
“Pakistan will have a difficult time moving forward to make the Super Eight as they have two more strong teams (Ireland and Canada) in addition to India (on June 9). “Getting 19 runs in the Super Over is equivalent to scoring 36 runs in a Super Over, really,” he said.
Also read: Pakistan was at its lowest, looking like club players: Sanjay Manjrekar
For the second time, the Monank Patel-captained team won the 2024 T20 World Cup. In their 20 overs, the rookies held Pakistan to 159/7 thanks to an outstanding bowling and defensive showing. To tie the game and force a Super Over, the USA responded with a vital 50 off 38 balls from captain Patel.
Although it was his duty to bowl the Super Over, Muhammad Amir gave up eighteen runs to Harmeet Singh and Aaron Jones. Saurabh Netravalkar was the American player who kept his composure under pressure and assisted his team in defending the total.
India
