Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja pinpointed the tactical error made by the Men in Green in the Super Over, leading to their 5-run defeat against the USA in the T20 World Cup.
At the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Pakistan was left in disbelief while the USA camp erupted with a roar of happiness.
On a day when Pakistan were mostly chasing their opposition, they managed to raise hopes of victory with their clinical spell of pace in the final four overs. Haris Rauf had to defend 15 runs in the final over, but the USA managed to take the game into the Super Over.
The co-hosts batted first and put 18 runs on the board, with Mohammad Amir’s struggle to find consistency playing a major role in it. To defend the total, the ball was handed to left-arm pacer Saurabh Netravalkar. Right-handed batter Iftikhar Ahmed was on strike, while left-handed Fakhar Zaman stood at the non-striker’s end.
According to Ramiz, this was the tactical error made by the Pakistan team, as Fakhar would have been the ideal option to face Netravalkar. “Left-arm batter plays a left-arm pacer better. Shadab (Khan) worked a lot to score those 40 runs. It doesn’t mean he has form or can go in the crunch moments and score fours or sixes. We don’t have fancy shots; we didn’t use reverse flick or a ramp shot. Fakhar Zaman got left at the non-striker’s end. So tactically, this was a big mistake,” Ramiz said on his YouTube channel.
Amir was handed the ball for the Super Over ahead of Shaheen Shah Afridi after he impressed in the penultimate over of the second innings. Ramiz questioned Amir’s approach and stated he should have stuck to his strength instead of trying something “fancy.” “Pakistan made mistake after mistake in the selection and strategy aspect. Mohammad Amir tried to do fancy things. His go-to ball is the Yorker, but there was no control. It was a dispirited performance. Nobody looked motivated to fight in the game,” Ramiz added.
After enduring a defeat in the campaign opener, Pakistan will face arch-rival India at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York, on Sunday.
