LAHORE: Fast-bowler Wahab Riaz has apologized to the nation once again for the Pakistan cricket team’s thumping defeat...
LAHORE: Fast-bowler Wahab Riaz has apologized to the nation once again for the Pakistan cricket team’s thumping defeat at the hands of Australia in the World Cup quarter finals.
Early Monday morning, the Pakistan cricket team landed at the Lahore airport, where none of the players spoke to the media and were rushed out of the airport under tight police security.
Riaz, however, later briefly spoke to reporters after he reached his residence.
“As I said before, I apologize to the nation on behalf of myself and the entire team for not being able to fulfill your expectations, but we tried our best,” he said.
Answering a question, Riaz said his blazing-fast spell of repeated bouncers against batsman Shane Watson was “only to put pressure” on the Australian team in an attempt to take wickets and win the match.
“It wasn’t any one player that fought, all eleven players put up a fight. Everyone put in their efforts, but unfortunately it wasn’t luck. Whatever happened in the end was God’s will,” he said.
Apart from Riaz, players who arrived in Lahore on Monday included Ahmed Shahzad, Nasir Jamshed, Misbahul Haq, Sohaib Maqsood, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Irfan, and others.
Shahid Afridi, Sohail Khan and Sarfaraz Ahmed had earlier landed at the Karachi airport.