Shoaib Akhtar fears Pakistan's elimination from World Cup with 'this batting order'
September 16, 2022
- Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar criticises team selection for T20 World Cup 2022.
- Says "average people like average, extraordinary can't be expected from them."
- Says PCB made "pathetic" decision by not changing the middle order.
The Pakistan squad announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup has drawn widespread criticism as the selectors made no major changes to the squad that played in the Asia Cup 2022.
Many eyebrows were raised about the batters in the middle order and one of the critics was former pacer Shoaib Akhtar, who fears that the Green Shirts might drop out of World Cup at an initial stage with "this batting line-up".
In a video message, the star cricketer began by criticising the chief selector, saying that "average people like average people".
"We cannot expect extraordinary decisions from average people," he added.
Akhtar, aka Rawalpindi Express, said that he has tired himself out by repeatedly saying that Fakhar Zaman should be placed as an opener for a while but skipper Babar Azam "wouldn't leave his place as an opener".
It may be recalled that Babar Azam failed to perform well throughout the Asia Cup tournament, which caused the team great harm due to early fall of wickets.
Based on his experience as a fast bowler, Akhtar said that the ball comes up on the Australian pitches and it would suit Fakhar.
Moving on to the middle order of batting, the former cricketer said that the PCB made a "pathetic" decision by not changing the middle order.
Moreover, he said that he wonders why Pakistan batters with a batting coach like Mohammad Yousuf are unable to perform well.
The Men in Green struggled to secure a spot in the Asia Cup 2022 finale with a staggering batting lineup throughout and it seems it was only good luck that propelled the side through to the Super 4s stage match against Afghanistan.
