Pakistan captain Salman Agha did not shy away from confronting reality after the team’s exit from the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup, offering a frank assessment of where things went wrong. He admitted that his batters, saved for Sahibzada Farhan, failed to deliver consistently throughout the tournament.
Agha’s comments came after Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka in Pallekele on Saturday to register a consolation win. However, having failed to restrict the hosts to 147 or fewer after setting a daunting 213-run target, Pakistan were unable to overtake New Zealand on net run rate and were eliminated from the semifinal race. They have now failed to reach the last four in their previous two T20 World Cup appearances since finishing runners-up in 2022.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Agha acknowledged that middle-order batting has been a persistent concern for Pakistan over the past few years. In a bold call, the management even dropped Babar Azam from the playing XI for Saturday’s game against Sri Lanka due to his prolonged poor form.
“We couldn’t bat well throughout the tournament. If Farhan had more support, it would have been better. The middle order has been a problem for a few years now, and we’ll have to address that,” Agha said.
On Saturday, Pakistan looked set for a total in excess of 240 as openers Farhan (100) and Fakhar Zaman (84) went hammer and tongs, putting on a 176-run partnership in 15.5 overs. However, the rest of the batting line-up collapsed, managing just 36 runs thereafter.
“Couldn’t finish the way we wanted to. We batted well for 18 overs, but the opposition bowled well in the last two. Even 160 would have been difficult to defend,” Agha added.
“It was always challenging after losing the toss because of the dew. It could have been a different story had we won the toss. Dew was definitely a factor. We couldn’t execute our plans. Usman Tariq had an off day — it happens.”
Meanwhile, Agha faces uncertainty over his future as Pakistan’s T20I captain. A PTI report claimed that PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi was “unhappy” with the team’s performance and had decided to remove the 32-year-old from the leadership role. Shadab Khan and Shaheen Afridi are reportedly being considered as potential replacements.
The report also stated that decisions will be taken regarding the futures of several senior players, including Babar Azam.
