Shahid Afridi Lauds Pakistan Team

ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Former Skipper Shahid Afridi was all-out for praise for the Pakistan team for outplaying Ireland in the second T20I saying we needed this win.

Following Pakistan's impressive victory over Ireland on Sunday, Afridi took to social media to express his appreciation for the team's performance.

He particularly highlighted the outstanding contributions of Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman, whose match-winning knocks were instrumental in Pakistan's success.

In his post, Afridi also congratulated his son-in-law Shaheen Afridi for reaching a significant milestone marking a remarkable achievement in his cricketing career.

In the second T20I match against Ireland, the Green-shirts faced a challenging target as Ireland posted 193 runs after losing seven wickets in the first innings.

Despite early setbacks with the dismissals of key players like Babar Azam and Saim Ayub, Pakistan came back strong with exceptional batting performances.

"We needed this win. Well done team, sp the way Rizwan and Fakhar played. We need the same mindset in the World Cup and similar strike rates for most batsmen. Congrats to Shaheen on 300 intl wickets, well done," Afridi posted as quoted by cricketpakistan.

com.pk.

Meanwhile, former Pakistan cricketer, Ramiz Raja, has addressed Pakistan's bowling woes, against Ireland where they conceded 193/7.

"They conceded 200 runs against Ireland and it seemed as if our bowlers were behind, If they had taken the catches of Rizwan and and Zaman it would have become difficult for Pakistan to chase the target," Raja said.

He said Pakistan's top bowlers were giving away so many runs against Ireland. Pakistan's forte, and success are based on the bowlers, especially pacers, they have been struggling since last year's World Cup. Two balls are good and then three deliveries are bad, this makes the situation tough, he said.

He expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of Saim Ayub as an opening batsman, emphasizing the need for consistency and reliability at the top of the order.

"If you don't score 50 off 30 balls then breaking Rizwan and Babar's opening duo doesn't make any sense," Raja said.

Raja also pointed out on the coverage of the matches. “These matches are appearing as some club matches. There are only a couple of cameras, no DRS, no replays, lack of clarity in boundaries, there is no real enjoyment in watching shot or a good ball. This is hurting our brand," he said.