Shoaib Akhtar
Pakistan’s cricket team faced disappointment as their dreams of reaching the Asia Cup 2023 final were shattered by Sri Lanka in a virtual semi-final match. Pakistan had hoped for a showdown with India in the title-decider, but Sri Lanka, led by Charith Asalanka’s composure in the crucial moments, secured the victory. Former Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar expressed regret that the opportunity for the first-ever Indo-Pak final in the Asia Cup had slipped away.
Akhtar praised Pakistan pacer Zaman Khan, who was brought into the team due to injuries to Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah. Despite not taking any wickets and conceding 39 runs in 6 overs, Zaman’s performance impressed Akhtar.
“You’ve seen the match. Pakistan is out of the tournament. The match, which was favoring Pakistan, was all because of Zaman Khan. He arrived the day before yesterday, and this boy performed excellently in the Pakistan Super League. Whatever chance Pakistan had of winning the match was all because of him. Shaheen Afridi also got a few wickets, but credit goes to Zaman. He bowled really well,” Akhtar stated in a video on his YouTube channel.
Embarrassing loss. Really disappointed .
Wake up call guys!!! pic.twitter.com/qDtQWM7YJJ— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) September 14, 2023
The Rawalpindi Express believed that Pakistan deserved to reach the final but acknowledged that Sri Lanka outperformed them on the day.
“Pakistan deserved to reach the Asia Cup final, but they are out of the tournament. They can face a lot of criticism as they were considered ‘favorites’ but are now out of the tournament. Unfortunately, there won’t be a Pakistan vs. India match in the final; it has never happened (kabhi Pakistan, India ka match (final) ho nahi sakta, kabhi hua nahi). This was the chance, but Sri Lanka deserved to be in the finals. They were the far better team,” he opined.
A disheartened Shoaib Akhtar described the loss as ’embarrassing’ and urged Babar’s team to prepare for the upcoming ODI World Cup, which starts next month.
“Having said that, this is a very embarrassing loss. The fact that Pakistan is out of the tournament doesn’t look nice. Pakistan has a lot to think about. The captaincy needs to sharpen up a bit. I am very disappointed. Can’t say more,” he concluded.
