"I see Pakistan as one of the teams in the semi-finals" : Shahid Afridi

[Abdullah719]

LAHORE (Reuters) - Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi says the side have injected the right amount of experience into their World Cup squad with the late inclusions of pacemen Wahab Riaz and Mohammed Amir, and have no excuse for poor performance now.

Riaz’s hostile spell to Australian Shane Watson was one of the highlights of the 2015 World Cup, but the 33-year-old has not played a one-day international since June 2017.

Fellow left-arm quick bowler Amir was also initially omitted from Pakistan’s World Cup squad before being pencilled in on Monday.

“I think this team has the right combination,” Afridi said in a video posted on the Pakistan Cricket Board’s Twitter feed on Thursday.

“The best thing is (that) batting used to be a constant worry for us but our batsmen are now in good form,” the former all-rounder said.

Pakistan posted 340-plus scores in three of the four completed matches in this month’s ODI series in England, even though the hosts prevailed 4-0.

In March they had been thrashed 5-0 by Australia in the United Arab Emirates.

“We did quite a few experiments with the side. We rested the seniors in the series against Australia, giving chance to youngsters,” Afridi said.

“Our bowling struggled before the World Cup I think because they lacked experience there.

“Now Wahab Riaz, (leg-spinner) Shadab Khan and Mohammad Amir are back and it’s a well-balanced team. We should not have any excuse now.”

Consistency has never been the strong point of an otherwise talented team, but Afridi reckoned a good start could take the 1992 champions all the way to the June 14 final at the Lord’s.

“It’s very important to win the first couple of matches to build a momentum ... Our youngsters are capable of beating any team in the world.”

“I see Pakistan as one of the teams in the semi-finals and, God willing, I’m confident they’ll play the final too ...

“Pressure is inevitable in international cricket. It tests a player and his mental strength. But World Cup is also a great opportunity to become a hero with the whole world looking at you.”

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-c...kistan-at-world-cup-says-afridi-idUKKCN1ST1BN

 

[chacha kashmiri]

Afridi showing his age with this interview
Difficult not to agree with him on experience and guile etc
Could do with this spinning tips as he was quite used to bowling with different pace in every delivery

 

[MenInG]

More Afridi quotes:

"Based on the conditions of the country and from what we are hearing and the way Pakistan is being cornered from all four sides, the opposition and the Government will need to get together and make some decisions"

"Because the opposition and Government only exist because of existence of Pakistan"

"Whenever a leader from a country talks, atleast it should look as if he a proper leader and when our leader talks, his body language says a lot"

"So PM Modi should also give a good response in the same way PM Imran Khan is trying to do" [little difficult to translate]

"Some of my players had been caught for spot fixing so it was difficult for me to make a squad for the World Cup; I wanted as captain to win that World Cup and we almost did it" [2011 World Cup?]

"But the 1999 World Cup was my first and most of the players were youngsters in the squad, but we batted first in the final when conditions werent suited for that, so both 1999 and 2011 were great opportunities to win the World Cup that we missed"

"Junaid Khan's stance [in social media] was not right, and he didnt need to do that; a lot can be done by doing things silently"

"I may have done the same if I were in his place, although I am now saying he shouldnt have"

"He still has an international career ahead of him so at this stage he didnt need to do this"

"His name was in the squad and then removed so the management should also have handled this better"

"The World Cup is a great opportunity for all players to make a name for themselves"

"Sarfaraz Ahmed will need to bat up the order and that is where he can survive the best"

"He doesnt have the ability to play the big shots so he cannot perform at the 5-6 position"

"He is the captain and he needs to lead from the front, the more time he spends on the pitch, the more his players will play around him"

"Its important for the captain to bat at a top order position"

"Wahab dreamt of captain, inzi and coach in his