- Joined
- Oct 2, 2004
- Runs
- 218,086
Salman Ali Agha at the post game presser
Salman Ali Agha in a post match press conference:
Question: Salman, if you look at this whole tournament over two-three weeks, do you view it as a success or a failure?
Answer: I think there have been ups and downs. It was a rollercoaster kind of tournament. There were many positive things and also many areas where we need to work on. The good thing is that we have an idea of what we need to improve and what we did well that we need to carry forward. So, we'll try to discuss and work on the things that went wrong and try to improve them, and we will continue the positives and try to better them further.
Question: Pakistan batted well for the first 10 overs, but couldn't keep it going afterwards. Regarding the bowling, there was one match where Pakistan bowled very well and took wickets, but then the match suddenly slipped away. What do you think is wrong with our bowling? Specifically, it's being said that Haris Rauf conceded too many runs, which cost us the match today.
Answer: Sir, we had a good start in both innings, bowling and batting. And you could say that we didn't finish as well as we should have in both innings. And Sir, we don't lose a match because of any individual. You lose as a team. If you win, you win as a team. Haris is one of the best bowlers for us. And if he didn't bowl well today, it's alright, because anyone can have a bad day.
Question: Salman, overall in this tournament, sometimes the top order collapses, and sometimes, like today, the middle order does. The batting has been a big loophole in this tournament. And you are, in a way, lucky that some controversy takes place, like what happened today. The media focus will be on the trophy presentation, and your performance will be overshadowed, and you won't face much criticism.
Answer: Sir, criticism on us is generally not... those who understand cricket talk about cricket. Other things are secondary, and I don't know why those things that are happening should happen. But we only talk about cricket. We know that we haven't batted well in this tournament, and we know what things we need to improve, and we look at those. We do not pay attention to the other things.
Question: Salman, bad luck, but the Pakistan team fought well today, played good cricket. There were some mistakes, both in batting and bowling. As a captain, what do you think was the turning point? The match was still in Pakistan's hands until the last over.
Answer: No, we can say we played good cricket, good cricket throughout the tournament. But in several matches, we struggled at certain points. Like you can say today, we started well in both batting and bowling, but we didn't finish well in both batting and bowling. So there are points where we had the opportunity to close the game in both innings, but we couldn't. So I think that was the turning point.
Question: In batting, Pakistan dominated the first 10 overs, and in bowling as well. But in the last 40 balls of batting, we scored only 36 runs and lost nine wickets. Then in bowling, when Abrar and Saim Ayub were doing very well, bringing in Haris Rauf was a bit tricky, because I think the match shifted from there, and that was probably the turning point.
Answer: You can say that, Sir, because when you lose, things obviously go wrong. But I feel that given the start we had, we should have scored more runs from there. Secondly, you saw Haris Rauf in the last match; he was the best bowler. And if you don't give your best bowler a chance, then I think later on, if he had conceded runs, we would have said that we didn't give our best bowler a chance. I felt that at that time, we should have kept our best bowler because they needed 63 runs in six overs. I felt we should have brought in the best fast bowler, as you saw the fast bowlers bowled very well in the first six overs. But you can say that, yes, when you lose, these things are bound to come up.
Question: Previously Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were considered the backbone. But they were also criticised for their strike rate, for playing 20 overs and not giving other batsmen a chance. After they left, we saw that in the Asia Cup, you lost eight, nine wickets in succession. Today, you couldn't even play the full overs. As a captain, did Salman Ali Agha miss Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in the Asia Cup?
Answer: Sir, this was the same team that was performing very well before the Asia Cup. We were scoring 180, 170. We went to America and scored runs there. We played a series at home and did well there. Even in Bangladesh, we scored 180. So we can't talk about any individual, because this team was doing very well before. And this team reached the final of this tournament, won the Tri-series. So it's not like we are missing any player. But I think we didn't finish well today, as I said. If we had finished well today, we could have scored 170 even today. So, it's not like that; we feel that this team is also quite good and has a lot of potential, and you will see that this team will do well in the future.
Question: When you became captain, and especially when Mike Hesson took over, there was talk of playing a new brand of cricket with role clarity. I have two parts to this question: What role was given to Hasan Nawaz that he couldn't fulfill, leading to his exclusion? Also, what was the strategic role for you and Usama Mir, given that we saw in the last two matches against India that at one point it was one wicket down, and then you and Husain Talat came in the 11th over. Today also, after a good score, you and Husain came in the 13th over, and then there was a collapse. There is a thought that other batters could have come in that place, but you both came. Can you elaborate on your roles?
Answer: Sir, the roles are clear. And you spoke about modern-day or... you've asked so many questions, I've forgotten your question! Sir, everyone's roles are clear. Hasan Nawaz... we felt that on these pitches, the ball comes a bit slow, and Husain Talat has different shots that can be used on these pitches. Hasan Nawaz also got a full opportunity. He couldn't perform that well, but he is the future of Pakistan's white-ball cricket going forward. I feel he is a player whom we will see performing for Pakistan in the long future, Insha'Allah. Similarly, Husain Talat. Everyone's roles are clear. There might be an issue with execution, but the roles are still clear for everyone.
Question : The Pakistan team not only displayed sportsmanship, but the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board also did, and you as the media manager also did, by allowing the Indian media to ask questions. I have to say this because a press conference just before this, lasting 35 minutes, took place, and the Indian manager did not allow Pakistani journalists to ask questions. I want to know, Salman, you showed sportsmanship, and Pakistan's response regarding the handshake was very positive. Then today, you also posed for a picture with the trophy alone. And the Chairman of the Cricket Board waited for a long time. Just a while ago, the captain of the Indian team came and did not answer why he did not take the trophy today, even though he shook hands with the Chairman of the Cricket Board on the 7th. I want to know what message you are taking back? Because players are ambassadors of their country, and cricket diplomacy plays a role between the two countries. What would you like to say as the captain and a leader of Pakistan?
Answer: Sir, what happened in this tournament, I think it's quite disappointing. If you look at cricket, they might feel that by not shaking hands, by doing all these things, they are disrespecting us. No, Sir, they are disrespecting cricket, and I believe that disrespecting cricket somehow comes back to you. And I'm very sure it will come back. And what they did today, I don't think a good team does that. Because good teams act the way we did, like going alone and getting a picture with the trophy, and then we stood there and took our medals. So, whatever they are doing with the game, I think that's just beyond... I don't know, I don't want to use very harsh words, but to be very, very honest, this is very disrespectful to the game, not to anyone. If they are thinking they are disrespecting us, I think they are wrong there. They are disrespecting the game, which is... I'm sure no one is going to obviously step into that.
(Follow-up) Well, he did shake hands with me when we were doing a press conference at the start of the tournament. And also during the referee's meeting. But when they come to the world, when they come in front of everyone, they don't do it. I'm sure if it were up to him, he would do it, because obviously, he has a different... I think he's just following the instructions he has, which is fine.
Question: We have also seen how the spirit of cricket has been damaged. Do you think that the ICC should take notice of these things and there should be a strong reaction or a law to prevent such things from happening again?
Answer: Sir, this is happening for the first time. I've never seen anything like this in my life, neither on TV nor in any game, what has happened to the game in this tournament. I don't know where things will stop. I don't know if other teams will start doing this after seeing this. Hopefully, they won't. But whatever happened in this tournament, I think was very, very bad. Hopefully, it stops at some stage somewhere. Otherwise, it's really bad.
Question: Have you seen before that a champion team does not get the trophy, or a team skips the pre-match press conference and its protocols in a multinational tournament?
Answer: Sir, those things were the consequences of everything else. You are asking a question; look at who started this. You need to look at who started it.
Question: Sir, shaking hands is not a rule.
Answer: Sir, if the ACC President is there, he is the one who will give the trophy, right? If you don't take the trophy from him, then how will you get the trophy? That is the point. And you are saying that the pre-press conference didn't happen. So, those things were after what happened on the ground, right? We didn't start it straight away. It started after the things that happened on the ground. So, it's not about who is doing it. It's about what is wrong with the game. So, that's what I'm saying. Nothing wrong should happen with the game.
Question: You won against Oman, Sri Lanka, UAE, and Bangladesh. You lost to India 3-0, and eight matches overall, 8-0. Have you analyzed your team's performance against India?
Answer: Yes, Sir, absolutely. We know that we are not playing good cricket against them right now. And you will see that if you look overall, we are still quite ahead of them. So, it means that every team has an era. Maybe their era is going on right now, and cricket is like that; eras happen. Just like we used to defeat them in the '90s, maybe today is their era, so they are defeating us like this. And you will see very soon we will start defeating them like they are defeating us now. So, the game of cricket is like that; it runs with eras, and it will continue like this in the future too.
Question: Salman Bhai, as you said that cricketers are ambassadors for their country. So, whatever happened here, especially today during the trophy ceremony, and we are also role models for young cricketers. What kind of negative image is being conveyed here? I am speaking on behalf of cricket, not about both teams.
Answer: Sir, even if I were not the captain of Pakistan right now and just a cricket fan, I would not support this thing, Sir, because it's wrong. If a child is watching at home, in Pakistan or India, what message are we giving them, Sir? We are not giving a good message because people consider us role models. If we as role models start doing things like this, then we are not inspiring anyone. And if we are inspiring, it is on the wrong thing. So, I still say, Sir, that I think whatever happened was wrong and shouldn't have happened. Now, those who did it, those questions should naturally be addressed to them. You are asking me, but I will never say that this is a good thing, Sir. And as a team, we are donating our entire match fees. We are donating it to the civilians and children who were affected by the recent Indian attack. Thank you very much.
Salman Ali Agha in a post match press conference:
Question: Salman, if you look at this whole tournament over two-three weeks, do you view it as a success or a failure?
Answer: I think there have been ups and downs. It was a rollercoaster kind of tournament. There were many positive things and also many areas where we need to work on. The good thing is that we have an idea of what we need to improve and what we did well that we need to carry forward. So, we'll try to discuss and work on the things that went wrong and try to improve them, and we will continue the positives and try to better them further.
Question: Pakistan batted well for the first 10 overs, but couldn't keep it going afterwards. Regarding the bowling, there was one match where Pakistan bowled very well and took wickets, but then the match suddenly slipped away. What do you think is wrong with our bowling? Specifically, it's being said that Haris Rauf conceded too many runs, which cost us the match today.
Answer: Sir, we had a good start in both innings, bowling and batting. And you could say that we didn't finish as well as we should have in both innings. And Sir, we don't lose a match because of any individual. You lose as a team. If you win, you win as a team. Haris is one of the best bowlers for us. And if he didn't bowl well today, it's alright, because anyone can have a bad day.
Question: Salman, overall in this tournament, sometimes the top order collapses, and sometimes, like today, the middle order does. The batting has been a big loophole in this tournament. And you are, in a way, lucky that some controversy takes place, like what happened today. The media focus will be on the trophy presentation, and your performance will be overshadowed, and you won't face much criticism.
Answer: Sir, criticism on us is generally not... those who understand cricket talk about cricket. Other things are secondary, and I don't know why those things that are happening should happen. But we only talk about cricket. We know that we haven't batted well in this tournament, and we know what things we need to improve, and we look at those. We do not pay attention to the other things.
Question: Salman, bad luck, but the Pakistan team fought well today, played good cricket. There were some mistakes, both in batting and bowling. As a captain, what do you think was the turning point? The match was still in Pakistan's hands until the last over.
Answer: No, we can say we played good cricket, good cricket throughout the tournament. But in several matches, we struggled at certain points. Like you can say today, we started well in both batting and bowling, but we didn't finish well in both batting and bowling. So there are points where we had the opportunity to close the game in both innings, but we couldn't. So I think that was the turning point.
Question: In batting, Pakistan dominated the first 10 overs, and in bowling as well. But in the last 40 balls of batting, we scored only 36 runs and lost nine wickets. Then in bowling, when Abrar and Saim Ayub were doing very well, bringing in Haris Rauf was a bit tricky, because I think the match shifted from there, and that was probably the turning point.
Answer: You can say that, Sir, because when you lose, things obviously go wrong. But I feel that given the start we had, we should have scored more runs from there. Secondly, you saw Haris Rauf in the last match; he was the best bowler. And if you don't give your best bowler a chance, then I think later on, if he had conceded runs, we would have said that we didn't give our best bowler a chance. I felt that at that time, we should have kept our best bowler because they needed 63 runs in six overs. I felt we should have brought in the best fast bowler, as you saw the fast bowlers bowled very well in the first six overs. But you can say that, yes, when you lose, these things are bound to come up.
Question: Previously Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were considered the backbone. But they were also criticised for their strike rate, for playing 20 overs and not giving other batsmen a chance. After they left, we saw that in the Asia Cup, you lost eight, nine wickets in succession. Today, you couldn't even play the full overs. As a captain, did Salman Ali Agha miss Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in the Asia Cup?
Answer: Sir, this was the same team that was performing very well before the Asia Cup. We were scoring 180, 170. We went to America and scored runs there. We played a series at home and did well there. Even in Bangladesh, we scored 180. So we can't talk about any individual, because this team was doing very well before. And this team reached the final of this tournament, won the Tri-series. So it's not like we are missing any player. But I think we didn't finish well today, as I said. If we had finished well today, we could have scored 170 even today. So, it's not like that; we feel that this team is also quite good and has a lot of potential, and you will see that this team will do well in the future.
Question: When you became captain, and especially when Mike Hesson took over, there was talk of playing a new brand of cricket with role clarity. I have two parts to this question: What role was given to Hasan Nawaz that he couldn't fulfill, leading to his exclusion? Also, what was the strategic role for you and Usama Mir, given that we saw in the last two matches against India that at one point it was one wicket down, and then you and Husain Talat came in the 11th over. Today also, after a good score, you and Husain came in the 13th over, and then there was a collapse. There is a thought that other batters could have come in that place, but you both came. Can you elaborate on your roles?
Answer: Sir, the roles are clear. And you spoke about modern-day or... you've asked so many questions, I've forgotten your question! Sir, everyone's roles are clear. Hasan Nawaz... we felt that on these pitches, the ball comes a bit slow, and Husain Talat has different shots that can be used on these pitches. Hasan Nawaz also got a full opportunity. He couldn't perform that well, but he is the future of Pakistan's white-ball cricket going forward. I feel he is a player whom we will see performing for Pakistan in the long future, Insha'Allah. Similarly, Husain Talat. Everyone's roles are clear. There might be an issue with execution, but the roles are still clear for everyone.
Question : The Pakistan team not only displayed sportsmanship, but the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board also did, and you as the media manager also did, by allowing the Indian media to ask questions. I have to say this because a press conference just before this, lasting 35 minutes, took place, and the Indian manager did not allow Pakistani journalists to ask questions. I want to know, Salman, you showed sportsmanship, and Pakistan's response regarding the handshake was very positive. Then today, you also posed for a picture with the trophy alone. And the Chairman of the Cricket Board waited for a long time. Just a while ago, the captain of the Indian team came and did not answer why he did not take the trophy today, even though he shook hands with the Chairman of the Cricket Board on the 7th. I want to know what message you are taking back? Because players are ambassadors of their country, and cricket diplomacy plays a role between the two countries. What would you like to say as the captain and a leader of Pakistan?
Answer: Sir, what happened in this tournament, I think it's quite disappointing. If you look at cricket, they might feel that by not shaking hands, by doing all these things, they are disrespecting us. No, Sir, they are disrespecting cricket, and I believe that disrespecting cricket somehow comes back to you. And I'm very sure it will come back. And what they did today, I don't think a good team does that. Because good teams act the way we did, like going alone and getting a picture with the trophy, and then we stood there and took our medals. So, whatever they are doing with the game, I think that's just beyond... I don't know, I don't want to use very harsh words, but to be very, very honest, this is very disrespectful to the game, not to anyone. If they are thinking they are disrespecting us, I think they are wrong there. They are disrespecting the game, which is... I'm sure no one is going to obviously step into that.
(Follow-up) Well, he did shake hands with me when we were doing a press conference at the start of the tournament. And also during the referee's meeting. But when they come to the world, when they come in front of everyone, they don't do it. I'm sure if it were up to him, he would do it, because obviously, he has a different... I think he's just following the instructions he has, which is fine.
Question: We have also seen how the spirit of cricket has been damaged. Do you think that the ICC should take notice of these things and there should be a strong reaction or a law to prevent such things from happening again?
Answer: Sir, this is happening for the first time. I've never seen anything like this in my life, neither on TV nor in any game, what has happened to the game in this tournament. I don't know where things will stop. I don't know if other teams will start doing this after seeing this. Hopefully, they won't. But whatever happened in this tournament, I think was very, very bad. Hopefully, it stops at some stage somewhere. Otherwise, it's really bad.
Question: Have you seen before that a champion team does not get the trophy, or a team skips the pre-match press conference and its protocols in a multinational tournament?
Answer: Sir, those things were the consequences of everything else. You are asking a question; look at who started this. You need to look at who started it.
Question: Sir, shaking hands is not a rule.
Answer: Sir, if the ACC President is there, he is the one who will give the trophy, right? If you don't take the trophy from him, then how will you get the trophy? That is the point. And you are saying that the pre-press conference didn't happen. So, those things were after what happened on the ground, right? We didn't start it straight away. It started after the things that happened on the ground. So, it's not about who is doing it. It's about what is wrong with the game. So, that's what I'm saying. Nothing wrong should happen with the game.
Question: You won against Oman, Sri Lanka, UAE, and Bangladesh. You lost to India 3-0, and eight matches overall, 8-0. Have you analyzed your team's performance against India?
Answer: Yes, Sir, absolutely. We know that we are not playing good cricket against them right now. And you will see that if you look overall, we are still quite ahead of them. So, it means that every team has an era. Maybe their era is going on right now, and cricket is like that; eras happen. Just like we used to defeat them in the '90s, maybe today is their era, so they are defeating us like this. And you will see very soon we will start defeating them like they are defeating us now. So, the game of cricket is like that; it runs with eras, and it will continue like this in the future too.
Question: Salman Bhai, as you said that cricketers are ambassadors for their country. So, whatever happened here, especially today during the trophy ceremony, and we are also role models for young cricketers. What kind of negative image is being conveyed here? I am speaking on behalf of cricket, not about both teams.
Answer: Sir, even if I were not the captain of Pakistan right now and just a cricket fan, I would not support this thing, Sir, because it's wrong. If a child is watching at home, in Pakistan or India, what message are we giving them, Sir? We are not giving a good message because people consider us role models. If we as role models start doing things like this, then we are not inspiring anyone. And if we are inspiring, it is on the wrong thing. So, I still say, Sir, that I think whatever happened was wrong and shouldn't have happened. Now, those who did it, those questions should naturally be addressed to them. You are asking me, but I will never say that this is a good thing, Sir. And as a team, we are donating our entire match fees. We are donating it to the civilians and children who were affected by the recent Indian attack. Thank you very much.
.png "Apology :apology")
) supporting Modi, well yeah.
