In a heartbreaking twist of events during the Asia Cup 2023, Pakistan’s hopes of reaching the final were crushed by Sri Lanka in a virtual semifinal encounter. Charith Asalanka’s composure in crucial moments led Sri Lanka to a thrilling victory on the last ball.
Former Pakistani fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar expressed his disappointment at missing the chance to witness a historic India-Pakistan final in the Asia Cup. He also praised Zaman Khan acknowledging his emerging talent.
“The fact that Pakistan are out of the tournament, doesn’t look nice. Pakistan have a lot to think about. The captaincy needs to sharpen up a bit. I am very disappointed…” Akhtar laments.
“You’ve seen the match. Pakistan are out of the tournament. The match that was made in favour of Pakistan, was all done by Zaman Khan. Whatever chances Pakistan had of winning the match were all because of him.”
“Shaheen Afridi also got a few wickets but credit goes to Zaman. He bowled really well,” Akhtar praised on his YouTube channel.
Shoaib Akhtar, known as The Rawalpindi Express, felt that Pakistan deserved a spot in the Asia Cup final but candidly admitted that Sri Lanka outperformed them on that decisive day.
“Pakistan deserved to win go to the Asia Cup final but they are out of the tournament. They can be criticised a lot as they were touted as the ‘favourites’ but are out of the tournament now.”
“Unfortunately, there can’t be a Pakistan vs India match in the final, it has never happened. This was the chance but Sri Lanka deserved to be the finalists. They were the far better team,” he opined.
‘The captaincy needs to sharpen a bit’ –Shoaib Akhtar expresses his disappointment following Pakistan’s defeat
After the devastating defeat, a disheartened ex-Pakistani fast bowler described it as ’embarrassing’ and urged Babar Azam’s team to prepare diligently for the upcoming ODI World Cup in the next month.
“Having said that, this is a very embarrassing loss. The fact that Pakistan are out of the tournament, doesn’t look nice. Pakistan have a lot to think about. The captaincy needs to sharpen up a bit. I am very disappointed. Can’t say more,” he concluded.
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