Asia Cup: Ex-PAK captain blasts his team for Dubai embarrassment, advises THIS player to ‘stop playing like Afridi’

Pakistan suffered a seven-wicket loss to India in their marquee Group A clash on Sunday (Sep 14) in Dubai. A no-show from the Men in Green led to embarrassment for the team, its fans and former players, with Shahid Afridi, an ex-captain, bashing the side left, right and centre. Known for his explosive hitting right from the word go, Afridi advised Pakistan opener Saim Ayub not to play like him, instead urging him to keep a cool head and approach the game his way. Although Ayub was Pakistan’s best performer on the day, picking up all three wickets, getting out on a second-ball duck did no good to his team’s momentum after they batted first.

On a two-paced Dubai pitch, the Pakistani batters struggled throughout, with Ayub falling prey to Hardik Pandya’s effective bowling on a duck. His second failure in this continental tournament left the experts frustrated, with Afridi going all out in bashing the rookie opener for trying too hard.

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“These batsmen have to score runs to win matches,” Afridi said during a discussion on Samaa TV. “Saim Ayub should keep his mind cool; tell him to keep his mind cool. Look at the condition, look at the pitch, play the first ball. You are trying to become Shahid Afridi from the first ball.”

Without mincing his words, he also pinpointed the lack of clarity in team selection and bowlers’ failure to keep the pressure on India. Considering Pakistan played just one frontline seamer, Shaheen Shah Afridi, who performed better with the bat, hitting an unbeaten 33 off 16 balls, Shahid lamented the lack of depth in the pace attack, which leaves Pakistan nowhere in this competition.

“The genuine fast bowlers have been given rest. This half-hearted attack will not work against India. At the moment, there is not a single batsman in this team who can bring victory,” Afridi continued.

India in Super Fours

The winner of India vs Pakistan was to qualify for the next round (Super Fours), with the Men in Blue advancing through thanks to their standings and NRR on the points table.

Team India sits at the top with four points in two contested matches, while Pakistan is second, with both teams left with one game to play in the Group stage. India will face Oman on Friday (Sep 19) in Abu Dhabi, and Pakistan will take on the UAE in a must-win game on Wednesday (Sep 17) in Dubai.