Grant Flower: “He’s had the flu over the last couple of days. Tuesday was the first time I’ve not seen him hit any balls the day before a match”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Pakistan batting coach Grant Flower has revealed that batsman Babar Azam battled through the flu before he scored an unbeaten 101 against New Zealand on Wednesday.

Azam was named Man of the Match for his match-winning innings against the Black Caps as he led Pakistan to a six-wicket win at Edgbaston.

Not only did the win keep Pakistan’s hopes of qualifying for the World Cup semi-finals alive, but it also led to New Zealand suffering their first loss in the tournament.

“He’s had the flu over the last couple of days. Tuesday was the first time I’ve not seen him hit any balls the day before a match,” Flower was quoted as saying by PakPassion.

Pakistan’s next World Cup match will be against Afghanistan at Headingley on Saturday.

If they beat Afghanistan, Pakistan will then have to take down Bangladesh at Lord’s on July 5 in order to have any chance of reaching the last four.

However, even if they defeat Afghanistan and Bangladesh, it might not be enough as they will have to rely on the results of other matches.

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