Mickey Arthur: “Saud cashed in on any loose ball, played with precision and intent, it’s what we wanted”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan team director Mickey Arthur is glad that middle order batsman Saud Shakeel showed a lot of intent during the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup and cashed in on any loose deliveries that were bowled to him.
He noted that this is exactly what he wanted from the 28-year-old, who is starting to cement his spot in the ODI team after dominating in Test cricket.
In the World Cup, Shakeel finished with 241 runs in nine matches, which included two fifties, at an average of 34.42.
“Saud cashed in on any loose ball, played with precision and intent, it’s what we wanted,” Arthur was quoted as saying by respected journalist Saj Sadiq on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Pakistan won their first two matches against the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before losing their next four against India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
They followed this up with victories over Bangladesh and New Zealand, but were unable to earn a semi-final spot.
Pakistan ended their World Cup campaign on a low as they lost their last group stage match against England by 93 runs.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali
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