Waqar Younis: “When Naseem creates pressure, batsmen take chances with other bowlers and they get wickets”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former bowling coach Waqar Younis pointed out that Pakistan tend to take wickets after fast bowler Naseem Shah creates a lot of pressure.
Naseem had been in great form in the lead-up to the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup, but suffered a major setback prior to the tournament as he injured his shoulder during the Asia Cup.
The 20-year-old missed the entire World Cup and was not included in the squad for Pakistan’s upcoming tour of Australia in December. He could potentially be ruled out of the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL) as well.
Waqar admitted all this is a big blow for Pakistan as Naseem had been the spark in their bowling attack.
“When Naseem creates pressure, batsmen take chances with other bowlers and they get wickets,” he told AFP as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan kickstarted the World Cup with successive wins over the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before succumbing to four straight defeats at the hands of India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
Even though the men in green fought back to beat Bangladesh and New Zealand, they failed to book their spot in the semi-finals.
Pakistan ended their campaign in dismal fashion as England crushed them by 93 runs.
Pakistan will now travel to Australia for a three-Test series, which will begin on December 14 in Perth.
Pakistan Squad for Australia Test Series: Shan Masood (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi