Junaid Khan: “The only positive thing in today’s match was Khushdil’s inning. He was under pressure and recently criticised a lot, but he proved himself”

Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani

Former Pakistan left-arm seamer Junaid Khan has praised big-hitting batsman Khushdil Shah for his performance in the opening game of the 2025 Champions Trophy against New Zealand.

Khushdil came into the tournament under immense pressure as many people had criticised his selection.

Prior to the Champions Trophy, he featured in the ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa, and scored 22 runs in three games at an average of 11.

However, in the Champions Trophy opener, he was Pakistan’s top-scorer with 69 runs, which came off 49 balls and included 10 boundaries and a six.

“The only positive thing in today’s match was Khushdil’s inning. He was under pressure and recently criticised a lot, but he proved himself,” Junaid said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Despite Khushdil’s entertaining performance, Pakistan ended up losing to New Zealand by 60 runs.

Their next match will be against India on February 23 in Dubai.

Pakistan Squad for 2025 Champions Trophy: Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah

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