Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan: “The criticism the team is facing is justified and we deserve this since we did not perform in accordance with expectations”
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Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan has admitted that the men in green deserve to be criticised as the team’s performances haven’t met expectations.
Salman Butt: “Saim Ayub is the lucky one because in 20 innings, he couldn’t perform as per the expectations yet the management has shown faith in him which is a big thing. I don’t think you’ll ever see a player who was given as many chances in Pakistan’s history”
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Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt believes opening batsman Saim Ayub should consider himself very lucky as he is still being given chances to prove himself after failing to make any noteworthy contributions in over 20 T20Is.
Shoaib Malik: “[The] captain needs to utilise the options on [the] bench wisely. Moving forward, the captain should give time and enough overs to Azam and Iftikhar to settle first, expecting them to score 12-14 right away is unfair”
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Veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik believes Pakistan captain Babar Azam has excessively high expectations of big-hitters Azam Khan and Iftikhar Ahmed, saying requiring them to score 12 to 14 runs per over “right away is unfair”.
Babar Azam: “Usman needs to keep doing the things that got him here”
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Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam has advised batting sensation Usman Khan to keep performing the way he was during the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Shahid Afridi: “Babar, Rizwan, Shaheen etc. have performed so well we expect them to perform in every match. Relentless consistency is challenging in cricket”
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Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi said it is very difficult for Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Shah Afridi to adhere to the expectation that they should perform in every match.
Mohammad Hafeez: “When he’s called a great Pakistan player, then I have doubts over it. Those who say that probably haven’t seen greats of the game – from Pakistan and around the world. Yes, he is a very, very good player. He is not great yet”
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Newly-appointed Pakistan team director Mohammad Hafeez said he has “doubts” about whether former captain Babar Azam is a great player.
Azhar Mahmood: “People expect a lot from Asif Ali and Asif Ali himself wants to do well, and we expect a lot of things from him but he didn’t produce those things”
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Azhar Mahmood, the former Pakistan bowling coach, said people have very high expectations for power-hitter Asif Ali.
Ravi Shastri: “The expectations are a little bit too much on him”
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Former India head coach Ravi Shastri admitted that the expectations on Pakistan pace bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi are a bit too high.
Moin Khan: “Naturally the pressure and responsibility is bound to increase along with the expectations on Azam Khan”
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Former Pakistan captain Moin Khan said there will be higher expectations and more pressure on his son Azam now that he has been called up to the national team.
Pakistan pacer Shahnawaz Dhani: “I know that expectations are increasing from me and I [have] to improve my game as well”
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Pakistan fast bowler Shahnawaz Dhani said expectations of him are increasing since he has been doing extremely well as of late.
