'I'm hopeful they will will perform a lot better' - Inzamam-ul-Haq backs Pakistan to come good in remaining England series

Pakistan had to face a dismaying defeat in their first ODI against England. They were completely outplayed as the hosts clinched a comfortable win by 9 wickets. Expressing his thoughts on how things went, the former cricketer Inzamam-ul-Haq said that Pakistan will bounce back in the second ODI at Lord’s.

Putting up his opinions on his YouTube channel, Inzamam-ul-Haq stated that though Pakistan wasn’t able to make a mark the team seemed pretty good to him. Pakistan had a good outing against South Africa in their previous series where they won the ODI series 2-1. Recounting this, he pointed out that the team that went there seemed to rely a lot on a few key players but this time around, the line-up looks like a good one.

“Pakistan’s performance wasn’t up to the mark but after a long time, the Pakistan team looked like a team to me. People will find it odd since they got out on 142. However, when I saw the entire Pakistan line-up, it looked like a team. Although they won in South Africa, they didn’t look like a team there and were heavily dependent on one or two players,”

Big teams are those that make a comeback after this sort of performance: Inzamam-ul-Haq

In the first ODI, England got to a flying start with the ball as Saqib Mahmood shone with early breakthroughs. The batting line-up of Pakistan collapsed as only Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan made notable contributions. Owing to it, Pakistan was all-out on 141. Further with the belligerent display of Dawid Malan and Zak Crawley, the chase turned out be a cake-walk for England.

However, according to the veteran cricketer, Pakistan did not play to their complete potential in the first ODI. Thus, he opined that one doesn’t need to focus a lot on what happened and should rather look forward. Inzamam-ul-Haq also advised Babar Azam to keep himself and the team motivated as he believes that big teams are the ones who strive to find ways out to make a comeback after such games.

“Don’t focus too much on first ODI’s performance but overall I am very hopeful that this Pakistan team will perform a lot better. My message to Babar Azam is to keep your team motivated. These types of performances can happen. Big teams are those that make a comeback after this sort of performance. I can criticize their performance but I think this team is a lot better than what they showed in the first ODI.”