Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed doesn't want to hit the panic button just yet

They started off as favourites in the tournament, the fans, as well as the experts, were talking about the teeth in the bowling unit, the punch in their batting and the agility in the fielding unit. That coupled with a tactical head like Sarfraz Ahmed at the top and Pakistan definitely was a contender for the Asia Cup title. The fact that they are the reigning Champions Trophy champions added more weight to the contention. However, Bangladesh knocked them out of the tournament with a 37-run win in the virtual semi-final.

They lost to India twice in the Group A game and then in the Super Fours match as well. Pakistan had to win the final match against the Bangladeshi team to set up another clash with India in the final. However, Mashrafe Mortaza’s team emerged as a far superior line-up and the shock of the ouster has really annoyed the fans as well as former cricketers. A lot of them have started to ask for Sarfraz’s resignation.

Changes on the cards

The Pakistani skipper doesn’t think it is time to panic yet though he assured that the team will make the required changes. “Changes will happen but I don’t think we need to press the panic button. I accept the mistakes we’ve done as a team. We have to back these guys. Of course, we will have to look at which players are best suited to which positions and whether there are players outside the team who can play a role,” the Express Tribune quoted Ahmed, as saying.

“This kind of performance set off alarm bells for me as a captain and for the team overall. We will have to sit down and see what went wrong and try to fix things,” he added.

Pakistan’s next assignment is against Australia at their adopted home in the UAE. Though Australia hasn’t proved to be the strongest of teams in recent times, the challenge for the home team will be to further iron their playing combination keeping the World Cup in view.

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