Sarfraz Ahmed wants his Pakistan side to concentrate more on fitness

Pakistan’s skipper across all formats Sarfraz Ahmed has urged his teammates to maintain high-level fitness for the upcoming games. Their side recently eclipsed the Kiwis to top the T20I rankings chart. Unsurprisingly, the skipper was elated and said his side is as good as any other team in the world right now.

He also added that the number one ranking is a result of their hard work over the course of time. After a dismal show in the Tests, they pulled things back brilliantly in the Limited overs series against Sri Lanka, clean-sweeping them in both ODI and T20 series. They’ll now travel again to New Zealand for a few limited overs fixtures.

When he was asked if they can match up to the Blackcaps on their backyard, he said they’ll have to improve their fitness levels primarily. Although the National Cup they’re playing currently might help them warm-up for the big series, he believes the players have to work a lot more harder.

“Me and my team are really happy to become the top-ranked T20I side. It is a great achievement, which came after the hard work of a year but we still have to work harder for the next series. We need more practice and need to work on our fitness so we can be at full-strength [against the Kiwis]. We are currently playing the National T20 Cup, which will keep the fitness of the players to a decent level but more needs doing,” Sarfraz said as quoted by Express Tribune.

Right combinations can win us matches

Recollecting their performance against Sri Lanka on the whole, he entrusts his side to do a lot better in New Zealand. Their bowlers will relish bowling on the bouncy and quick tracks in New Zealand. He said the hosts will definitely have the home advantage, but they’ll do their best.

“Except for Test matches, we did really well in the series against Sri Lanka, but as we are going to New Zealand for ODI and T20I series, we are hopeful to perform well. I am optimistic that if we play with the right combinations, we will come back home with the victory,” the skipper added.