Babar Azam’s counsel to flamboyant opener Fakhar Zaman helped Pakistan overcome New Zealand on Saturday to keep their World Cup semi-final dreams alive. After rain ruined today’s match in Bengaluru, Pakistan defeated New Zealand on DLS. Babar revealed after the match that he informed the opener they could win if he stayed at the crease for 15 overs. Read out about What advice Babar gave to Fakhar that helped Pakistan beat NZ down below.
What advice Babar gave to Fakhar that helped Pakistan beat NZ?
We believed in ourselves as we batted. In the dressing room, we stressed the need for a healthy cooperation. We expected rain but didn’t expect much. In reality, we only wanted to partner, stated Azam.
“I wanted to strike Fakhar; we had short boundaries and used them. We tried our hardest, but certain matchups were disappointing. If we win our next match, we’ll play positively and continue match by match.”
Zaman, who won Man-of-the-Match for his 126 runs at 155.55, stated they would finish the first few overs.
“A few times I got lucky and enjoyed this innings. We know every game is crucial. In team meeting, our management decided to play aggressively, thus everyone was eager to score more runs.
Batter called this one of his best century. He became the fastest Pakistani hitter to score a century with 100 runs off 63 balls at 157.81.
My 193 against South Africa will always be remembered, but this is one of my greatest. On World Cup hopes, we prayed for no restart. He said they would play aggressively in their next game.
During the match, Kiwi captain Kane Williamson praised the Green Shirts’ performance, stating that they played well, took every opportunity, and were successful in their chase. Zaman played well, they deserved that result, and we’re going on to our next challenge.”
