Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram launched a scathing critique of the shocking outcome in the 2023 ICC World Cup when Pakistan lost to lower-ranked Afghanistan in Chennai on Monday. He took aim at Babar Azam’s team, stating that there’s a lot lacking in the players’ fitness levels.
A Stinging Defeat for Pakistan
Pakistan’s chances of making it to the semi-finals were severely damaged by this, their third straight defeat in the competition. In the 8th meeting between the two sides in One Day International cricket, Pakistan lost to Afghanistan for the first time.
Babar Azam, aided by half-centuries from Abdullah Shafique and Iftikhar Ahmed, guided Pakistan to 282 runs on a challenging Chennai pitch. It seemed like Pakistan had a decent total on the board.
However, much to the surprise of many, Afghanistan, with one over remaining and 8 wickets in hand, managed to achieve the target. Opening batsmen Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran dismantled Pakistan’s bowling attack, which had been performing energetically on the moist Chennai pitch. Both openers formed a partnership of 130 runs in the initial stages, steering Afghanistan to a historic win.
As Pakistan’s hopes started dwindling, captain Babar Azam was left disappointed due to Pakistan’s subpar performance on the field. Fielding errors were evident, as Pakistan’s players conceded extra runs to the inspired Afghan batsmen. Shahin Afridi made boundary blunders, and Hasan Ali followed suit. Overs were dispatched, and the inability to take back-to-back wickets pushed Pakistan out of contention for the ICC tournament.
Although Ibrahim Zadran got dismissed at 87 runs, Rahmat Shah (77) and Hashmatullah Shahidi (48) secured a historic win for Afghanistan.
Wasim Akram’s Candid Assessment
“This is shameful. Just 2 wickets, and 280-290 is a big score. Is the pitch damp or not? Fielding was… you see the fitness level. We are talking here that there hasn’t been a fitness test for the last 2 years. If I name and shame, the players won’t like it. It seems they are eating 8 kilograms of mutton every day,” Wasim Akram commented on Pakistan’s defeat by eight wickets.
Wasim Akram also mentioned that the players in the Pakistan team don’t like the fitness tests, which were introduced during the tenure of former head coach Misbah-ul-Haq. However, those tests helped improve the team’s fundamental aspects.
“Tests should be there. You are playing professionally, representing your country, you are being paid. I am with Misbah. When he was the coach, he had standards, players hated him. But he worked for the team. Fielding is everything about fitness, and it shows on the field.”
He added, “Now we have reached a level where we will pray, make ‘if and but’ excuses, wait for other teams to lose, and then we can reach the semi-finals.”
Afghanistan’s Triumph and Celebration
Afghanistan’s players celebrated their historic win at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium with fans from both sides showing significant support, gathering in large numbers.