Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed admitted that his side had failed to perform effectively in any department after a 37 run loss against Bangladesh in their must-win Super Four clash of the ongoing Asia Cup on Wednesday. Pakistan were handed a target of 240 runs to chase but failed to deliver when it mattered the most after being restricted to 18/3 at one stage.
"Not feeling good, but the performance wasn't good. We didn't field well, our batting collapsed and as a team, we didn't do well in any department. Fakhar was our main player, Shadab and Nawaz had opportunities, but we need to play well if we need to win against good teams. Our batting collapse hurt us," he said.
Bangladesh are in the Asia Cup final!
Mustafizur ends with a fixture-best 4/43 as Pakistan finish on 202/9, losing by 37 runs.
Bangladesh will face India on Friday with the Asia Cup title on the line.#PAKvBAN SCORE ⬇️ https://t.co/FHksHq828g#AsiaCup pic.twitter.com/1iodHjcgIi
— ICC (@ICC) September 26, 2018
At the same time, Ahmed accepted that his captaincy was certainly not up to the mark which had an impact on their overall performances. However, he had words of praise for emerging fast-bowler Shaheen Afridi who picked 2 wickets while conceding 47 runs against Bangladesh. "I think as a team and as a captain, I didn't lead well. Shaheen is our plus point," he said.
Winning captain Mashrafe Mortaza hailed his side after their impressive all-round display in a crucial fixture. "I think we changed our combination a bit. Usually, I open the bowling, but today we started with Miraz. The bowlers did a good job, especially when we didn't get the runs. Mushi and Mithun batted really well. We can be proud of our fielding today. Long time we haven't seen this quality of fielding, so hopefully, the boys can understand the value of good fielding," he said.
Mortaza also expressed his optimism with regard to a similar performance against India in the finals of the Asia Cup on Friday. "We always know that India are a serious side. We don't have Shakib and Tamim but hopefully, the boys can show their character on Friday," said the Bangladesh captain.
