Pakistan vs England 2022
‘This series was vital for us’ – Babar Azam wants his team to improve in T20 format to win big trophies
England emerged victorious in the seven-match affair as they clinched the series 4-3 in Lahore on Sunday.
Pakistan skipper, Babar Azam was in terrific form in the recent seven-match T20I series against England. The star batter scored 285 runs in seven innings at an average of 57 and a strike rate of 143. However, the captain was unhappy with his team’s performance in the series.
England emerged victorious in the seven-match affair as they clinched the series 4-3 in Lahore on Sunday, October 2. The series was a neck-to-neck battle as both teams were 3-3 prior to the final T20I. After leading the series 3-2 at one point, Pakistan lost their way in the last two T20Is, handing over easy victories to Moeen Ali’s side.
After the game, Babar highlighted that the team will need to improve in the shortest format to compete for titles. Expressing his concerns following the loss to England in the series-decider, the Pakistan skipper said that there is a lot for the side to work on.
“With 200 runs on the board, if we lose early wickets, it puts pressure on the other batters. This series was vital for us. We need to improve in the shortest format. I also mentioned at the toss, that we have a good bowling attack. Haris is bowling well, and he is improving every day. I think entire Pakistan was waiting for this, even we were happy to host England,” Babar said in the post-match presentation.
Pakistan will look to correct their mistakes in the upcoming T20I tri-series against New Zealand and Bangladesh. After the series, the ‘Men in Green’ will head straight into the 20-20 World Cup where they are placed in a tricky group.
Their group has arch-rivals India, South Africa, Bangladesh and two teams that will qualify from the first stage qualifiers. Pakistan have several match-winners in their team who can dominate the game and give other teams a run for their money.
However, the skipper also has an understanding of the flaws and will hope the team strikes balance just in time for the mega event down under. The middle-order seems to be the major concern for Pakistan as it has failed badly time and again and continues to give a lot of headaches to the Pakistan management. Pakistan will begin their 20-20 World Cup campaign with a game against arch-rivals India on October 23.
