Asia Cup 2022: "When I came in to bat, I had the belief I could hit sixes" - Naseem Shah on his fireworks against Afghanistan
Pakistan paceman Naseem Shah underlined that he believed in himself to do the job against Afghanistan in a crunch situation on Wednesday in Sharjah. Shah revealed that training in the nets for such situations has paid off.
The youngster sealed Pakistan's place in the Asian Cup 2022 final with consecutive sixes off the first two deliveries of the 20th over. The Men in Green overcame a spirited Afghanistan with one wicket in hand to overhaul the target of 130 runs.
Minutes after the game, Shah said he anticipated the yorkers and knew he could get 11 off the final over. In a video shared by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), he stated:
"When I came in to bat, I had the belief I could hit sixes. I practice this. I knew they would bowl yorkers. I just tried and I executed. I had spoken earlier itself that we need to have belief, we can hit. We train in the nets, so that belief was there. I felt my bat was not good, so I changed it."
🗣️ Belief in his batting ability and exchanging the bat with @MHasnainPak – @iNaseemShah reflects on his match-winning sixes ✨
#AsiaCup2022 | #AFGvPAK https://t.co/sxuxu1359u
Shah also stated that he remained upbeat despite Asif Ali's dismissal as he rigorously practices hitting in the nets. The right-arm pacer added:
"Asif was batting when I came in, the idea was to give him [a] single but when he got out, I thought it was all on me.
"In such matches, when you lose the ninth wicket, no one expects you [to win it], but I had belief that I can. I practice hitting a lot. This will be a memorable game for me. Everyone's forgotten I am a bowler!"
Earlier in the day, he did magnificently well with the ball, returning with figures of 1/19 in his four overs.
Naseem Shah's two sixes eliminate India from Asia Cup 2022
Meanwhile, Shah's couple of sixes not only knocked Afghanistan out of the continental tournament, but also India. The Men in Blue lost two consecutive Super 4 games to Pakistan and Sri Lanka to crash out of the Asia Cup.
Yeh jeet unn sub logon ke naam jou humain hamesha support kartay hain...
App sub ki duaon ka bahut shukriya! 🤲
#AsiaCup https://t.co/RyxJ5Qu1ni
It remains to be seen who wins the Asia Cup 2022 on September 11 in Dubai. Sri Lanka have been in ominous form since losing their opening game to Afghanistan. They last won the tournament in 2014, while Pakistan's last Asia Cup victory came in 2012.