"Before the first ball was bowled" - Sikandar Raza gives savage reply to journalist after Zimbabwe's win over Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2022
All-rounder Sikandar Raza gave an absolute no-nonsense reply to a question being asked by a reporter after Zimbabwe beat Pakistan in the T20 World Cup.
Raza and Co. pulled off a thrilling last-ball win over the Men in Green in Perth on Thursday (October 27). Defending a total of just 130, they managed to stifle Pakistan's batting line-up before winning the game by one run.
In the post-match press conference, here's what the reporter asked the Zimbabwe all-rounder:
"At what time did you start believing that the match was coming to your side?"
Sikandar Raza's reply spoke volumes about his self-belief and the trust that he had in his teammates. He replied:
"Before the first ball was bowled."
Sikandar Raza alpha mentality 🥵 https://t.co/5C6fwCvn1I
Sikandar Raza on Zimbabwe's thought process before second innings
Sikandar Raza accepted that after the start that Zimbabwe had, they probably should have gotten to a total in the 145-150 range. However, he also stressed how much faith he had in his team and how crucial it was for them to start well with the ball.
That's exactly what happened as Pakistan lost three quick wickets, including those of stat batter Mohammad Rizwan and captain Babar Azam. This set up the game nicely for the defending team and they capitalized on it. Raza said about the same:
"I personally felt that we were 15-20 runs short. But, I truly believe in this group of boys. We knew that if we field well and take all our chances, we could really win this game. "
Raza delivered a Player of the Match performance as he picked up three big wickets and conceded just 25 runs from his four overs. Speaking after the match, he recalled a video he watched where former Australian captain Ricky Ponting hailed his match-winning ability.
It was a huge moment for the all-rounder personally and he thanked Ponting for giving him this boost with his words. He said:
"I was excited today, and I watched this clip by Ricky Ponting earlier in the morning, and that motivated me to come up with this performance. I would like to thank Ricky Ponting for that. For me, I had goosebumps, one of the greats of this game talking about Zimbabwe and in particular me."
“Whatever happens , happens with the will of Allah and Allah only”
Really humbled to be spoken about one of the “Greats” of the game
Just speechless
Let’s go again today
#inshallah twitter.com/icc/status/158…
With the win over Pakistan, Zimbabwe are now third in Group 2 of the T20 World Cup's Super 12s stage with three points from two games.
Can Sikandar Raza power his team to their first-ever T20 World Cup semifinal? Let us know in the comments.