T20 World Cup 2022: "Go back to the drawing board"- Shoaib Akhtar sceptical about Pakistan's chances at the ICC event
Former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar believes Pakistan must make several changes to their lineup in order to succeed at the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022, which begins later this month in Australia.
Highlighting the Men in Green's batting woes, Akhtar emphasized how opposition teams will target the Pakistani batters with short balls on the Australian tracks. He suggested that the team management will have to make some tough decisions prior to the event to save their campaign from being underwhelming.
The 47-year-old pointed out that if the team ends up playing in the tournament with their current squad, they may have to deal with unfavorable results. Akhtar made these remarks while speaking on his YouTube channel on Monday, October 3.
Akhtar explained:
"If this is the team that is going to go to the World Cup, there could possibly be a problem. I would rather want them to go back to the drawing board and think about what can be changed and what they can do to win the World Cup.
"It's going to be a tough call. But if you land there, it's going to be very tough. The likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed will be targeted with short balls."
The Pakistan side have faced a lot of criticism for losing their recently concluded seven-match T20I series against England. The hosts suffered an embarrassing 67-run loss in the deciding contest, resulting in the series equation being 3-4.
"The chances are minimum, but I'm hoping for the best" - Shoaib Akhtar on Pakistan succeeding at the T20 World Cup 2022
Akhtar further went on to say that Babar Azam and Co. lack strength in their batting. He opined that they must add more firepower to their batting to be able to do well in seam-friendly conditions Down Under.
The former pacer stated that team's batting has frequently been exposed badly in their recent outings, and the trend will continue unless they resort to making changes.
Here's what Akhtar said:
"They don't have the required strength in their batting order. Unless you add their strength to their batting, they will continue to get exposed. You can't think that teams won't bowl short to you in Australia. They will surely bowl there. I hope Pakistan go and do well there. The chances are minimum, but I'm hoping for the best."
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The Babar Azam-led side will take on the in-form Indian team in their opening fixture of the T20 World Cup 2022 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on October 23.