3 reasons why Pakistan dropping Fakhar Zaman for Asia Cup 2023 clash vs Sri Lanka is the wrong move
Pakistan have dropped Fakhar Zaman by taking a radical approach ahead of their do-or-die Asia Cup 2023 Super Four clash against Sri Lanka on Thursday at the R Premadasa Stadium.
The Men in Green have made as many as five changes to their playing XI from the heavy defeat against India. While the changes to the pace bowling department are of a forced nature, the rest are tactical.
The omission of Fakhar from the playing XI ahead of the prospective Asia Cup final and the World Cup is a massive statement, considering that he is one of the most experienced players in the squad.
Poor form had been plaguing Fakhar Zaman for a while and the runs were not coming. The left-handed opening batter also did not look in rhythm, scoring only 61 runs in three innings at the Asia Cup so far.
He began the year with a fifty in the first ODI against New Zealand, and even scored three centuries in a row in 2023, with one being a mammoth unbeaten 180. Since then, he has not crossed the 50-run mark in nine innings and as a result, has been replaced by Mohammad Haris in the playing XI.
On that note, let us take a look at three reasons why Pakistan dropping Fakhar Zaman for the Asia Cup 2023 clash vs Sri Lanka is the wrong move.
#1 Fakhar Zaman is a match winner on his day
There is no doubt that Fakhar Zaman can turn around a game and win a match on his own. However, the management apparently has run out of patience and, understandably due to the weight of the matches from here on.
His performances in the 2017 Champions Trophy semi-final and final show that he can handle high-pressure matches. It is often the big games and occasions that bring a player back into form, and a virtual knockout clash to get into the Asia Cup 2023 final, definitely constitutes one of them.
The southpaw also has the ability to convert a start and score big hundreds, with three of his 10 ODI hundreds crossing the 180-run mark.
#2 Only experienced aggressor in the top three
Fakhar Zaman often plays a thankless role in the Pakistan setup. His aggressive intent at the top allows batters around him like Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam to take time and settle.
While even Mohammad Haris can don the role of the aggressor, he lacks experience. Given that a tricky pitch will be on offer against a well-oiled Sri Lankan bowling attack, Fakhar would have been the better choice.
The clash between India and Sri Lanka proved that how crucial the new ball is, with the Men in Blue scoring the majority of the runs in the first 12 overs, before fizzling out.
Fakhar could have very well played the same role as Rohit Sharma did for Team India. With aggression being his natural game, he could have taken down the brief overs of pace at the start, capitalising in. Not necessarily and solely pacers though as the left-handed batter is a solid player of spin bowling as well.
While he has been dismissed 27 times against spin in ODI cricket, he has scored 1042 runs at a strike rate of 93.78. In tricky wickets like in Colombo, getting out to spin is arguably inevitable, but what matters most is making the most of it before it happens.
#3 His replacement Haris has never opened the batting
Fakhar Zaman's exclusion from the playing XI would have been unanimously justified if the replacement was a worthy candidate. However, replacing an experienced and proven candidate for someone who has never opened the batting in ODIs is highly questionable.
Mohammad Haris was impactful at No.3 for Pakistan at the T20 World Cup 2022, but that was a different format and different conditions as well. Out of the four ODIs that the youngster has played so far, none have come in the top four, when it comes to batting position.
He recently opened the batting during the Lanka Premier League (LPL). But playing in the same position in ODIs, that too in tricky conditions is a whole different prospect.
Another option that Pakistan had was to field Abdullah Shafique, but even the opening batter has only three ODIs under his belt.
Will Pakistan regret making the choice to drop Fakhar Zaman from the playing XI for such a crucial clash? Let us know what you think.