"No one is more disappointed than me" - Hasan Ali issues an apology to Pakistan fans after the T20 World Cup semi-final exit
Pakistan bowler Hasan Ali was on the receiving end of brutal trolling and hateful and abusive comments recently. This came after his performance in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup against Australia.
Pakistan were on an unbeaten five-match streak at the T20 World Cup. They were one of the favorites for the competition, considering their recent run. However, things came falling down quite quickly in the semi-finals with Hasan Ali bearing the brunt of the frustration from the fans.
Australia needed 20 runs from 10 deliveries when Hasan Ali dropped Matthew Wade at deep mid-wicket. The Australian wicketkeeper-batter punished Ali and Pakistan. He hammered three consecutive sixes against Shaheen Afridi to seal the deal for Australia.
Hasan Ali already wanted a place to hide after his costly error but was even more disappointed after Babar Azam's statement. Pakistan captain Babar Azam stated that "the dropped catch was the turning point in the game."
After the social media backlash, Hasan Ali took to social media to issue an apology to Pakistani fans.
میرا سینہ تیری حُرمت کا ہے سنگین حصار،
میرے محبوب وطن تُجھ پہ اگر جاں ہو نثار
میں یہ سمجھوں گا ٹھکانے لگا سرمایہِ تن،
اے میرے پیارے وطن 💚🇵🇰 https://t.co/4xiTS0hAvx
Hasan Ali had an outing to forget in the T20 World Cup 2021
Hasan Ali has a big bag of tricks in his bowling arsenal in the middle and death overs. He was seen as a perfect compliment to the likes of Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi, coming into the tournament. However, the medium pacer's campaign didn't reap the desired results.
In six matches, the Sialkot player bowled 23 overs and conceded 207 runs, bagging only five wickets in the process. Hasan Ali an average of 41.40 and an economy rate of 9.0. It's fair to say Pakistan would have been hoping for a better showing from him.
Even during the semi-finals, Australia needed 62 runs from their last five overs before Pakistan conceded 30 runs in three overs. Hasan Ali bowled two of those overs, conceding 27 runs. As if his night couldn't have gotten any worse, Wade's dropped catch was the final nail in the coffin.
As the saying goes - cricket is a great leveler. With the next T20 World Cup not too far away, Hasan Ali vows to serve Pakistan cricket for as long as possible. While players can have off-days and pad patches, it is important to remember that criticism isn't the same as abuse.
Pakistan vice-captain Shadab Khan backs Hasan Ali and asks fans not to do any personal attacks 💪🇵🇰
#Pakistan #T20WorldCup https://t.co/0n3jdIlsBi