"Not the end of the world" - Hasan Ali focused on beating Australia after Pakistan's loss to India in 2023 World Cup
Pakistan new-ball seamer Hasan Ali admitted that the loss against India hurt, but they haven't taken their focus off the 2023 World Cup.
The right-arm seamer asserted they went back to the drawing board and are optimistic about their improvements coming into fruition against Australia on Friday (October 20).
Pakistan crashed to a seven-wicket loss to India in front of a record crowd in Ahmedabad, making it their eighth consecutive defeat to the arch-rivals in 50-over World Cups. Babar Azam and Co. managed only 191 runs on the board, with India chasing it without minimum fuss.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday (October 19), Hasan Ali acknowledged Pakistan were nowhere near their best against India, but they haven't let themselves get affected by it. Instead, they have worked on their shortcomings.
"Yes, we agree that we didn’t play to our caliber, it’s not that we don’t agree. We have made mistakes, but it's not the end of the world. I will say this and you might have heard this word many times - Nothing has changed. We lost and we were in pain," he said.
"We were a better team and we couldn't perform like that. We sat together with the team and had a healthy discussion. We discussed the things that need improvement. We tried to improve in the nets," he added.
The 29-year-old has bowled decently in the tournament, picking up six scalps in three matches, headlined by a four-wicket haul against Sri Lanka. However, Pakistan must improve their overall bowling performance to increase the chances of winning the trophy.
The Men in Green are currently in the fourth position with two wins and one defeat.
"The Australian team is not an easy team" - Hasan Ali
Hasan Ali suggested that the loss against India is only a blip and is optimistic about producing the desired results going forward, but admitted that the Australian team will pose a tough challenge.
The 29-year-old said:
"Yes of course, the car has slowed down while going ahead - there was a stop. But there are many big stops ahead. The car will drive like this. We will take two points from each stop. The Australian team is not an easy team. But we are looking forward and the results will be very good."
The Punjab-born seamer was part of the 2019 World Cup game against Australia as well, bagging figures of 10-0--67-1. He had dismissed Pat Cummins, but Pakistan lost by 41 runs.
The Men in Yellow are coming off a five-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in Lucknow after losing to India and South Africa.