T20 World Cup 2021: 13 years after retirement, Saqlain Mushtaq still looks in full flow bowling to Babar Azam in the nets [Watch]
Ahead of the Pakistan cricket team's third T20 World Cup 2021 match tonight, the team's interim head coach Saqlain Mushtaq bowled a few deliveries to captain Babar Azam in the training sessions.
Saqlain Mushtaq retired from international cricket in the 2004-05 season and played his last domestic game in 2008. But even 13 years after his retirement, the former Pakistan off-spinner looked in full flow while bowling to Babar Azam in the nets.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) shared a compilation video of Saqlain Mushtaq's deliveries to Babar Azam on their official social media handles today.
"Saqlain vs Babar! @Saqlain_Mushtaq in full flow," PCB captioned the video.
Saqlain vs Babar!
@Saqlain_Mushtaq in full flow 😍
#WeHaveWeWill
#T20WorldCup https://t.co/PC0IvDXdo5
The video has gone viral on Twitter, gaining over 6,000 likes inside five hours. More than 600 fans have retweeted it, while the video has been viewed 62,000 times.
Saqlain Mushtaq has done a commendable job as the coach of the Pakistan cricket team. Although he did not have much time to work with the squad ahead of the T20 World Cup, the Men in Green have recorded wins against India and New Zealand under his guidance.
Regardless of who we face, whether it's Afghanistan or any other team, we need to play that brand of cricket: Pakistan's Saqlain Mushtaq
Saqlain Mushtaq tells Pakistan not to slacken after winning grudge matches
"The confidence and the self-belief we got from those two matches, we have to take it forward," the #PAK coach said
#T20WorldCup #AFGvPAK #Cricket indiatoday.in/sports/t20-wor…
Pakistan are set to battle Afghanistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium tonight in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. Ahead of the game, Pakistan coach Saqlain Mushtaq said that the team needs to take its confidence from the first two matches ahead in the tournament.
"The confidence and the self-belief we got from those two matches, we have to take it forward Regardless of who we face, whether it's Afghanistan or any other team, we need to play that brand of cricket and execute our plans with that mindset. If we can't do that, it would come back to bite us," Mushtaq told reporters yesterday.
The match between Pakistan and Afghanistan is set to begin at 7:30 PM IST. It will be interesting to see which Asian team remains undefeated in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 after tonight's game.