LAHORE: Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan led the chorus of appreciation for the Pakistan team after its stunning one-wicket win over India in the Asia Cup, showering special praise on senior all-rounder Shahid Afridi for his electrifying cameo.
“Afridi fulfilled his responsibilities as a senior player and I am happy to see him playing so well under lot of pressure,” Imran said.
Pakistan’s former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar said while Pakistan had secured a great win but one must remain realistic at all times.
“I am happy that Pakistan won but I think it was not our batting but our bowling that won us the match as they restricted India to a reasonable total on a good batting track,” he said.
He pointed out that India badly missed the services of Mahendra Singh Dhoni as captain and batsman and that Virat Kohli had made some mistakes as captain.
“He should have kept at least two overs for Shami knowing the way Pakistan’s batting collapses at times,” he added.
Pakistan’s former captain, Muhammad Yousuf said Indian batsman appeared a bit over-confident when they batted first.
“I don’t know but I got this feeling they were over confident and tried to play too many strokes and they paid the price. On this pitch India fell short by at least 60 to 70 runs,” he said.
Yousuf praised the Pakistani bowlers for putting in a good effort on a batting track.
“The bowlers provided the impetus for the win.”
Asked about Afridi’s match winning innings, Yousuf said the all-rounder can win and lose matches for both sides.
“Today he won the match for Pakistan,” h e said
PTI

KR Desk