For all the talks about unity, the Pakistan cricket team seems fractured. On the eve of the ICC Champions Trophy opener, the Men in Green’s captain, Mohammad Rizwan, had claimed that there is ‘no captain’ or rather that ‘all the players are captains.’
“All 15 players in my team are the captain of the Pakistan cricket team. I am here for the toss, but everyone is important. When we step onto the field, we are all united. Each player is desperate for this title. And we are doing everything we can to determine how to win. I don’t think any country works as hard as we do,” Rizwan had told reporters in Karachi.
Things get heated between Rizwan & Shaheen Afridi
Well, during the Pakistan vs. New Zealand match at the National Stadium, the ‘real captain,’ Rizwan, and ‘another captain,’ Shaheen Shah Afridi, exchanged some words. The incident happened in the 47th over of the first innings. Shaheen bowled a good-length delivery that seamed away ever so slightly.
The ball took Tom Latham’s outside edge, flew over a short third man, and went to the boundary. Rizwan seemed livid. He angrily told Shaheen something, and the pacer replied by pointing towards the leg side as if saying that he was suggesting the field placement.
Pakistan’s late struggles
Shaheen had given away just 38 runs by that point in 8 overs. After that boundary, he gave away 28 runs in the remaining 11 balls. Eventually ending with the figures of 10-0-68-0. Pakistan badly needed wickets, with Latham and Glenn Phillips putting on a 125-run stand for the fifth wicket. New Zealand went on to score 320 runs, which included a whopping 113 runs in the last 10 overs. Another issue was that Haris Rauf went for 83 runs. Yes, he took two wickets, but going for that many runs isn’t what’s expected.
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