'We made mistakes in batting against India, USA', admits Babar Azam

'We made mistakes in batting against India, USA', admits Babar Azam

NEW DELHI: Pakistan captain Babar Azam expressed his regret over the errors committed by his team in their previous Group A encounters against India and the United States. Despite securing a consolatory three-wicket victory over Ireland in Lauderhill, the former champions were eliminated from the T20 World Cup.

Babar himself played a crucial role in Pakistan's successful chase of 107 runs against Ireland, remaining unbeaten on 32. However, the pursuit was far from smooth, with Pakistan nearly squandering the opportunity to secure the win.

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"I think with the bowling, conditions suited our bowlers. But in batting we made few mistakes in the matches against the USA and India. When you lose wickets, the pressure is on you," said Babar, as quoted by PTI, in the post-match presentation ceremony.

"We couldn't finish off close games, and as a team we weren't good," he admitted.

Pakistan had a rough start in Group A, suffering defeats against India and the USA in their first two matches. However, they managed to bounce back by securing wins against Canada and Ireland.

Despite the early setbacks, Babar expressed satisfaction with his team's performance, particularly their ability to conclude the tournament on a positive note with a win.

"Yes we finished well. We took early wickets with the ball. But with the bat, we didn't finish well. We lost back-to-back wickets, but got over the line in the end."

Babar acknowledged that Pakistan need to bounce back swiftly from this setback. However, he remained uncertain about his future as the team's skipper, providing no clear indication of his plans.

"Let's see, what team needs, I'll be okay with it. We have a good bunch of players, we've to go home, chat and see where we lacked, and then come back," he added.

Fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi, who received the player of the match award, admitted that throughout the tournament, the team failed to exhibit the appropriate style of cricket that was expected of them.

"We haven't played the kind of cricket our country demands, have a few areas to improve on. It's tough (the result)," said Afridi.

Ireland captain Paul Stirling admitted that the team struggled to find the optimal combination of players throughout the tournament.

"It's getting that balance right. T20...we probably haven't got that this time around. It's been a difficult couple of weeks. We'll go back, regroup and see if we can come back stronger," he noted.

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