When you perform against India…’ – Mohammad Nawaz makes a big statement ahead of India-Pakistan clash
Pakistan have shown good form in T20Is since the Asia Cup 2022 in September. After a hard-fought series against England at home which they lost 4-3, they also won a tri-series against Bangladesh and New Zealand. They will now move to Australia for the 20-20 World Cup 2022. In the recently-concluded Asia Cup and the tri-series in New Zealand, the one factor of commonality was the allrounder, Mohammad Nawaz.
Nawaz was in superb form in the multilateral tournament where he had taken crucial wickets and scored valuable runs down the order.
He continued his good form in the Tri-Series against New Zealand. In a match against Bangladesh, he scored a game-changing 45 from 20 balls to help Pakistan get the victory in the final over. He then repeated the heroics in the Tri-Series final against New Zealand where he was not out on 38 off 22 balls which consisted of two fours and three sixes.
You have to be a three-dimensional player in the modern game: Mohammad Nawaz
After the win, he spoke about the match in detail at the post-match press conference. “India ke against pressure match hota hai. Jab aap uss match me perform karte hain, toh baaki match, as compared to India game, easy hote hain. But journey uss se pehle se hi start ho gayi thi. Main South Africa se leke jitni bhi series hui haim, main usme chhote chhote cameos deta raha hu. (It’s always a pressure match against India. When you perform there, it becomes easier against other opponents. But my journey had begun with the series against South Africa, I had been playing cameos since then),” Nawaz said.
“Net me batting ko zyada time de raha tha. Abhi (Mohammad) Yousuf bhai ke saath, aur Shahid Aslam bhai ke saath. Team ki mere se expectation hai ki main bowling batting dono me perform karu. Toh main vahi focus karta hu. Aaj kal cricket ki demand hai ki aap three-dimensional rahe. (I’ve been focusing on my batting, working alongside Mohammad Yousuf and Shahid Aslam. Team expects me to perform in both, batting and bowling. You have to be a three-dimensional player, that’s what the game demands these days),” Nawaz added.
Nawaz was named the player of the match for his superb performance, as he had also taken a crucial wicket of Glenn Philips earlier in the game. Pakistan will play two warm matches in the 20- 20 World Cup before clashing against archrivals India which is scheduled to take place on October 23.
