Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra opened up about Naseem Shah’s absence from the Pakistan squad after the Men in Green lost three ICC World Cup 2023 matches in a row.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, Chopra said that Pakistani fans should not use Shah’s absence as an excuse after losing World Cup matches.
“Naseem Shah is a damn good bowler. No doubt about it. But using his absence as an excuse for losing three matches in a row is a cop-out,” Chopra said.
“People from Pakistan on this platform need to ask questions to the PCB instead. Finished Fourth in the Asia Cup. Now, the World Cup. How did it come to this??” he added.
Shah suffered a shoulder injury at the Asia Cup 2023 and is expected to stay on the sidelines for a long period of time.
It must be noted that Afghanistan defeated Pakistan by eight wickets in the 22nd game of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Ibrahim Zadran (87), Rahmat Shah (77*) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (65) struck fifties to ensure the Afghans claim their first win over the Men in Green in ODIs. Hashmatullah Shahidi (48*) chipped in with some valuable runs as well.
Earlier, Pakistan put up a total of 283 to chase after opting to bat first. Skipper Babar Azam and opener Abdullah Shafique put up half-centuries before Afghanistan’s teenage leg spinner Noor Ahmad struck twice to put the brakes on the national squad’s progress.
Contributions of 40 runs each from Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan propelled Pakistan’s total above 280, rescuing the Green Team from a minor collapse during the middle of their innings when they found themselves four down at 163 runs.
By the end of the first innings, Pakistan scored 282 at the loss of seven wickets. Noor Ahmad starred with figures of 3/49 in his debut game of the competition.
Afghanistan started the chase strong with Ibrahim and Gurbaz posting a 130-run stand. Shaheen Afridi broke the partnership and provided the breakthrough for Pakistan.
Later, Hasan Ali dismissed Ibrahim, who during the innings became the fastest to 1000 runs for Afghanistan in ODIs.
The Men in Green bowlers were clueless as Rahmat and Shahidi steered Afghanistan to their second win of the tournament.
The national team, with two wins and three defeats, will now play South Africa at the same venue on October 27 while Afghanistan play Sri Lanka on October 30 in Lucknow.
- Aakash Chopra
