Shahid Afridi Stresses On Pakistan's Middle-Over Improvement For T20 World Cup 2024

Former Pakistan all-rounder and ICC ambassador for the T20 World Cup 2024, Shahid Afridi, on Saturday (May 25), highlighted the need for the national men's cricket team to boost their middle-over strike rate heading into the show-piece tournament.

This focus is crucial for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, starting June 1 in the West and USA. Pakistan is placed in Group A, alongside India, Ireland, USA, and Canada.

Pakistan will start its campaign against the USA on June 6, followed by a key match against India at New York's Nassau County International Cricket Stadium. Afridi emphasized the importance of scoring eight to nine runs per over during the middle overs, especially between overs 7-13.

"The thing that bothers me is the strike rate of our batters, especially in between the seven to thirteen over phase. I hope that the strike rate improves in that phase. In terms of runs per over, eight or nine runs per over are needed but still Pakistan is my favourite," said Afridi as quoted by ICC.

Afridi refrained from singling out one player for a standout performance but stressed the importance of Babar Azam's leadership. He listed Babar, Rizwan, Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, and Shadab Khan as key players for Pakistan in the tournament.

"All players in the team are important. But if you look at the performances in the recent past, Babar (Azam), (Mohammad) Rizwan, Fakhar (Zaman), Shaheen (Afridi), Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Shadab (Khan) - all of them play an important role and will be key (for Pakistan) at the World Cup.

"But if I had to pick one, I would pick the captain Babar Azam, because he is the leader," Afridi said. "I want him to perform well, and make timely decisions which will take the team to victory," he concluded.

Babar has led Pakistan in 80 T20I games, winning 46 and losing 26, with seven matches ending in no result. His winning percentage as a skipper stands at 57.50%. Babar is also the third-highest run-getter in the T20I format.

In 118 matches, he has scored 3,955 runs at an average of 41.19 and a strike rate of 129.97, with three centuries and 36 fifties. Above him are Indian players Rohit Sharma (3,974 runs in 151 matches) and Virat Kohli (4,037 runs in 117 matches).

Additionally, Pakistan lost to England in the second T20I at Birmingham on Saturday (May 25) in a four-match series. The first game was abandoned due to rain. On Friday (May 24) evening, Pakistan announced their 15-player squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024.

Babar Azam (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan.

Wahab Riaz (senior team manager), Mansoor Rana (team manager), Gary Kirsten (head coach), Azhar Mahmood (assistant coach), Simon Helmot (fielding coach), David Reid (mental performance coach), Aftab Khan (high-performance coach), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Irtaza Komail (chief security officer), Mohammad Imran (masseur), Mohammad Khurram Sarwar (team doctor), Talha Ijaz (analyst), Raza Kitchlew (media and digital manager), Drikus Saaiman (strength and conditioning coach).