'Not the End of the World' - Hasan Ali On Pakistan's Loss to India

image-lny40t22Hasan Ali during the pre-match conference (Twitter)

Pakistan fast bowler Hasan Ali expressed that Pakistan's dressing room is strikingly optimistic despite their humiliating defeat to arch-rivals India in Ahmedabad last Saturday, October 14.

The big ticket clash between the arch-rivals resulted in a rather one-sided affair, with India handily outperforming Pakistan and securing a seven-wicket victory. This marked India's eighth victory against Pakistan in the ODI World Cups, emphasizing their dominance in this historic rivalry.

Pakistan is now gearing up for their upcoming contest against the five-time champions, Australia, in Bengaluru on October 20. In a press interaction leading up to the match, Hasan candidly acknowledged that their performance against India had fallen below their potential. 

However, he expressed the team's determination to learn from their mistakes and to deliver a better performance against Australia.

"Yes, we agree that we didn’t play to our caliber, it’s not that we don’t agree. We have made mistakes, but it's not the end of the world,"  Hasan Ali told the press in Bengaluru on Thursday.

Hasan clarified that the Men in Green collectively reviewed their performance, identified areas in need of improvement, and worked diligently to enhance their game during practice sessions.

"I will say this and you might have heard this word many times - Nothing has changed. We lost and we were in pain. We were a better team and we couldn't perform like that. We sat together with the team and had a healthy discussion. We discussed the things that need improvement. We tried to improve in the nets,"  added Hasan.

Fakhar, Salman unavailable for the Australia game

Leading up to the Australia match, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) delivered a double blow to the Pakistan team. The board confirmed that top-order batter Fakhar Zaman and all-rounder Salman Ali Agha would be unavailable for the game scheduled for October 19. 

Fakhar is receiving treatment for a knee injury and is expected to be available for selection next week. Agha Salman has been recovering from a fever following a training session on Wednesday.

In terms of their performance in the ICC World Cup 2023, the Babar Azam-led Pakistan team currently occupies the fourth position with four points from three matches. 

Following their disappointing seven-wicket defeat to India, the Men in Green are eager to bounce back and improve their standing in the tournament.