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'Too Many Dot Balls...' - Ahmed Shehzad Targets Mohammad Rizwan After Pakistan's 1st T20I Defeat

Poulomi Chakraborty

Ahmed Shehzad Targets Mohammad Rizwan (Source: @iMRizwanPak/X)Ahmed Shehzad Targets Mohammad Rizwan (Source: @iMRizwanPak/X)

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Pakistan faced another heartbreaking defeat in the first T20I against South Africa of the three-match T20I series. Their struggle with the bat and the ball showed up again. While chasing the target, they showcased intent but losing consecutive wickets ended the dream.

Following the 11-run defeat against the South African side, former Pakistani player Ahmed Shahzad expressed his disappointment on social media. He said Pakistan’s performance was “Close but not good enough”.

Ahmed Shehzad on Pakistan’s Defeat

Pakistan came back in the T20I and faced South Africa in a three-match T20I series. The 'Men in Green' started the series with heartbreak as the Proteas defeated them by 11 runs. It was a tough start with star player Babar Azam falling for a duck. Usman Khan failed to make an impact. Haris Rauf remained wicketless while bowling. After that close defeat, former Pakistani star Ahmed Shehzad shared his thoughts reflecting on the team’s performance.

“Close but not good enough. Pakistan cricket team not learning from their past mistakes. Firstly, letting South Africa to 180+ from where they were in the game was unbelievable, and then how we went to chase about this target was bizarre from the beginning.” Shehzad said.


Shehzad Detects The Problem

While bowling in the first innings, the Pakistani batters created domination after securing some quick wickets but lost control in the middle overs. They conceded runs in crucial times. Similarly, while chasing the target, Mohammad Rizwan played a crucial knock of 74 runs in 62 balls. After that, the visitors lost wickets consecutively. Lack of intent cost the match. Ahmed Shehzad also focused on this.

“Too many dot balls & lack of intent in the chase cost us what could have been a victory for Pakistan. Seniors should be leading from the front, not hiding behind youngsters.” Shehzad said.

In a dramatic turn of events, Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed grabbed the attention with their performance. They both secured 3 wickets each. Abbas Afridi secured 2 wickets. With the bat, Rizwan’s 74-run innings provided a massive lift. Saim Ayub also added crucial 31 runs. As the second T20I is set to take place on December 13, the /Men in Green' will try hard to bounce back.