Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali became emotional after Babar Azam and his boys suffered a narrow six-run defeat to Team India at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Sunday, June 9.
Pakistan bundled out Team India for a mere 119 in 19 overs, thanks to brilliant bowling performances by Naseem Shah (3/21) and Haris Rauf (3/21). However, in response to chasing 120-run target, the Men in Green were restricted to 113/7, falling 7 runs short of the target.
Mohammad Rizwan led the batting with a mediocre innings of 31 off 44 balls at an abysmal strike rate of 70.45. Apart from Rizwan, no other batters managed to score more than 20 runs as the second best score was 15 by Imad Wasim.
While discussing Pakistan's performance on the local news channel ARY News, Basit Ali was seen becoming emotional as he said that he will always be Pakistani, despite being called a 'traitor' for his opinion against the team. Former U19 Pakistan selector said that the Men in Green lost the match which they should've won.
"When we sit here and talk, they say we are 'traitors,' because we are speaking against the country. I was, I'm and will always remain Pakistani. They were kids when I picked them for U19 team. Have they thought to bounce back to win and qualify for the second round? They lost the match which should've won." Basit Ali said during the discussion.
Basit Ali has often known for taking a sharp dig at the Pakistan team if they don't perform well. After Pakistan's suffered a defeat at the hands of the co-hosts, former Pakistan cricketer slammed Babar Azam for his favourtism, saying that he selected the players who are close to him and that's why the Men in Green lost to the USA in Dallas.
Pakistan need to win against Canada and Ireland to stand a chance for Super 8 qualification
Following two consecutive defeats against the USA and Team India, Pakistan's chances of qualifying for the Super 8 round look slim. However, Babar Azam-led Men in Green still have a chance to qualify for the next stage of the tournament if they win next group stage matches against Canada and Ireland.
Pakistan's qualification to the Super 8 will lot depend on the results of India, USA and Ireland's next two matches. At this moment, Babar Azam and boys are virtually out of the tournament.
It would be interesting to see whether Babar Azam and his boys can turn the game around and finish in top 2 of Group A to qualify for the Super 8. In the last edition of the T20 World Cup, Pakistan reached the final but lost to 2nd time champions England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
