Last year's T20 World Cup semi-finalists, Pakistan will be heading into the World Cup in Australia on the back of a series defeat against England. That they lost the Asia Cup and now a bilateral series at home may not be the exact preparation one would require to play a World Cup, but Babar Azam and his men have reasons to be confident. Playing in Australia is never easy for a visiting team but barring a few issues, Pakistan have in their arsenal, the kind of players who can win them a game on any given day.
Having said that, a big concern needs to be addressed by the team management. While all eyes have been on Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan's middle order has come under a lot of scrutiny. The likes of Shan Masood, Khushdil Shah, Asif Ali and Mohammad Nawaz haven't fired barring the occasional game, and if Pakistan are to put up a good show at the World Cup starting in 20 days’ time, that pattern needs to change.
However, one batter who is supremely confident of his performance is Iftikhar Ahmed. The burly middle-order batter, whose strokeplay has reminded the onlookers a lot of Misbah-Ul-Haq recently said that the conditions in Australia will suit his style of play and claimed that hitting sixes in the big stadiums of Australia will not pose a challenge.
"The conditions in Australia and New Zealand will be different; we can play well in Australian conditions, I have experience playing there, which will benefit me. Hitting sixes in big Australian grounds is not a problem. It is not the case that our batters don't have the capability of depositing the ball into the stands of Australian stadiums," Iftikhar had said to a local news channel.
{{/usCountry}}"The conditions in Australia and New Zealand will be different; we can play well in Australian conditions, I have experience playing there, which will benefit me. Hitting sixes in big Australian grounds is not a problem. It is not the case that our batters don't have the capability of depositing the ball into the stands of Australian stadiums," Iftikhar had said to a local news channel.
{{/usCountry}}Reacting to the statement, Pakistan legend Wasim Akram has responded strongly and issued a stern warning to the batter. Despite having a good record in Australia, where he has scored 108 runs in three matches at a strike-rate of 150, Akram reminded Iftikhar that his achievements are a thing of the past and that the World Cup is a different kettle of fish altogether. Akram however applauded Iftikhar's ability but hopes he doesn't get carried away.
"I read Iftikhar's statement where he said that 'Pitches in Australia have bounce so it will be easier for him. Maybe his technique is such, maybe not. But whatever he scored, that was 3-4 years ago. So that he was named the Player of the Match and Player of the Series in Australia, that was 4 years ago man. This is a different ball game, a World Cup. You won't be up against one team but a lot of them. For his confidence, he sure does warrant a place in the Playing XI. He will give you a few overs and he can of course bat," Akram said while talking on A Sports.