Pakistan will open their ICC World Twenty20 campaign with a marquee match-up against rivals India, but captain Mohammad Hafeez stressed on Saturday that his team’s ambitions went far beyond winning that one game. The sides will meet on March 21 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, the site of their last encounter during the Asia Cup. Pakistan won that contest by one wicket in dramatic fashion, with Shahid Afridi ending the match with consecutive sixes in the final over.
Like all Pakistan-India matches, their World Twenty20 encounter has been highly anticipated by fans since the schedule was released, but Hafeez has his eyes on a bigger prize.
‘We’re here to go all the way; it’s not only the one game [against India] we’re here for,’ Hafeez said at a press briefing at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel on Saturday.
‘The media and the people ask more about the India game because it’s always full of pressure, it’s always something people want to watch. You can see this is what an India-Pakistan game is all about.’
‘But we are not targeting only one team; we have a plan against Australia and West Indies as well. They are very good sides, they’re performing well. West Indies are current champions, we believe they’ve got a very good side, so we have to make our plans against them as well and we are very much ready for them,’ Hafeez added of the challenge posed by the two other confirmed teams in Pakistan and India’s Super 10 Group Two.
The winner of Group A – likely Bangladesh or Afghanistan – will complete the five-team group.
Hafeez also backed Afridi’s recent assertion that Pakistan had the best combination for limited-overs cricket in the world, emphasizing the team’s self-belief.
‘We believe that we’ve got a very balanced side and the selectors have done a very good job to select the best team out of Pakistan’s best players.
‘In the recent past we performed very well in this format. We believe in each other, we support each other; this is the strength of our team. We [think] that we can do great stuff in this tournament.’
Hafeez also said that Afridi was fit after sustaining a groin injury during the Asia Cup and that he would join the side on March 17 after finishing the last part of his rehab programme.
A further source of confidence for Hafeez’s side could be the conditions in which the tournament will be played, with Pakistan’s vaunted spin attack poised to take full advantage of the spin-friendly pitch in Dhaka.
‘I think conditions give you some edge, there’s no doubt, because the conditions always allow you to make your best combination.
‘We know that, in the subcontinent spinners, make a huge impact, and in the subcontinental teams you will see some of the greats, like Saeed Ajmal, [Ravichandran] Ashwin is one of those, Shahid Afridi, Rangana Herath – I don’t know if he’s playing or not – but what I’m saying is the spinners will enjoy these conditions very much.’
-With New Age input
