Claims that the demotion of batting mainstay Babar Azam and the exclusion of pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi for the Namibia match were impulsive responses to the humiliating loss to India in the T20 World Cup were denied by Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson on Friday, who insisted that the choices were solely tactical.
In yet another intense battle between the bitter rivals, India defeated Pakistan by 61 runs, with opener Ishan Kishan leading the decisive victory with a strong knock in a league match during the group round.
Babar fell for just five runs, falling short of the high expectations, and Shaheen Afridi ended up conceding 15 runs in his final over.
“No, I wouldn’t say that (Shaheen was dropped because of poor performance and Babar pushed down the order because of the loss to India). I think, as I said, (pacer) Salman Mirza deserved his opportunity. And Babar was the first to recognise when left-arm spin was taking shape and it was turning that it wasn’t a smart move to send out two right handers,” PTI quoted Hesson as saying in a media interaction.
Sahibzada Farhan carried Pakistan through the entire innings with an undefeated century, therefore Babar did not get a chance to bat against Namibia.
When asked if the team’s perspective had changed following their crushing defeat against India, Hesson responded, “So no, certainly not a paradigm shift, (it was) more about roles.”
Improving their poor powerplay average is expected to be a major emphasis area as Pakistan looks to make a significant impression in the first six overs of their Super 8 match against New Zealand in Colombo on Saturday.
Hesson was direct in his criticism, saying that Babar’s poor strike rate during the powerplay was the only reason he was demoted from the opening slot.
“Babar is well aware of that. I think he’s well aware (his) strike rate in the powerplay in World Cups is less than 100 in T20s. So clearly, that’s not a role that we think here we need. We think he’s a fine player through the middle, if required, in terms of if we’re in a little bit of trouble, or as we saw against the USA,” said Hesson.
“Once he gets himself set, he can increase his strike rate at that point. So, we brought Babar back in for a specific role post the Asia Cup. We wanted some batsmanship through the middle, and he certainly brings that for us.”
Shadab Khan was promoted before Babar against Namibia, however Sahibzada Farhan and Shadab played the entire 20 overs without Babar getting a chance to bat.
According to Hesson, Pakistan wanted to accelerate at that point in the innings, thus Babar was not the best batsman to walk in during the 12th over.
“So, the other day we got to the 12th over mark and at that point, Babar Azam is not the best person to come in. We’ve got plenty of other options who can come in and perform that role towards the end. He knows that he’s got a certain set of skills that the team require, and there are certain times where other players can perform that role more efficiently,” added Hesson.
When asked if he planned to use mystery spinner Usman Tariq as a containing option or an attacking weapon, Hesson responded that the bowler, who has garnered a lot of notice for his unconventional action, was adaptable enough to be useful in both situations.
“I think he’s one of those bowlers around the world that does both. He’s able to attack and defend at the same time. And that’s an incredible skill to have, so we’re very fortunate that he’s on our side.”
Hesson downplayed the question of whether Pakistan will have a psychological advantage over New Zealand in the Super 8 opening given their better win-loss record against the Kiwis, stating that skill execution on the day determines the outcome of games rather than psychology.
“I don’t think games are won or lost psychologically. I think they lost, they won through skill. New Zealand have played a huge amount on the subcontinent in recent times. Sri Lanka tends to spin a little bit sharper than it does in India as a general rule. And, we saw that a little bit at SSC. We saw that also during the first innings in particular here the other night. So I don’t believe anyone’s got a psychological edge,” he said.
