'Pakistan will struggle if quality bowlers play league cricket'

Former cricketer Azhar Ali gave opinions on Pakistan’s performances and strategy following the side’s historic defeat to Afghanistan in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at Chennai’s Chepauk Stadium on Monday.

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Pakistan suffered a historic defeat against Afghanistan in the tournament as they lost the game by eight wickets. It was the first time that Green Shirts have lost to the Atlans in the 50-over format.

Babar Azam-led Green Shirts scored 282-7 thanks to captain Babar Azam (74) and opening batter Abdullah Shafique’s (52) half-centuries. Vice Captain Shadab Khan and batting all-rounder Iftikhar Ahmed chipped in with handy knocks of 40 each.

Afghanistan completed the run chase in 49 overs thanks to fifties by Ibrahim Zadran (87), Rahmat Shah (77) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (65).

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Former cricketer Azhar Ali said Pakistan will find it difficult to win matches if the cricket board allows pacers to play franchise cricket. He said fast bowlers have started to misfire when the spin department is already struggling.

He questioned what is the use of such a high-quality bowling attack when they cannot dismiss a handful of Afghanistan batters. He said the team will continue to struggle if they allow its quality bowlers to play overseas league competitions.