‘Don’t have time to do experiments’: Imam-ul-Haq on Pakistan’s underperforming middle-order | Cricket News – Times of India
NEW DELHI: An underperforming middle-order in the ODIs has been a concern for Pakistan for quite some time now but opener Imam-ul-Haq feels that the team should not experiment with it and instead opt for consistency.
With the 50-over World Cup fast approaching, Pakistan only have a few one-day internationals left to prepare for the cricketing extravaganza in India.
While Pakistan’s top three Imam, Fakhar Zaman and captain Babar Azam have enjoyed tremendous success, the same can not be said about the batters between No. 4 and No. 7, who have averaged just 26.9 combined since the 2019 ODI World Cup.
“We don’t have time to do experiments,” Imam told reporters on Thursday. “With Agha (Salman), Shadab (Khan) and (Mohammad) Nawaz, we have enough power-hitting to improvise. It’s just a matter of giving them confidence.
“Their stats aren’t as big as we have in the top three and it’s tough for them because they get five to six overs but their chip-in is impactful and useful.”
Babar and co. recently took an unassailable 3-0 lead in their five-match ODI series at home against New Zealand, thanks to contributions their top three batters.
Pakistan, third in the ODI rankings, are due to face New Zealand in the fourth match later on Friday followed by the final game on Sunday.
They are then scheduled to play three ODIs against Afghanistan in August before the Asia Cup in September.
The ODI World Cup will be held in India in October and November, where Pakistan will fight for their second title having last won in 1992.
“We have only two games left (against New Zealand) and it’s really very important to go into a bigger tournament, you have to be settled as much as you can with your main players,” Imam added.
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With the 50-over World Cup fast approaching, Pakistan only have a few one-day internationals left to prepare for the cricketing extravaganza in India.
While Pakistan’s top three Imam, Fakhar Zaman and captain Babar Azam have enjoyed tremendous success, the same can not be said about the batters between No. 4 and No. 7, who have averaged just 26.9 combined since the 2019 ODI World Cup.
“We don’t have time to do experiments,” Imam told reporters on Thursday. “With Agha (Salman), Shadab (Khan) and (Mohammad) Nawaz, we have enough power-hitting to improvise. It’s just a matter of giving them confidence.
“Their stats aren’t as big as we have in the top three and it’s tough for them because they get five to six overs but their chip-in is impactful and useful.”
Babar and co. recently took an unassailable 3-0 lead in their five-match ODI series at home against New Zealand, thanks to contributions their top three batters.
Pakistan, third in the ODI rankings, are due to face New Zealand in the fourth match later on Friday followed by the final game on Sunday.
They are then scheduled to play three ODIs against Afghanistan in August before the Asia Cup in September.
The ODI World Cup will be held in India in October and November, where Pakistan will fight for their second title having last won in 1992.
“We have only two games left (against New Zealand) and it’s really very important to go into a bigger tournament, you have to be settled as much as you can with your main players,” Imam added.
“We have less cricket and I don’t think we have enough time to find a workaround.”
(With inputs from Reuters)
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