SHARJAH: Pakistan's No.10 batter Naseem Shah said he had self-belief in his abilities as he set up his team's clash with Sri Lanka in the final of Asia Cup 2022, after smashing back-to-back sixes in the final over of a thriller to help his team beat Afghanistan,
When Naseem Shah entered the middle, Pakistan had two wickets in hand and needed 20 off 10 balls. The veteran Asif Ali was at the other end, and the tailender,who had never faced a ball in a T20I before, quickly handed the strike to his more experienced teammate.
But when Ali was out on the fifth ball of the last over, panic set in, and with Pakistan still needing 13 runs to win, Naseem decided to take charge from that moment.
When talking with former India captain and coach Ravi Shastri after the game, Naseem remarked, "When I went in, Asif was there, and my job was to give him strike, but once he got out, the onus was on me.
According to a report on the ICC's website, Fazalhaq Farooqi, who had stats of 3-0-19-3 up to that moment, was scheduled to bowl the final over, and Naseem indicated he was ready for the yorkers that would come his way. He claimed, "When I walked up to bat, I had the belief to hit the sixes.
Since they had the field set up, I knew they would bowl yorkers because I practised hitting sixes. We continue to practise in the nets, and I also changed my bat, and it worked. There must be belief.
When you are nine down, there is very little belief, but I had the self-confidence, and this game will stick in my memory. Naseem's valiant efforts enabled Pakistan to eliminate Afghanistan and India from the competition and set up a tantalising matchup with Sri Lanka in the championship game.
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