Hafeez draws satisfaction from win in Sharjah
Captain Mohammad Hafeez expressed relief after Pakistan trumped Afghanistan by six wickets in Sunday's tight one-off Twenty20 International at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Captain Mohammad Hafeez expressed relief after Pakistan trumped Afghanistan by six wickets in Sunday's tight one-off Twenty20 International at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Afghanistan put together a testing total of 137 for eight after winning the toss, which the opposition surpassed with one delivery to spare on the back of Hafeez's steely 42 not out, which featured two fours and a six.
"They played well and posted a decent total. Their bowlers started off well and bowled in right areas. We did some mistakes in the bowling department, but overall we are happy with the way the team is performing," said Hafeez, who was named Man of the Match.
Defeated skipper Mohammad Nabi, whose side recently qualified for next year's World Twenty20 in Bangladesh, acknowledged a stronger performance in the field was required.
The batsmen, meanwhile, were ultimately undone by a very economical spell with the new ball from spinner Hafeez – and three key breakthroughs from left-arm seamer Junaid Khan.
"We were short by 20 to 30 runs and that made the difference. We also couldn't affect crucial run-outs towards the end. We have qualified for the WT20 – and we will learn from each game we play," concluded Nabi.
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