Aaqib Javed admits team was ‘under pressure’ in crunch India game

Head Coach of Pakistan’s cricket team Aaqib Javed on Wednesday admitted that entire Pakistan’s cricket team was under pressure during their ICC Champions Trophy cricket match against India due to inclusion of new players, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Addressing a news conference in Rawalpindi, Aaqib Javed said that cricket team should have set a target of 280 runs against India.

He said that he himself was very much disappointed along with the entire Pakistani team for this poor show.

He went on to saying that he himself was expecting a better performance from Pakistan’s cricket team during ICC Champions Trophy because it is the same team which won cricket matches against Australia and South Africa.

He said that due to inclusion of new players naturally put a pressure on the team. He said that there is no difference if Saim Ayub or Fakhar Zaman are available for team or not.

Aaqib Javed said that inclusion of some players are vital for the team so Imamul Haq was included in the squad.

Earlier, the Pakistan cricket team has returned home to play its final group-stage match of the ICC Champions Trophy against Bangladesh.  

Pakistan will face Bangladesh on February 27 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.  

The national team has struggled in the tournament, losing both of its previous matches. Pakistan suffered a 60-run defeat against New Zealand at National Stadium and then lost to arch-rivals India by six wickets in Dubai.  

Following the loss to India, Pakistan’s chances of reaching the semi-finals depended on other results. The team needed New Zealand to lose both of its remaining matches by a significant margin and then had to secure a massive win over Bangladesh.  

However, New Zealand secured a semi-final spot after defeating Bangladesh by five wickets with 23 balls to spare in Rawalpindi last night, effectively eliminating Pakistan from the knockout race.  

After the match against India, Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan addressed the media, saying, “We lost to New Zealand and India, but I don’t believe in relying on other teams to help us qualify. If we want to win, we must do it on our own.”