Pakistan captain Babar Azam expressed regret over the errors his team committed against India and the USA in their earlier Group A fixtures, despite their departure from the T20 World Cup being marked by a consolation three-wicket victory over Ireland.
Babar witnessed his side secure a narrow win over Ireland as he contributed an unbeaten 32 runs in a chase of 107, a task they almost mishandled.
“I think with the bowling, conditions suited our bowlers. But in batting we made few mistakes in the matches against the USA and India. When you lose wickets, the pressure is on you,” said Babar in the post-match presentation ceremony.
“We couldn't finish off close games, and as a team we weren't good,” he admitted.
Pakistan started their Group A campaign with defeats against India and the USA before securing wins against Canada and Ireland.
Despite the disappointments, Babar found solace in ending their campaign with a win. “Yes we finished well. We took early wickets with the ball. But with the bat, we didn't finish well. We lost back-to-back wickets, but got over the line in the end.”
Looking forward, Babar emphasized the need for Pakistan to regroup swiftly, although he refrained from providing a definitive answer regarding his future as captain. “Let's see, what team needs, I'll be okay with it. We have a good bunch of players, we've to go home, chat and see where we lacked, and then come back,” he added.
Shaheen Shah Afridi, who was named the player of the match, echoed Babar's sentiments, acknowledging that Pakistan did not play their ideal brand of cricket during the tournament.
“We haven't played the kind of cricket our country demands, have a few areas to improve on. It's tough (the result),” said Afridi.
Meanwhile, Ireland captain Paul Stirling reflected on their campaign, highlighting the challenge of finding the right balance in T20 cricket.
“It's getting that balance right. T20…we probably haven't got that this time around. It's been a difficult couple of weeks. We’ll go back, regroup and see if we can come back stronger,” he noted.
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