New captain Sarfraz Ahmed will face his stiffest test yet when he leads unfancied Pakistan in the Champion's Trophy - starting with a highly-charged clash against India
Sarfraz Ahmed
Sarfraz Ahmed
New captain Sarfraz Ahmed will face his stiffest test yet when he leads unfancied Pakistan in the Champion's Trophy — starting with a highly-charged clash against India.
After qualifying by the skin of their teeth, Pakistan will need to overcome serious batting deficiencies to be competitive following their struggles in the one-day format in recent years. Pakistan's tournament in England starts with the toughest of games against arch-rivals India, the defending champions, in Birmingham on June 4.
They are looking to halt a slump that began with a first-round exit from the 2015 World Cup, prompting all-rounder Shahid Afridi and skipper Misbah-ul-Haq to exit the one-day scene. Test specialist Azhar Ali then led Pakistan to an embarrassing 3-0 whitewash in Bangladesh and 4-1 reverses to both England and Australia before Sarfraz was handed the reins. The wicketkeeper-batsman is credited with injecting new energy after winning three of his first four games, two against the West Indies and one against lowly Zimbabwe.
"It's true we are (ranked) No. 8 but we are capable of giving a tough time to our opponents. We will overcome our weaknesses during our preparations in a camp in Birmingham and will be noticed for our fight," said Ahmed.
"Pakistan is "playing the style or brand that belongs to the 1990s when the game has moved on, so we need a huge lift in that area", head coach Mickey Arthur said.
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