After losing their first ever Twenty20 match against the West Indies on 21 April, 2011, played at the Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia by seven runs, Pakistan aim to be more cautious in the upcoming five-match one-day series against the hosts.
Speaking after the match, Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi said, “They have indicated it is not going to be easy for us. We will have to be cautious in the ODI series.”
The all-rounder reiterated that his side will need to show more professional approach in the tournament and needs to work really hard to avoid the embarrassment of losing the series to the Windies.
Afridi, who was among the leading wicket takers in the recently concluded ICC World Cup 2011, blamed poor batting for their loss in the shortest version of the game. He reckoned that the total was not big enough and his side should have easily chased the tally on the wicket which was supporting the batsmen.
“It was an easy target and there was nothing wrong with the conditions but our batsmen failed to avail the chance. We failed to build partnerships and that cost us the game,” he said.
Nonetheless, Afridi gave full credit to the outstanding fielding of the hosts which made things extremely difficult for the Men in Green.
The Pakistan skipper admitted that because of this loss the tourists are going to be under some pressure before the first match of the five-match ODI series.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, Pakistan played their first competitive one-day international after their last game which was the semi-final of the recently concluded ICC World Cup 2011 against India in Mohali.
Skipper Shahid Afridi was retained by the Pakistan Cricket Board Selection committee while senior players such as Younus Khan, Umar Gul and Abdul Razzaq were rested for the series in the Bahamas.
Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal was dropped from the squad after his regrettable performance in the mega event and it seems less likely that he will get a recall unless he performs exceptionally well in the domestic circuit.
Akmal dropped numerous crucial catches in the tournament which forced many in Pakistan to call for his immediate axing. Nonetheless, he was retained in the squad as the team management did not want to play the remainder of the event with a stand-in wicketkeeper.
Akmal has been replaced by 29-year old Mohammad Salman who showed athleticism behind the stumps in Thursday’s clash. However, he failed to impress, scoring just five runs in the match.
Pakistan Head Coach Waqar Younis has however, expressed his confidence in the team and stressed that his boys will do better in the one-day event.
The tourists are scheduled to take on the hosts today at Gros Islet in the opening match of the one-day series.
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