Sri Lanka were the better team on the day, says Mohammad Hafeez - Cricket News Update
Having failed to win the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mohammad-Hafeez-c76898, the Pakistan captain, has admitted that his side should have chased down the total in the semi-final against Sri Lanka but he is still happy with this team’s performance in the mega event.
The Green Shirts, who are considered to be one of the world’s finest T20 teams, were rated among the pre-tournament favourites. Hafeez and company played some good cricket in the event, beating teams like http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746.
They bowled well in the semi-final to restrict the home team to just 139 runs in 20 overs; however, Pakistan’s batting line-up disappointed once again, falling short of the total by 16 runs on a track where stroke-play was extremely difficult.
There has been immense criticism from different ranks about the unpredictable nature of the Pakistan team, but Hafeez, who replaced http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Misbah-ul-Haq-c1972 as the T20 skipper earlier this year, thinks that the side played brilliantly in the tournament.
The all-rounder praised Sri Lanka for being the better team on the day, while admitting his side’s mistakes.
"We played positive cricket and I am proud of my team," Hafeez said. "http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 deserved to win and they are worthy finalists on the basis of what they have done in this tournament. The pitch was turning and it was difficult to score runs and we lost some wickets in the middle and couldn't stage a comeback. We should have chased that down."
Historically, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 are considered more dangerous when they put the runs on the board and try to defend them with their extremely potent bowling attack. However, their ability to chase totals under pressure has always been questioned as Pakistan can easily crumble with the bat in tight situations.
Hafeez does not see this as a major worry but understands that the team management needs to address the issue in future.
"I would not say that we are bad chasers but, yes, it is a concern and we have to sort that out with some planning because it has become a problem," he added.
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