Former Pakistan Cricketer Basit Ali lashed out at the Australian team for their defensive approach in the fourth and final test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy and he also criticized Usman Khawaja for playing such as a slow knock on the pitch that offered nothing for the bowlers.
Though the Australian team is in a commanding position, Basit Ali slammed Australia for their batting performance in the final test. Speaking on a youtube channel, it felt like Australia was leading in the series and played a relaxed inning as they reached the world test championship finals.
“The way Australia played it felt like the team from 1970-80. They won the toss and scored 255 on Day 1 and 225 on Day 2. It felt like Australia is leading 2-1 in the series but it is India, who are leading 2-1. Just because they have reached the finals of the World Test Championship, so they have maintained a defensive approach,” Basit Ali said.
Though many cricket experts praised Usman Khawaja for his terrific knock, Basit Ali termed Khawaja’s innings as a “selfish” one as he played one of the slow knocks of his career with a strike rate of around 42 and praised Cameron Green for his batting.
“Usman Khawaja played like a batsman from Bangladesh. His approach was very timid, and I feel it was a selfish inning. You score 180 runs after playing 422 deliveries on this pitch. Only Green looked like a batter from Australia,” he said.
Basit Ali also criticized Andrew McDonald and Steve Smith for their poor tactics in the final test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy and added Australia is looking to reinstate under the leadership of Steve Smith. Australia was impressive in the 1st innings scoring 480 runs with Usman Khawaja being the top scorer.
Shaheen Afridi Should Be Pakistan’s Captain – Basit Ali
Basit Ali feels Babar Azam should quit Pakistan captaincy to focus on his batting and wants Shaheen Afridi to lead the National team in ODI and Test formats.
“Babar Azam should quit captaincy. If he leaves captaincy, he will break all records and surpass records made by greats in the game. Shaheen Afridi should be Pakistan’s captain. Shaheen can lead Pakistan in ODI and Test cricket if he remains fit. Shadab Khan could be Pakistan’s choice as captain in T20I cricket,” Basit added.
According to reports, Pakistan Speedster Shaheen Shah Afridi is set to captain Pakistan in the T20I series against Afghanistan. Senior players like Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shadab Khan are likely to be rested for the series. All three will return for the series against New Zealand.