Mohammad Hafeez, the veteran Pakistan all-rounder, says such is Pakistan’s form at the Twenty20 World Cup. They are brimming with confidence and have no preferences as to who they play in the semi-finals.
Pakistan has been unstoppable since their historic 10-wicket win over bitter rivals India at the beginning of the campaign. The 2009 champions have gone on to beat a strong New Zealand side, Afghanistan and Namibia.
Mohammad Hafeez: Pakistan Ready Irrespective Of Opponent At Semi-Finals In T20I World Cup
Pakistan will face the runners-up of Group 1, likely to be either Australia or South Africa, who play their last group matches later on Saturday. However, Mohammad Hafeez — a former captain of the Twenty20 side — said Pakistan was ready for any opponent.
If Pakistan remains undefeated and beats Scotland, they will face Australia in Dubai. On the other hand, if New Zealand beat Afghanistan and Pakistan lose against Scotland, the Black Caps will top the points table, and the Men In Green will rank second. In this situation, Pakistan will play against England in Abu Dhabi.
Regardless of the result of Pakistan’s match against Scotland, if Afghanistan beats New Zealand and India beats Namibia comprehensively, Pakistan will be table toppers and play against Australia.
“To be honest, when it comes to a cricket match we don’t think about who we want to play,” said 41-year-old Hafeez on Saturday on the eve of their match with Scotland.
“Whoever comes we are ready for that as our confidence is high, we are shaping up well and we are performing well. But first we have a game against Scotland so we need to take them on with the same intensity and confidence. The goal is to win the Cup for the nation and we are close to that.”
Pakistan has won all its three T20Is against Scotland, once in the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007 and two in Scotland in 2018. Mohammad Hafeez said there was extra satisfaction over their strong performances, considering the tricky lead-up they had to the tournament. Pakistan’s win over Namibia has now confirmed their final-four spot, leaving only Scotland in their path to a 100% group-stage win rate.
“We played only one match out of five in the West Indies due to the weather,” he said.
“Then New Zealand and England abandoned their tours so we were short on that front but the whole team and the management have done well in this tournament.”
New Zealand abandoned their tour due to a security alert, minutes before the start of the first ODI in Rawalpindi in September, and then England withdrew from two T20Is in October, citing players’ mental and physical health problems. As a result, the seven home T20Is (against England and New Zealand) in Lahore and Rawalpindi was to be played from 25 September to 14 October in Pakistan, which eventually didn’t happen.
Mohammad Hafeez: Win Against India Gave Pakistan Confidence
Mohammad Hafeez singled out the first match against India as the confidence booster — Pakistan’s first win over them in 13 World Cup matches. After losing the toss, Virat Kohli-led India was asked to bat first on a tricky batting surface by Pakistan captain Babar Azam. To make matters worse, Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi dismissed Rohit Sharma for a golden duck, and soon after, sent back in-form opener KL Rahul to the hut.
Virat Kohli, who scored 57, helped his team to a total of 151/7 in 20 overs. But in the end, the target of 152 was not enough as Pakistan openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam scored 79*, and 68*, respectively, to win the match for their team by 10 wickets with 13 balls to spare.
“In any tournament when you win the first match, it gives you confidence so when we beat India it lifted our confidence hugely. I have been part of many World Cup matches against India and after all those defeats we had to bear the consequences but we always used to have strong comebacks. This time we won and it was great to be part of that team which beat India.”
Mohammad Hafeez asserts that he is entirely focused on the World Cup.
“I am focusing on this World Cup so after this tournament I will decide what to do,” he said.
“I am a very emotional sort of player and playing for Pakistan is a great pride for me.”
Despite his age, Mohammad Hafeez has kept his Pakistan career on track owing to his consistent performances in the middle order. Overall, he has played 117 T20Is, scoring 2482 runs at a strike rate of about 121 besides picking 61 scalps averaging 22.16.