Nottingham ODI still haunts Wahab Riaz
Sep 12, 2016 at 11:08 AM
After having a phenomenal campaign in Test series against England on alien shores, Pakistan were completely humbled in the recent ODI series between the two sides. Even though a 9 wicket victory in the one-off T20I offered some respite to the Pakistanis, the thrashing endured during the ODI series still reminds viewers about how fragile and weak Pakistan’s inexperienced ODI outfit is.
The 4-1 loss to hosts England included a severe beating at Nottingham, where the English batsmen went on a rampage and amassed the highest ODI total of all time. During England’s tally of 444, left arm pacer Wahab Riaz just went through a nightmare as he was pummeled to all parts of the ground. Riaz returned with the second most expensive figures in ODI cricket.
In a chat post reaching Pakistan, Riaz admitted that he was still haunted by the Nottingham ODI. “I couldn’t sleep for four to five days and kept reflecting on the reasons for my disastrous performance,” Riaz said in his interaction with Express Tribune.
“I am never afraid of conceding runs, but that game was perhaps a turning point and made me reflect on things. The Nottingham game was a nightmare for me and the entire team.”
Riaz added that barring a disappointing day, the tour as a whole had been a success for him. “I am really happy that I roared back at Old Trafford (One-off T20I),” Wahab said.
“Mahmood worked tirelessly with me and gave me the plan to follow. “Before the T20I, we devised a strategy and I am really happy that I succeeded in executing the plans. “Other than that one game, the tour was really good for me.”
The left arm pacer added that the ODI team would surely improve in the near future. “We did very well in the Tests and although we couldn’t win the ODIs, we learned some important lessons and will definitely improve our performance in the format soon. “The T20I win is, of course, a cherished memory to end the tour with.”