Babar Azam, the captain of Pakistan, pointed fingers at their bowlers and sloppy fielding for their five-wicket defeat against Ireland in the first T20 of the five-match series.
Putting to bat first, Pakistan managed to put 182 runs on the board, losing six wickets in the process. Babar Azam starred with a 57-run innings from 43 balls, while Saim Ayub chipped in with 45 runs off 29 deliveries.
Ireland, in their reply, was led by Andrew Balbirnie’s 77 runs off 55 balls, supported by valuable contributions from Harry Tector. George Dockrell, and Curtis Campher, as they completed the run-chase in 19.5 overs.
Naseem Shah had a tough outing, giving away 37 runs in his four overs and managing just one wicket. Shadab Khan also struggled, conceding 57 runs without taking any wickets in his four overs.
During the post-match conference, Babar Azam mentioned that they targeted 190 as the par score, and while they performed well with the bat, it was their poor fielding and bowling that led to their defeat.
Here’s what Babar Azam said:
“I think we didn’t start well, in the first 6 overs, the pitch was two-paced. But we recovered very well, 190 is a par score and we lost in the bowling and fielding. We did not execute our plans, little sloppy fielding, had we taken that catch, the outcome would have been different.”
The second T20I between Ireland and Pakistan will be played on Sunday, May 12 at the same venue.
