DUBAI: With Pakistan set to embark on their Asia Cup campaign on Sunday against India, legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram says Babar Azam\u2019s men believe they can compete with their arch-rivals \u201cday in, day out\u201d after their victory over Virat Kohli\u2019s side at last year\u2019s Twenty20 World Cup.<\/p>\n
That victory in the United Arab Emirates came in Pakistan\u2019s opening match of the tournament and ended their long-running jinx of never having won a World Cup tie against their fierce rivals. And Wasim believes Pakistan would head into the Group \u2018A\u2019 match in Dubai riding high on back of that win.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Pakistan team is on the rise for the past couple of years. They\u2019ve been consistent, and I think the win against India, although that was a year ago during the World Cup, gave them a bit of confidence that they can compete with India day in, day out,\u201d Wasim said during a virtual media session alongside former India head coach Ravi Shastri organised by the six-team tournament\u2019s official broadcaster on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Pakistan will start training for the match from Wednesday at the ICC Academy with the majority of the squad arriving from the Netherlands on Tuesday morning after winning their ODI series against the Dutch 3-0.<\/p>\n
Four players, including the hard-hitting Asif Ali, have also reached Dubai from Lahore while pacer Mohammad Hasnain, drafted in as a replacement for injured pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi, is due to arrive from England on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Wasim wanted Pakistan players to be mindful that their inherent strength \u2014 the top order \u2014 should not become a weakness.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince the start of last year\u2019s T20 World Cup, Pakistan\u2019s top three have scored 67.53% of all runs made by the team in T20Is. This has largely been down to Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only thing I\u2019m worried about is the middle order. There is no experience apart from Iftikhar Ahmed coming in at No. 4, and then you\u2019ll have probably Haider Ali, a young sensation who has not been consistent. Babar Azam and Rizwan are the key as far as the T20 format is concerned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think in general they are confident, but it depends on how they feel or what sort of mindset they are in when they arrive before the India-Pakistan game because that game can make to break the Asia Cup for either side,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
The erstwhile bowling great said comparisons between Pakistan captain Babar and Kohli were inevitable, given the kind of impact they have had on their respective teams.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s only natural,\u201d said Wasim. \u201cWhen we played, people compared Inzamam-ul-Haq with Rahul Dravid or Sachin Tendulkar. Before that, it was Javed Miandad versus Sunny Gavaskar. Gundappa Viswanath and Zaheer Abbas, so it is[comparison] only natural.<\/p>\n
\u201cBabar has been very consistent because he has the right technique. He enjoys his batting, is still very hungry, physically fit, still young and is captain across formats. He is learning and learning very quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as comparisons go, he is on the right track to be where Virat Kohli is. It is a bit too early to compare him to Kohli at this stage. But he is on track to be one of the modern greats.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DUBAI: With Pakistan set to embark on their Asia Cup campaign on Sunday against India, legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram says Babar Azam\u2019s men believe they can compete with their arch-rivals \u201cday in, day out\u201d after their victory over Virat Kohli\u2019s side at last year\u2019s Twenty20 World Cup. That victory in the United Arab Emirates […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":212574,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1935],"class_list":{"0":"post-279216","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-wasim-akram"},"yoast_head":"\n