Pakistan vs Australia semi-final: Babar Azam & Co should not panic, say former cricketers

• Shoaib Akhtar suggests if Pakistan wins the toss, they should invite Australia to bat first.
• Says team looks very good and Australian batters will have a tough time because of Pakistan's spinners.
• Inzimamul Haq says Pakistan will have to take advantage of small opportunities against Australia.

Former cricketers have advised the Babar Azam-led Pakistan team not to panic in the T20 World Cup semi-final against Australia.

Speaking on Geo News programme Aaj Shahzaib Khanzada Ke Saath, former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar warned Pakistan against repeating the what happened in the 1999 World Cup.

"Pakistan has a power-pack bowling attack this time, which includes spinners," he said, adding that if Pakistan wins the toss, they should invite Australia to bat first and then the spinners will take charge and Pakistan can easily grab them.

Akhtar, however, said that the players should not panic. "The strategy of Australian players is to attack. They create pressure, but our players need to focus on the game."

Endorsing his views, Pakistan great Inzamamul Haq said that Australia will try to attack our main players — including skipper Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi — because they try to break the core strength of the opponent team. "This is how they will play cricket," he added.

However, Haq added that if Pakistan plays "positive" cricket like it has been playing, the team will definitely qualify for the final.

"[The] players should not think about how big their opponents are or about the match being the semi-final because these thoughts create pressure," he said.

Shedding light on the drawbacks, Akhtar said: "Our openers can be a drawback."

"If our openers manage to stay on the pitch for the first three-four overs despite a low run count, Australia will have a tough time.

"But if our top batting order collapses, there will be pressure," he added.

Despite this, the former cricketer was of the view that Pakistan has a balanced team. "If the openers perform well in the initial overs, we have strong middle-order batsmen and power-hitters."

He reiterated that the team shouldn't panic. "The team looks very good, and Australian batters will have a tough time because of our spinners," he said.

Inzamamul Haq added that the first six overs will be crucial unlike Namibia and Scotland, Australia will not allow the Men in Green to score runs in the last overs.

"We will have to take advantage of the small opportunities against Australia."

Sharing his predictions, Akhar added that Australia will unleash their three fast bowlers against Babar Azam. "They will try to get the wickets of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to expose our middle-order," he predicted.

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