Pak vs Zim: Shan Masood disappointed over his performance

PERTH: Pakistan cricket team’s top-order batter Shan Masood has said that he is disappointed with not being able to stand till the end and finish the match for the team after his side was beaten by Zimbabwe in the ICC T20 World Cup match here on Thursday.

Shan told journalists after the match that he takes responsibility for not being able to finish the game for his team.

“I was trying to play ball by ball. I think I was in a decent position to finish the game and take it upon myself. These are the games you should win for your country, especially when you’re the last-standing batsman and I am very disappointed. It was a funny way to get out but I take responsibility for not being able to finish the game,” he said about his innings.

Shan scored 44 runs off 38 balls before being stumped by Regis Chakabva off Sikandar Raza.

The top-order batter said that losing two matches after coming so close is demoralising for the team and the only way to lift the team’s morale is to come back to the ground on Sunday and give our best.

“We made mistakes in all three departments, Zimbabwe batted well in the first three overs and scored against decent bowling, you have to appreciate the opponent as well. I think while batting we were in control till the 13th over, the game was straight forward but we just lost. We have three games in our hands, we have to do well, yes we have to depend on others’ results as well but that’s the beauty of sports,” he said.

He added that each point in the tournament is very important, especially when you’re placed alongside tough teams like South Africa, India, and Bangladesh. "The thing that we have in our hand is our next three games where we have to do well,” he said.

Shan said that Babar and Rizwan are two important batters for Pakistan and their runs are always important for the team.

“We shouldn’t talk about fixing things that are going well. Babar and Rizwan are the two main batters of the team and in the last two games, we all have seen how important their runs are for the squad,” he said.

“Today we didn’t do well as a batting unit. We made some mistakes, we will sit back and review that and try not to repeat them,” he concluded.