Nottingham (England): Mohammad Hafeez admitted it was the total team effort from Pakistan which helped them defeat hot favourites England by 14 runs in their World Cup tie.
Hafeez played a superb knock of 84 runs from 62 balls and helped Pakistan set a formidable total of 348/8 at Trent Bridge on Monday. In reply, England managed to score 334/9 in their stipulated quota of 50 overs, despite centuries from Joe Root and Jos Buttler.
Hafeez, who was adjudged the Man of the Match, also chipped in with the ball as he got the all important wicket of England skipper Eoin Morgan.
“Everyone believed in the team we can win the game. We were playing good cricket before but we weren’t winning the crucial stages. Today, everyone really chipped in, and gave everything required in the situation. We were very confident,” said Hafeez after the match.
“We practised well yesterday, had a good meeting, and we needed one winning performance to start us off. Bowlers did a great job defending the score. Batsmen did a great job setting a great total. The first game didn’t go well, but we showed our capability today,” he added.
It was a great comeback from the Men in Green, who suffered an embarrassing seven-wicket defeat at the same Trent Bridge venue on Friday after they found it impossible to deal with a steady stream of short-pitched deliveries from West Indies’ all-pace attack.
“We were playing well before, but we were not winning, and this win will definitely give us a lot of confidence. It will be a really happy dressing room and I hope it remains the same way,” said the 38-yera-old.
Meanwhile, Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmad also echoed Hafeez’s sentiments and said it was a great team effort from the team which saw them break their 12-match losing streak.
“It was a great team effort. Credit to batsmen for taking us to 350. Then bowlers bowled really well today,” said Sarfaraz.
“We tried a couple of different things. We started with Shadab because we know their openers are not good against spin.
“Fielding is a very important part. In the last ODI series it was different. Today we feel better and we bowl better,” he added. Pakistan will next play Sri Lanka June 7 in Bristol.
