While the Pakistan cricket team used to choke against arch-rivals India in the big matches, the current team led by captain Babar Azam is well-equipped to handle the pressure which makes the Shaheens one of the favourites to win the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup, according to former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis.In an interview with Cricket Pakistan, Younis said, “In our times, the pressure wasnt that of a big concern as what it seems right now. The lesser you play against a team, that too against a big team – so whenever you will play them, especially if it is Pakistan and India, the pressure would be immense and tripled.He emphasized the substantial pressure that comes with matches between Pakistan and India, particularly in the context of a World Cup. Younis acknowledged that the team struggled to handle the pressure in World Cup matches against India during his playing days, but he commended the current generation of players for managing pressure more effectively.“Pressure is always high, but maybe in our times, it was comparatively lesser because we used to play lots of cricket in my early days. But then again, in World Cup, we use to choke against India. Nonetheless, as I said, players, these days are handling the pressure definitely better,” Younis continued. View this post on Instagram A post shared by WaqaR YouNiS (@waqyounis99) Babar, Shaheen, Fakhar key players for Pak: Waqar YounisHighlighting key players in the present Pakistan cricket team, Younis identified Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, and Imam-ul-Haq as potential game-changers for the Men in Green.Waqar Younis We have match-winners, we have individuals that can win you matches single-handedly, including Babar himself, Shaheen – Fakhar can do wonders, then, of course, we have seen Imam playing great innings, so all-in-all, Pakistan has all the resources definitely, now… pic.twitter.com/KpSZasyoQi— PakCricNews 🇵🇰🇭🇲 (@OZPAKCRIC) August 5, 2023“We have match-winners, we have individuals that can win you matches single-handedly, including Babar [Azam] himself, Shaheen [Afridi] – Fakhar [Zaman] can do wonders, then, of course, we have seen Imam [-ul-Haq] playing great innings, so all-in-all, Pakistan has all the resources definitely, now its just the matter of putting things together and handling pressure,” Younis concluded.
