Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson believes his team have not yet played their best cricket in the ongoing ODI tri-series. He is hoping for a strong display when the hosts meet Sri Lanka in Saturday’s final at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
The final begins at 1pm local time, with the toss due at 12.30pm. Pakistan were the first side to reach the final, which also involves England, after winning their first three matches.
Pakistan’s route to the tri-series final
The hosts opened with a 37-run victory over Sri Lanka and then beat England by 87 runs, with both games played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. In their third outing, the first match of the series at the Gaddafi Stadium, Pakistan survived a thrilling finish to win by one wicket. Shadab Khan scored his maiden ODI century in that game.
Also read: Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by eight wickets to reach final
Pakistan did lose their final league match, an eight-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka at the same venue. After a day off, the squad returned to training at the LCCA Ground in Lahore to prepare for the title clash.
Hesson says the side can still improve
In comments made to the board’s digital team on the sidelines of training, Hesson said he was pleased with the squad’s showing across the tournament. He also acknowledged there was room for improvement. He said the team had played some decent cricket without being perfect, and that three straight wins without key contributions from several important players were a positive sign.
Hesson added that Pakistan had not produced their finest performance so far. He said: “I still don’t think we have played our best game yet. Hopefully, we are saving that for the final.”
Since Hesson took charge as white-ball head coach last year, the national side have won 12 of 19 ODIs and lost seven. In that period, Pakistan have also claimed ODI series wins over Australia, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Confidence in senior batters and bowlers
Hesson backed the experienced batters to deliver in a big match, pointing to two of the greatest players in Pakistan’s history in the top three. He said big players should stand up in big games. He also described the team’s ability to win without the top order firing as an encouraging sign.
He added that a couple of key players were still searching for a match-winning performance, and that a final was the ideal place to find one. On the bowling unit, Hesson praised Shaheen Shah Afridi for taking early wickets at the top of the order. He also credited Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf and young Arafat Minhas for their contributions.
Hesson admitted the batting had fallen short of expectations in the defeat to Sri Lanka in the last league match. He nonetheless said he remained confident the players would respond positively in the final.
