Naseem Shah on Champions Trophy, India, and his performances

KARACHI: Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah discussed his performances and the upcoming Champions Trophy, including the highly anticipated clash against India, in a press conference held at National Stadium Karachi on Monday.

“I haven’t been getting the big performances that I expect for myself,” Naseem said. He pointed back to the last two series against South Africa and Australia. Naseem took five wickets total in each of the two three match series.

“The performance wasn’t as good as I expected,” Naseem said. He added that he has been working hard on his shortcomings in whatever time he has found.

“I hope I get the performance I expect and that I play for.”

A reporter then asked about team discussions and Naseem’s personal goals in regards to the highly anticipated match-up against India in the Champions Trophy.

“Honestly, there hasn’t been any discussion in the team of what to do against India,” Naseem said. He stated that the teams focus is not on a single match but rather what they need to do to make it to the finals and win the entire tournament.

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“If you specifically think about how to win only one match, then we will not achieve our target, because there’s an entire tournament, and we need to play good cricket throughout the tournament.”

He did however clarify that the key to winning the match against India would be handling the pressure that such a rivalry brings.

“Whoever can handle the pressure that day, whoever can relax and play their cricket, will do the best,” said Naseem, adding that “as a player, you need to control the hype.”

The 21-year-old also discussed the team’s performances as a whole, stating that since 2021, many matches that were lost were very close. He said that the team has been working on those mistakes that led to winnable matches being lost.

“As a player that’s what you can do, learning from what you did in the past and prepare yourself for the coming challenges.”

Pakistan’s match against India will take place on February 23 in Dubai. That will be Pakistan’s second group stage match, with the men in green scheduled to face New Zealand first in the tournament opener on February 19, and Bangladesh last on February 27.  

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