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Captain Salman Agha speaks on Pakistan's crushing defeat against South Africa in 1st T20I
Pakistan crashed to a huge 55-run loss in the first T20I against South Africa on Tuesday in Rawalpindi, starting the three-match series on a dull note. South Africa, delivering an exceptional all-round performance, bowled Pakistan out for 139 in 18.1 overs, handing the visitors a crushing defeat. Asked to bat, South Africa capitalised on a good start, posting 194/9 in 20 overs. Reeza Hendricks anchored the innings with a gutsy 60 off 40, while Tony de Zorzi, making his T20I debut, smashed a quickfire 33 off 16.
Meanwhile, Pakistan chasing 194, started on a promising note with Sahibzada Farhan blasting 24 and Saim Ayub scoring a measured 37 off 38. However, the major concern for Pakistan remained their middle order that failed to take advantage of a lively start.
The big blow came when Babar Azam's T20I comeback ended in a two-ball duck, as the match was largely centred around his T20I comeback. Speaking on the defeat, Pakistan captain Salman Agha highlighted flaws in both the batting and bowling departments.
"We are losing wickets too quickly, especially in the middle overs, and we need to fix that. We just need to bat properly, rotate the strike, take singles and doubles, and build partnerships. That's where we are missing out right now. If we have good partnerships, we can chase these kinds of totals," Agha said during the post-match presentation.
Pakistan bowlers were also unable to restrict South Africa to a manageable total, with Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed conceding 45 and 42 runs each. Mohammad Nawaz was the outstanding performer for Pakistan, nabbing three wickets and leaking only 26 runs in his four overs.
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