Fakhar Zaman on Pakistan win over New Zealand at the Cricket World Cup and their semi-final chances
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00:00 Fakhar, congratulations on your amazing innings.
00:02 What was the plan? What was the great intent?
00:06 If it hadn't rained, you could have gone for a 402.
00:10 How happy are you about this win?
00:12 In the name of Allah, the most merciful, the most merciful.
00:14 Look, our target...
00:18 For us, every match is important to win.
00:21 Our plan was to play well on the first four overs.
00:26 After the ball-to-ball, the 400-meter target.
00:29 We wanted to be ahead of that target at all times.
00:31 We saw it from yesterday that it could rain in the match.
00:34 Our plan was to be ahead of the average at all times.
00:40 If the match was complete, we would have played like this.
00:45 The way we played, there was no turn or spin.
00:52 I think we could have chased this.
00:58 Fakhar, I will continue with this question.
01:00 From the toss to the end, the planning...
01:04 We saw a sign from inside.
01:07 Probably it was about the DLS calculation.
01:10 How much of a factor was the planning in this match?
01:13 Particularly the rain and everything.
01:15 How much did you think about it?
01:17 As I said, we knew it would rain from yesterday.
01:21 We sent a message to the management after 15 overs.
01:28 We knew that the DLS would not be applied before 20 overs.
01:37 We sent a message to them about the target for 20 overs.
01:41 Planning is very important at this stage.
01:44 Without planning, it is very difficult.
01:49 We planned yesterday and we were playing over and over again.
01:56 Fakhar, there was a time when you were struggling in the match.
02:06 What did you talk to your coach during that phase?
02:11 What conversations did you have with him?
02:14 In today's match or before?
02:15 During the World Cup, when you were on the sidelines...
02:20 When you were struggling in the nets...
02:25 I understood that.
02:28 What did you talk to your coach?
02:30 There are ups and downs at this level.
02:36 You play international cricket.
02:38 I was working off-time on my fitness.
02:45 I was injured.
02:47 Before that, I had 30 runs in the Asia Cup.
02:55 I was not having a good time.
02:58 I went to the academy of our fielding coach, Aftab Khan.
03:05 He told me that I was struggling with off-spinners.
03:08 He was an off-spinner at the time.
03:11 He worked with me a lot.
03:14 I used to come here regularly with the coaching staff.
03:20 We used to practice 30 minutes before the match.
03:24 Everyone worked hard.
03:27 I am talking about my hard work.
03:31 Everyone tried to give their best.
03:34 I was lucky to win the heading due to my performance.
03:38 Congratulations on winning the Pakistan Cup.
03:48 When you were on the wicket and Abdullah Shafiq was out on 4...
03:53 Pakistan's first wicket was lost.
03:55 What were you planning?
03:57 There was pressure on Pakistan.
03:59 How did you create momentum for the game?
04:03 You usually go for 2-6 shots.
04:07 You were a little slow today.
04:10 Did Babar explain to you or did you do it yourself?
04:14 We get an idea of how the wicket is played in the first 2 overs.
04:20 I asked him about the first over.
04:23 I asked him about the second over.
04:25 We decided that the wicket was good for batting.
04:28 We wanted to survive the first 4 overs.
04:31 Abdullah was out.
04:34 I knew that the wicket was good.
04:37 We discussed with Babar that there was no swing.
04:40 If we put in a partnership, it will be easier for us.
04:46 We had an idea that the wicket was good and we could achieve 400.
04:52 Fakhar, you spoke about your form before the Asia Cup.
04:58 How did you work in Peshawar?
05:01 You played a match after the World Cup and got injured.
05:06 Tell us about that time.
05:11 What was difficult for you?
05:13 What is the mindset like when you come to the World Cup with high hopes?
05:18 You get injured after a match.
05:20 Then the process to come back again.
05:23 Talk about that.
05:25 Everyone performs and plays in the big leagues.
05:31 Everyone says that they have done this and that.
05:34 When I got time off, I did not rest.
05:39 I stayed at home for 2 days and then went to Peshawar.
05:44 The coach who was with me, who also had an academy at home,
05:49 he used to come with me from Peshawar to work on that.
05:54 When you perform, everyone says that you have done this.
05:58 Everyone works hard.
06:00 I dedicate this inning to our fielding coach, Aftab Khan,
06:06 and his academy, Ibrahim Ladda.
06:10 The failure that he saw and shared with me,
06:15 and the time he gave me, I don't think anyone else would have given that.
06:19 You need people like that.
06:21 When you perform, you see hard work.
06:25 When you don't, you don't see that hard work.
06:30 During the World Cup, the team was going through a rough patch.
06:37 A lot of talks about Corner Tigers, 92,
06:41 same thing started coming up again.
06:43 As a team, how do you think that 92 can always...
06:48 Does the team draw inspiration from that?
06:50 Or do you prefer not to draw inspiration from that
06:53 rather than just win and forget about it?
06:56 The good thing about our team and management
07:00 is that they stay positive.
07:03 They always stay positive.
07:05 They never show us that we are out of the tournament.
07:09 They back each and every guy.
07:13 We still believe that we can play the semifinals and also finals.
07:17 But let's see, because now we are also looking
07:22 to the Sri Lanka and New Zealand game.
07:25 We are hopeful that we will go our way.
07:30 There is a saying in Hindi,
07:34 "It's late, but it's right, so what?"
07:37 If you look at the last T20 World Cup in Australia,
07:42 the start was slow.
07:44 But when you are in a position to win,
07:47 how does that inspiration come from?
07:49 We see this in every World Tournament.
07:52 How does it come from?
07:54 All of our team is very talented.
07:58 We play everywhere.
08:00 If you look at it from the beginning to the end,
08:03 we need a rhythm.
08:06 Sometimes we lose.
08:09 If you look at the South African game,
08:13 we lost, but we are getting better.
08:16 I think our team lacks a rhythm.
08:20 When we get it, we can do better.
08:24 In the last match, our bowlers did very well.
08:27 If you look at it, the bowlers made a good comeback.
08:31 The way they played the wicket,
08:33 I think we made 30-40 runs less than them.
08:38 But the main thing is that we have a rhythm.
08:42 I don't know if this question has been asked before,
08:48 because we are a part of the Pakistan Championship.
08:51 But did you have in mind to maintain the net run rate?
08:56 Did you take all the calculations?
09:00 Yes, absolutely.
09:02 We had the rain in mind.
09:05 If you are chasing 400 runs,
09:07 you have in mind that if you have to calculate 20 runs
09:11 because of the rain,
09:13 we had it in mind.
09:15 We got messages after every over or two overs.
09:19 We were planning to get ahead of them
09:22 at every time on the duck or loose.
09:27 When we went ahead and scored 10 runs,
09:31 we didn't even try to bowl.
09:35 We already knew that it was raining
09:38 and we were already ahead.
09:40 This was in our mind.
09:42 [inaudible]
09:45 [silence]
09:48 [silence]
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