Pakistan were one of the lucky teams to play both warm-up matches ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup as the rain had some mercy on them. However, the Men in Green will not enter the marquee event on a positive note as they lost both matches played at Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. They lost the first match against New Zealand on 29 September by five wickets, and in the second match against Australia on 3 October they lost by 14 runs.
Shadab Khan replaced Babar Azam as captain against Australia. Their bowling unit, considered one of the best in the tournament, once again conceded a score of over 340. Babar (90 off 59) and Iftikhar Ahmed (83 off 85) put in a brilliant batting performance but they could not get past Australia's target of 352. However, apart from Pakistan's batting and bowling, their fielding struggles took centre stage.
During the 23rd over of Australia's batting innings, Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf delivered a short-of-a-length delivery to Marnus Labuschagne. The Aussie right-hander attempted to steer the ball towards deep backward square leg.ย There was no sign of the ball heading for the boundary, but a hilarious mix-up between Mohammad Wasim Jr. and Mohammad Nawaz resulted in four runs for the Australian.
Speaking after the match, renowned Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle asked skipper Shadab about the famous Hyderabadi biryani. It is interesting to note that ever since the Pakistani cricket team arrived in India for the upcoming World Cup, they have been overwhelmed by the hospitality of the Indians.
The bowling all-rounder came up with a hilarious answer to Bhogle's query about Hyderabadi biryani saying that consuming too much of them affected his team's performance in the warm-up matches. "We are eating it daily, and perhaps that is why we are getting a bit slow," he said.
Result is not important. We took a lot of positives: Shadab Khan comments on Pakistan's loss in warm-up matches
Despite Pakistan's defeat in both warm-up matches, their vice-captain is confident of the squad for the premier 50-over tournament. According to Shadab, Pakistan took a lot of positives from the last two matches and also got a bit of experience with the conditions in Hyderabad.
"Result is not important. We took a lot of positives. Our attitude was good, result not in our hands. I think our 11 is sorted, we just wanted to give time to the bench to show their skills. When you play against Australia and New Zealand, you get confidence. We got a little bit experience of conditions," he concluded.
Here's how fans reacted to Shadab Khan's remark on Hyderabadi biryani:ย
And aise hi Karke World Cup se Bahar v ho Jana Tumlog #PAKvAUS
โ Md Husnain (@mdrj007) October 3, 2023
Next Mission defeating India in India๐คฉ๐ฅ
โ Noman Tariq (@NoManTariiiq) October 3, 2023
Worldโs best briyani is from
โ Sammy ๐ (@sammyX39) October 3, 2023
Hyderabad, Bharat ๐ฎ๐ณ
Focus on the Goal Shadab Not Biryani ๐ก
โ Zaib Khan (@zaibkhan33001) October 3, 2023
pakistan team be like, world cup to next time bhi jeet sakte hai, abhi khana kha lo, fir mile na mile!
โ Dr. Maulik Modi (@iamthemaulik) October 3, 2023
Yeh log khelne nae party karne gaye hain
โ Zoobia Imran (@zoobiaimran00) October 3, 2023
Please focus on cricket and don't say these childish things. These things can't stop you in the team anymore. You have to go.
โ nasir swati (@nasirswati4) October 3, 2023
Hyderabad me mandi bhi try karo.. aur india k khilaf aur lazy ho kar aana. Taki hum log asani se hara sake .
โ Zaid Qureshi (@zaidbabbu) October 3, 2023
๐คฃ๐คฃ๐คฃ๐๐
just eat biryani your performance is zero
โ Global Info ๐ฅ๐ฅ !!! (@zaidijeeksa) October 3, 2023
Enjoy he kere ab hyderabad ๐ ๐
โ Tahir Baloch (@tahirbaloch110) October 3, 2023