Home » Sports » Cricket » Mike Hesson confident Pakistan will deliver best in tri-series final against Sri Lanka
Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson expressed optimism that his team will deliver their best performance in the tri-series final against Sri Lanka in Lahore on Saturday.
Pakistan secured their place in the final by winning their first three matches of the tournament. However, Hesson stated that the team has yet to produce a complete performance despite the winning streak.
The hosts have faced challenges with individual batting contributions, as no Pakistani batter ranks among the top five run-scorers in the competition. Notably, opener Fakhar Zaman and former captain Babar Azam have yet to score a half-century, despite participating in each match so far.
“It’s been a pretty good couple of weeks. We have played some decent cricket without being perfect. To get three wins in a row without contributions from a few of our key players is a good sign,” Hesson said, according to the ICC website. “I still don’t think we have played our best game yet. Hopefully, we are saving that for the final,” he added.
Since taking charge last year, Hesson has led Pakistan to 12 victories in 19 One Day Internationals (ODIs), including series wins against Australia, Sri Lanka, and South Africa. These results provide a positive outlook ahead of next year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, where Hesson aims to guide Pakistan to their first 50-over World Cup title since 1992.
The coach emphasised the need for consistent performances from the top-order batsmen if Pakistan are to contend for the trophy. “You are talking about two of the greatest players in Pakistan’s history in the top three (Fakhar and Babar). I expect big players to stand up in big games,” he said.
He added, “The fact that we have been able to achieve the wins that we have without the top order performing as well as we know they are capable of is a good sign. A couple of our key players are searching for that match-winning performance and there’s no better place to do it than in a final.”
This story is written by TNM Bureau with inputs from ANI. The News Mill is a Guwahati-based digital media with focus on content from across Northeast India and beyond. We can be reached through [email protected]
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