ICC World Cup 2019: We will take every match as a tie against India: Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed

As the teams gear up to give their best in the forthcoming World Cup, Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed is keeping no secret about how his team will go about its business. Pakistan’s displays in the showpiece event have been dismal this century. Their best came in 2011 when they made it to the last 4 of the competition before losing to the eventual winners, India. And as the Men in Green look to put their dismal World Cup record to bed, Sarfraz & Co have come up with an interesting strategy in order to get motivation.

Sarfraz has revealed that his team would treat all the matches they play in the World Cup as a tie against arch-rivals India. Well, Pakistan will be hoping that the strategy does not backfire as they have never won against India in the World Cup. The reigning Champions Trophy holders will leave for England this week. They will start their sojourn in England with three warm-up matches against local teams before taking on England in a five-match one-day series and a Twenty20.

Following that, they will play two more warm-up games before starting their World Cup campaign against West Indies on May 31. Pakistan’s biggest World Cup clash will take place on June 16 when they take on India at the Old Trafford Stadium in Manchester. The marquee clash will be one of the high-octane matches of the tournament. The recent political tension between the two neighbours has added another dimension to the much-anticipated game.

“For us all nine matches are important so we will take every match as a match against India,” Sarfraz was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times. But while Pakistan have lost all the six games against India in World Cup, Sarfraz was quick to point out the 180-run win over the Men in Blue in the Champions Trophy final in June 2017. “We have beaten India in a bigger event recently so we will have that advantage,”said Sarfraz.

Sarfraz Ahmed on underdog tag

Pakistan’s recent displays in ODIs means they will enter the World Cup as the underdogs. However, Sarfraz sees it as a blessing in disguise as he said it would ease the pressure off his team. “Look, when we go as favourites, then it’s a problem, but if we go as underdogs then other teams feel the danger, so I think being underdogs is good for us and eases the pressure,” Sarfraz Ahmed said.

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