USA vs PAK: Pakistan will not be complacent against USA, shares Babar Azam - Cricket Winner

Pakistan captain Babar Azam said that Pakistan will not take the USA lightly when both teams meet in Dallas in a Group A clash of the T20 World Cup on Thursday, June 6. Pakistan will start their campaign in the ninth edition of the tournament where their forms are in doubt. On the other hand, the USA are high on confidence after beating Canada in the tournament opener at the same venue on June 2 as well.

However, Pakistan have headed to the tournament on the back of a 2-0 defeat in a four-match series to England recently. They also lost to Ireland in the first match of a 3-match series before clinching the series by 2-1. Meanwhile, Pakistan will be confident and start as favourites against the USA.

“We will give them the respect they deserve without being complacent” – Babar Azam

“It will be a proud moment and a big occasion for the USA when they play a former champion on Thursday. After beating Bangladesh 2-1 and then Canada in the tournament opener, they have demonstrated they deserve to be here, which is excellent news for cricket promotion and development in the region. We will give them the respect they deserve without being complacent,” Babar Azam said in a statement from the Pakistan Cricket Board.

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He also highlighted that the USA will be well aware of the conditions at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas as well, having played their home games at the venue. On the other hand, the USA were clinical in their first win over Canada. Despite conceding 194, the USA kept their calm and reached the target in just 17.4 overs on Aaron James’s swashbuckling 94* as well. Meanwhile, the USA also defeated Bangladesh in a three-match T20I series 2-1 in the lead-up to the mega event.

“We will follow the horses-for-courses policy in team selections” – Babar Azam

“All 20 teams are here believing they can win the tournament. As such, it is going to be an exciting but extremely challenging and testing tournament, and that’s the beauty of world championships,” Babar Azam added.

“We will follow the horses-for-courses policy in team selections as the conditions in the USA will be new and a couple of opponents we have not played before. In modern-day cricket, the concept and importance of floating players has become more critical than ever before and our players are aware of this as well as their roles and responsibilities,” Babar Azam concluded.

Pakistan will face India in New York, five 2 days after their opener against the USA.