Sarfaraz is not solely responsible for World Cup debacle: Tanvir

Pakistan pacer Sohail Tanvir believes that the Men in Green captain Sarfaraz Ahmed should not be solely responsible for team’s performance, during the 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup in England and Wales.

While talking to Cricket Pakistan in an exclusive interview, Tanvir said the entire team is responsible whether a team is losing or winning.    

“I think it is wrong to solely blame Sarfaraz Ahmed for Pakistan’s performance during the World Cup,” said Tanvir. “We win as a team and it’s the same when we lose. To say that the coach or captain, only, is responsible isn’t the right thing to do.”

He added: “I admit that Pakistan made mistakes in terms of squad selection and playing XI; which was the reason behind why we could not make it to the knockout stage of the event.”

The left-arm pacer also lamented Pakistan’s poor start to their World Cup campaign.

“We did not start the tournament well as we lost three out of the first five matches and one match was washed out,” he said. “Inorder to do well in such a tournament, you need to start on a high.”

Despite missing out on the World Cup spot, Tanvir was optimistic about representing Pakistan in the T20 World Cup next year.

“I was obviously gutted to miss out on the World Cup spot,” he said. “I missed out on the previous two World Cups, 20111 and 2015, on the last moment as well.”

He added: “Now I’m focused on playing the T20 World Cup next year. I’m always tagged as a T20 specialist and hopefully this will work in my favour.”

Speaking about the turnaround in pacer Mohammad Amir’s performance, Tanvir said: “Amir was not swinging the ball, earlier, which is why he was unable to get wickets. Luckily, during the World Cup, he was able to generate swing and use the angle well. As a new ball bowler, it is important to pick up wickets up front and this is precisely what he did.”

Tanvir also stressed on the importance of having the right balance between young and experienced players in the squad.

“I think we need to find the right balance between senior and young players,” he said. “It is not right to sideline players who are over 30, just because of their age, and performance should be the only criteria for selection.”