Pakistan might not have lived up to expectations in the recently concluded Asia Cup but former pacer Wasim Akram is backing the side to bounce back strong when the 2019 ICC World Cup gets underway in England in 2019.
Pakistan came into the Asia Cup held in the UAE as joint-favourites alongside India off the back of their impressive form in the limited-overs format.
However, things did not go according to plan for the Men in Green who slumped to two heavy defeats against arch-rivals India before crashing out of the competition at the Super Four stage.
Analysing the team’s performance in the continental competition, the legendary Akram said that India are well ahead of the rest of the pack in Asia.
“India proved to be well ahead of everyone. Their exposure is greater, they have financial benefits and the money invested in their system like the Indian Premier League is bearing fruits,” the 52-year-old told AFP.
A disappointing campaign for Sarfraz Ahmed’s men.
Eight months remain for the World Cup to get underway and the Pakistan great remains confident that Sarfraz Ahmed’s men can bounce back at the venue of their 2017 ICC Champions Trophy triumph.
“It’s hard to predict eight months in advance but I am sure Pakistan will bounce back. They have some serious work to do in both bowling and batting. Bangladesh have an inspirational captain in Mashrafe Mortaza and Afghanistan is becoming a dangerous team,” he explained.
Pakistan had managed only two wins in the Asia Cup and had exited the competition after defeat at the hands of a resurgent Bangladesh in their final Super Four clash. The team will now turn their attention to the two-Test series against Australia which gets underway in Dubai on October 7.
