Flower urges Pakistan's top-order batsmen to step up

The 1992 champions will play Ireland on Sunday in Pool B to decide a three-way battle for a spot in the quarter finals. West Indies, who take on United Arab Emirates, the same day are the third team in contention for the knockout stage.





Former Zimbabwe batsman Flower, who was appointed to the Pakistan role last year, said the best was yet to come from the team's batsmen.

"They are yet to fire and I would like to think their best is still to come and if not then we wouldn't go too much further into the tournament," Flower told Pakistani reporters in Adelaide on Wednesday.

"I expect the top order to show some more spine."

Pakistan have crossed the score of 300 only against UAE in the tournament which has seen totals in excess of 400 breached thrice. Captain Misbah-ul-Haq, who bats in the middle order, is their top scorer with four half centuries in five matches.

The team have been rescued by their four-man pace attack, who have successfully defended low totals in three matches, including an exciting win over South Africa last week.

Flower said that players like Umar Akmal and Sohaib Maqsood, who have failed to get big scores, needed to do more to showcase their talent.

"They showed glimpses of their talent but for such good players they are they need to show more," Flower, who played 67 tests and 221 ODIs for Zimbabwe, said. "They are aware that they can bat a lot better than they have.

"The signs were there against UAE and they played some positive cricket against a good South African attack."





(Editing by Sudipto Ganguly)


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world