India may have tough time in T20 World Cup: Babar Azam

LAHORE: India as a team may have a tough time playing in the T20 World Cup as they have played  the short format a while ago, Pakistani cricket team captain Babar Azam said Thursday.

He said that the Indian cricket team would likely be a little more under pressure in the ICC T20 World Cup than Pakistan as the latter has an advantage owing to fresh experience of playing seven T20 matches.

"Pakistan will appear in the T20 World Cup after frequently playing T20 series whereas India is currently occupied with the Test cricket after which they will play franchise cricket ahead of the World Cup," said Azam.

Pakistan is as determined to win the T20 World Cup as every other team is while entering the World Cup, he added.

The skipper noted that India and Pakistan are placed in the same group and will face off against one another on October 24.

“No one can tell what is going to happen on the day of the match but I can say that we will play our best,” said Azam.

Speaking of the United Arab Emirates, he said it has been like a home ground and Pakistan has won 31 T20 matches there.

"The playing conditions there always benefit us immensely," he said.

On the expected New Zealand tour, the Pakistani cricket team captain said that he hopes that major New Zealand cricketers are included in the Test team coming to play against Pakistan after a year.

He said that in the Pakistan squad, there are some problems with the middle order, but this presents a good opportunity for the younger players.

“The chief selector has already given an explanation about dropping Sarfaraz Ahmed,” said Azam.

Azam also spoke about his role as skipper, saying: “I don’t have any pressure being the team’s captain and I’m learning from my mistakes.”

The captain said that he has met former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja, who is set to become the new Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman, and they talked about the future of Pakistan cricket.