Daily Times

KARACHI: Younus Khan, the ex-captain who guided Pakistan to triumph in the first T20 World Cup in 2009, voiced confidence in Pakistan’s ability to secure a spot in the top four of the upcoming ICC World Cup in India. Speaking to the media in Karachi, Younus highlighted the team’s collection of match-winners, underlining their potential for success in the tournament. “I feel very confident that Pakistan will make it to the top four in World Cup. Because there are match-winners in the side who can win you matches any day,” the former captain said. He urged about the need to plan strongly for each game. “We have good fast bowlers as always and they will be our strength. We need to play as a unit.” Younus is one of the most prolific batters Pakistan have ever produced. He is the only Pakistan batsman to score 10,000+ runs in Test cricket. While talking about Pakistan vs India game, he suggested Babar Azam stay calm. “Match against India has always been a pressure game. Babar needs to make plan A and B to win against India,” he said. Pakistan have never beaten India in ODI World Cup. In 2021, they won against India in T20 World Cup for the very first time.

Pakistan’s tentative ICC World Cup schedule: Pakistan will play their group-stage matches across five venues. Pakistan will meet Qualifying teams on October 6 and 12 in Hyderabad, India in Ahmedabad (October 15), Australia in Bengaluru (October 20), Afghanistan (October 23) and South Africa (October 27) in Chennai, Bangladesh in Kolkata (October 31), New Zealand in Bengaluru (November 5, day match) and England in Kolkata (November 12).