Sarfaraz Ahmed, a former Pakistani wicketkeeper and team captain during the tournament, discussed his experiences and how the team triumphed against the Indians after losing to them in the group stages.
This season’s ICC event, which will take place in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates and include the top eight teams in the league, is generating a lot of excitement as the Champions Trophy gets ready to start. The competition will start on February 19 after the squads have been determined.
The squad to keep an eye on is Pakistan, who will not only play at home but also try to retain the crown they won in 2017 after defeating bitter rivals India. Speaking of the rivalry, it is scheduled to occur in Dubai on February 23rd and will see the two teams playing in the same group again. The 2017 Champions Trophy was one of the team’s most memorable moments, despite the fact that Pakistan has been having difficulty defeating India in recent ICC championships.
Following the India loss, we had a fantastic team meeting when several of our experienced players, including Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez, each gave their opinion. Characters such as that are necessary in your life. Our perspective shifted after that day. Sarfaraz noted in an ICC blog, “The acrimony was very good for us, we made a couple of changes to the team, and it helped our confidence.”
After playing England in the quarterfinals, where our bowlers were outstanding, India faced us in the championship match. Sarfaraz continued, “I just knew we were at a very high level, and I told the players to calm down before the final.”
However, Sarfaraz Ahmed talked of the inexplicable emotion he had after defeating the Indian team in the finals.
The team’s mentality going into the tournament finals against the Men in Blue was another topic he discussed.
“India was nothing we had not seen, so we knew we had defeated some of the best teams. I told the guys to relax, forget the outcome, and just give it their all,” Sarfaraz wrote.
“The rest is the past. There are no adequate words to express the sensation we had when the final wicket fell and we won. The last catch I made was at Gully. Then I simply ran. Upon spotting Shoaib Malik, I rushed into his embrace and gave him a tight hug. After that, the entire squad joined in. It was incomprehensible. Finally, the 37-year-old said.