Former Pakistan captain and star all-rounder Shoaib Malik took a jibe at his own national cricket team with a cryptic tweet after the Men in Green suffered a 23-run defeat against Sri Lanka in the final clash of Asia Cup 2022 on Sunday in Dubai. Malik, who played a key role in Pakistan’s run in the T20 World Cup 2021 semi-final, last played for the senior national team in November 2021. He has been in great form in the National T20 Cup, where he recently scored a half-century for Central Punjab.
Shoaib Malik’s tweet was a jibe at his exclusion from the Asia Cup squad after Pakistan lost the final clash against Sri Lanka. It has to be noted that Shoaib’s omission from the Asia Cup squad helped raise quite a few eyebrows as the veteran all-rounder had been consistently performing in the middle-overs for Pakistan and other t20 leagues around the world.
Though Pakistan started the final clash in a blockbuster way by winning the toss and then picking back-to-back wickets, to rattle the top-order of Sri Lanka. However, riding on the unbeaten knock of Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka made a blockbuster comeback into the game and posted a total of 170 runs from their registered 20 overs.
Later on, Pakistan failed to chase 171 runs, getting bowled out for 147 in 20 overs. Barring Mohammad Rizwan, who scored a 49-ball 55, and Iftikhar Ahmed, who hit 32, none of the other Pakistan batters made a significant contribution. Pakistan’s middle-order also collapsed with their 6 wickets for just 37 runs.
Meanwhile, after Pakistan’s defeat, Shoaib Malik took to his social media and posted a cryptic tweet, taking a dig at selectors. He wrote: “When will we come out from friendship, liking & disliking culture? Allah always helps the honest,”
Check out the Tweet:
– When will we come out from friendship, liking & disliking culture.
Allah always helps the honest…— Shoaib Malik 🇵🇰 (@realshoaibmalik) September 11, 2022
