31 October - Kolkata - Pakistan player Fakhar Zaman post-match press conference
[Reporter:]
Converting from Fakhri Zaman to Fakhri Aiden. You could have been the Fakhri Aiden by scoring a century here where Nasir Jamshed score. So, what do you say?
[Fakhar Zaman:]
Exactly, but the situation we are in at the moment, so we were looking to chase it like in 28, 29 overs, so that's why I was just going. Otherwise, it was very easy for me to get to the 100 after 50, but our goal was to achieve the target within like 30 or 29 overs.
[Reporter:]
Just wanted to know – your bowling unit, especially the pace bowlers, bowled short to Shakib Al Hasan – was that an intentional plan against him? Because he is getting out from short balls?
[Fakhar Zaman:]
To be honest I don't know exactly about that but whenever we are playing against Bangladesh most of the time, we plan for the bouncer so maybe that's the captain and bowlers’ plan but I'm not sure about that.
[Reporter:]
What hopes do you have to go to the semi-final after losing 4 games? What is the mood in the camp?
[Fakhar Zaman:]
In the World Cup, each win gives you confidence and we were waiting for this win. We are on the ifs and buts right now - but we will try to win both the matches with good run rates. Our target is the semi-final and we will try for that.
[Reporter:]
You mentioned a few days ago that you were working on the side lines and you felt that your batting was improving. We are also looking at the bowlers and they are able to use the conditions better. Do you think that the team will move into the execution phase and you have collected the data now about the conditions here.
[Fakhar Zaman:]
Absolutely. When you spend some time in any place, you get an idea of the conditions – for both the bowlers and batters. It’s like that. And if you look at the way we played in the beginning, we play like we play in Pakistan. Here, our fast bowlers are trying to have more accuracy. In Pakistan, when you use more pace, you get more success. Here if you bowl more accurately, they will score less.
[Reporter:]
After sitting out for 6 matches, when you came in today, we noticed your hunger. So, can we say that the best of Fakhar Zaman is yet to come now in these last two matches of this stage of the tournament?
[Fakhar Zaman:]
Absolutely. The way I was batting in the nets, you get the idea that the ball is coming well. And if I tell you the truth, the way India's wickets are, for batsmen, if they play 3 or 4 overs, I think it's easy to make runs - after playing 3 or 4 overs for the batsmen. The boundaries are also not that big.
I will try to perform well in the next two matches so our team can win.
[Reporter:]
You were suffering from an injury - [inaudible]
[Fakhar Zaman:]
My injury was such that I could have played any time. If the team needed me, I could have joined at any time. I didn’t have a severe injury. We were just taking a precaution, and I could have joined the team whenever I was needed.
Now that I have got the chance, I will try to contribute to the team's success.
[Reporter:]
[inaudible]
[Fakhar Zaman:]
Of course, an India and Pakistan match is a very big deal. If I say it doesn't make a difference, I would be wrong. But all the players are professional and have played a lot of cricket. Even against India, they have played a lot of matches. So, you can't say anything like that. But I think if you look at our rhythm, we have made a comeback in batting and in bowling – like if you see in our previous match against South Africa. This is a combination.
I hope that you will see the same in this match and also in the next. I am part of this dressing room since the past 8 years, so I feel that the more we play, the more we will improve.
[Reporter:]
Today Pakistan played one bowler less and one batter more. Iftikhar had to bowl 10 overs. Are they bringing the same combination with New Zealand?
[Fakhar Zaman:]
Only the captain will tell you about that. But Iftikhar Ahmed is bowling 7 to 8 overs in every match, maybe because he is playing the role of a bowler, the captain and coach must have thought that already Iftikhar is bowling 7 to 8 overs then why not make him do 10 overs, because now even Salman can bowl.
