Ramiz credits fielding, bowling for Pakistan’s first England T20I triumph

Former opening batsman Ramiz Raja has heaped praise on Pakistan’s fielding and bowling performance in their first T20I win against England.

The Men-in-Green defeated the home team in the series opener by 31 runs on Friday in a high-scoring affair.

Talking on his YouTube channel, Raja believes that the difference on the night was the visitors’ fast-bowling unit.

“This is a huge win for the players and the fans,” he said. “There is only one team who can bounce back like that and that is team Pakistan. From the outset, one could see that the players were charged up to secure a positive result after thrashing in the ODI series. Because of this reason, our fielding was brilliant and so was our catching.

“On the night, I believe the main difference was Pakistan’s fast-bowling which was superior to that of England. When you have three bowlers who can bowl well over 90 miles per hour, that gives you an edge in a T20 contest. Pakistan had far more wicket-taking options compared to the hosts.”

Raja further went on to praise the bowling of pacers Mohammad Hasnain and Shaheen Shah Afridi. 

“Credit must be given to especially [Mohammad] Hasnain,” he added. “He bowled a tight line and made it extremely tough for the batsman to score runs. I am happy for Shaheen [Shah Afridi] as well. He produced a brilliant comeback after a below-par ODI series.”

The second fixture will be played on Sunday in Leeds.