Pakistan’s explosive opening batter, Fakhar Zaman expressed his disappointment at Australia sending an under-strength squad for the historic ODI series between the two countries. Fakhar said that it would have been a spectacle if Australia sent their full squad to Pakistan.
Australia will be without star players including Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazelwood, and David Warner while experienced batter, Steve Smith, who was originally a part of the squad, has also been ruled out due to an elbow injury.
Fakhar expressed disappointment over an in-experienced Australian side, however, he added that Pakistan will not take them lightly.
“It would’ve been better if a complete squad of Australia had played in white-ball series,” Fakhar said.
“However Pakistan won’t take Australia lightly even if their experienced players are unavailable. Pakistan will have an advantage due to their player’s unavailability,” he added.
The 31-year old will be looking to continue his rich vein of form in the upcoming limited-overs series. Fakhar was tremendous in the recently concluded PSL 7 as he finished as the top scorer in the tournament and played a crucial part in Lahore Qalandar’s title-winning campaign. He scored 588 runs at an average of 45.23 and a strike rate of 152.72 in 13 innings.
The three-match ODI series is set to be played between 29 March to 2 April at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. A one-off T20I, scheduled to be played on 4 April, will follow the ODI series at the same venue.