Finally, the Asia Cup 2022 concluded with Sri Lanka defeating Pakistan by 23 runs in the final at Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. The tournament saw some thrilling finishes in both the group and Super 4s stages.
The event has, however, served as a wake-up call for the national selection committee to review the performances and choose players for the upcoming England series, New Zealand tri-series, and most importantly the T20I World Cup in Australia later this year.
Apart from the poor performance of skipper Babar Azam, the Asia Cup exposed flaws in Pakistan’s middle-order. Their performance turned out to be one of the worst in recent memory.
The Babar Azam-led side had kept faith in Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, and Asif Ali, but none of them performed exceptionally well in the six matches.
Fakhar Zaman, who has been struggling to regain his form since the turn of the year, scored 96 runs at an average of 16 and a strike rate of 103, including a half-century against Hong Kong.
Iftikhar Ahmad is another name who was anticipated to be a powerful hitter in the middle but failed to impress the fans as he scored 105 runs with a strike rate of only 100.96 and an average of 26.25.
Khushdil Shah, whose competence was put to the test at different batting positions, failed to deliver as he scored 58 runs at an average of 14.50 and a strike rate of 120.83.
Asif Ali also failed to maintain his average in the double figures. The hard-hitter scored 41 runs at an average of 8.50, however, he scored his runs at a strike rate of 164.00.
| Player | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | Inning |
| Iftikhar Ahmed | 105 | 26.25 | 100.96 | 6 |
| Fakhar Zaman | 96 | 16.00 | 103.22 | 6 |
| Khushdil Shah | 58 | 14.50 | 120.83 | 6 |
| Asif Ali | 41 | 8.50 | 164.00 | 6 |
While it might be too early to call for their replacement or a complete middle-order reshuffle, the batters need to perform well in the coming series, otherwise, the selectors will have to make some big changes for the mega event in October and November.
