Pakistan allrounder Hussain Talat has defended his place in the team by stressing that batting in the middle order of T20 cricket is one of the most difficult skills in the game. After guiding Pakistan to victory against Sri Lanka in a must-win clash, Talat explained that very few players can truly master this role.
Middle-Order: A Rare and Demanding Skill
Speaking after the match, Talat highlighted how challenging it is to adapt in the middle overs of a T20 innings.
“𝑾𝒆 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒘𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒆-𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒈𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒓,” 𝑻𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅. “𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒈𝒉. 𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝒇𝒆𝒘 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒈𝒐 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖’𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎.”
He further added that only a handful of Pakistani players can handle such responsibilities, yet even they are often reluctant to bat in that position.
Redemption Against Sri Lanka
Talat came under heavy criticism after Pakistan’s defeat to India, where he struggled to score freely and lost momentum for the side. However, against Sri Lanka, the left-hander steadied the innings after a sudden collapse and ensured Pakistan crossed the finish line.
Explaining his approach, Talat said:
“𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏, 𝒘𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒂𝒍𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝒘𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒔. 𝑴𝒚 𝒈𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒑. 𝑵𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒛 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒂𝒄𝒌, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒓. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒍𝒚.”
His composed batting, supported by Mohammad Nawaz’s explosive hitting, helped Pakistan chase down 134 comfortably in the 18th over.
Back After a Long Wait
For Talat, this victory was particularly sweet, as it came after years away from international cricket. He believes Pakistan’s current setup is more consistent in backing players than in the past.
“We’re hopeful. Players are now being given an extended run, unlike before when two bad games could end your career,” Talat said.
With Pakistan relying on a fragile middle order, Talat’s performance against Sri Lanka may just secure him more opportunities in the side.
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