Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said on Friday that he had confidence in the ability of Asif Ali and knew the batter would take his side home during crunch games in the ongoing T20 World Cup.
Asif Ali blistering cameo powered Pakistan to a five-wicket win over Afghstan here at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Pakistan needed 24 runs in 12 balls but Asif did a Carlos Brathwaite and smashed four sixes to power his side home
"We started well with the ball, got a lot of wickets like we planned. Maybe gave away 10-15 runs too many at the end. With the bat, we couldn't capitalise the powerplay as we wanted to," Babar told the host broadcaster Star Sports after the match.
"At the end, with Malik and Asif Ali, we knew they could do the job. He (Asif Ali) is known for this and I was confident pre-tournament itself that he would deliver when needed," he added.
Babar kept fighting for his side when Pakistan was in dire need but Rashid Khan turned the game in Afghstan's favour as he dismissed the skipper in the 17th over.
However, Asif Ali smashed four sixes in the penultimate over as Pakistan defeated Afghstan with six balls to spare.
"We planned our strategies well with the ball, and also ensured that he kept the uneven boundary dimensions in mind while bowling. Spinners were getting some grip from the track, Afghstan has quality bowlers too and I was trying to take it as deep as possible. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish things off but credit to Asif Ali," said Babar.
( With inputs from ANI )
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