Pakistan has moved ahead from Maroof, and now Fatima Sana, the newly appointed skipper, has promised to set a major tone of professionalism for the team ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup. The previous Pakistan skipper, Bismah Maroof, retired from all forms of international cricket this year in April, as she ended her 18-year-long career.
Fatima claimed that girls in Pakistan are entering the game more, and she wants her career to be an inspiration for future generations. Sana has taken up many responsibilities on her shoulders, as she has left many of her favourites and is managing a heavy workload to eventually better her performances for the national side.
She also exclaimed how the lives of other cricketers varied from international greats as she played alongside Heather Knight, Deandra Dottin, and Laura Wolvaardt. It was from then that she started to emphasize her personal health and body fitness.
Sana exclaimed her desire to be a faster bowler to create more of an impact over the game, as she is already currently Pakistan’s second-highest and third-highest wicket-taker in ODIs and T20Is, among women Pakistani seamers.
Sana said that she desires to do well with the bat as well, as the batter is often seen as an aggressive batter in the formats, while she also idolizes the likes of great Shabnim Ismail, who resembles the stature of the Pakistani skipper but was one among the fastest to have played women’s cricket.
Pakistan Women’s probable performance in the Women’s T20 World Cup
The change in venue has been the most major concern for the participating teams of the Women’s T20 World Cup, as pitches in Bangladesh are different from those of the UAE. Though both are similar in types of pitches that facilitate spin, the UAE tracks seem much slower and dry due to the tropical conditions in the United Arab Emirates.
Only the likes of Sri Lanka and Scotland women who have priorly played against the sides in UAE, due to their qualifying matches, as other teams lack any experience on these tracks.
Fatima Sana might find herself amid a pile of spin bowlers, as this has been the scenario for them, as Pakistan has a heavy spin-supporting squad. Nida Dar would also be another crucial player and the most experienced alongside Fatima Sana.
“Our coaches played here,” Sana said. “Our bowling coach Junaid Khan and our spin coach Abdur Rehman played here. So they will share the experience with all of the team.”
Pakistan are in Group A alongside Australia, India, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka; however, Pakistan have not won a single match against any of these opponents since 2016, as they have not done so in the next 8 years. Since then, Pakistan has only managed to beat the West Indies and Ireland in World Cups in almost the entire last decade of play.
