2017 ICC Champions Trophy: The Players Did A Lot Of Hard Work, That's Why We Are Champions: Sarfraz Ahmed

‘I’m not sure how to react’- this is what Sarfraz Ahmed said after leading Pakistan to an emphatic 180-run victory over firm favorites India in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy on Sunday (June 18). Nobody has given the Men in Green even an outside chance of advancing ahead of the group stage after they were galloped by 124 runs in their opening game by India. However, defying all the odds and displaying a brilliant brand of cricket, Pakistan not only advanced ahead of the group stage but went all the way, defeating the likes of South Africa, England and India to win their maiden Champions Trophy.

“I’m not sure how to react. After the loss to India, the morale was down and a lot of credit should go to the team management for the way they lifted the side. The boys have to be given credit as well, the way they got motivated after that, we played every single game, thinking this is a knockout game for us. We defeated good teams in this tournament. The players did a lot of hard work and that’s why we are champions,” Sarfraz said at the post-match press conference.

Led by Fakhar Zaman’s maiden ODI century, Pakistan posted a daunting 339-run target with a loss of four wickets. In reply, the in-form batsmen of India came a cropper during the all-important match, falling like a pack of cards to get bundled out for just 158 runs in the 31st over.

The win is very significant for the country which has been plagued with all sorts of problems in the last decade or so. Starting from no international cricket in Pakistan since the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team in 2009 to match-fixing, the country has seen a lot in the last few years and the winner will be a much-needed boost to their morale.

When asked about who the winner is dedicated to, Sarfraz said: “Please don’t ask me about dedicating. I don’t even say anything and things are blown out of proportion. I dedicate this win to the whole nation. We just told them that they should play their natural game. We wanted them to play in the same way they play in domestic cricket. If you look at Fakhar, the way he played the first game, he played it the same way he plays in domestic cricket. People say Azhar (Ali) is slow but he also played well today. Hafeez bhai as well. This has been an exceptional team effort.”

Even before the start of the match, Pakistan had suffered quite a big setback with Virat Kohli winning the toss. However, the India skipper played into the hands of Pakistan, asking them to bat first and they fully capitalized on it before the bowlers took the team over the line quite comfortably in the end.

“When I lost the toss, I was very happy. You are never sure what to do. If you post 280-290, then the opposition, no matter how long their batting is, they have to chase it down. Fakhar and Azhar bhai gave us the belief that we can post a good total. Credit goes to Fakhar, Azhar Ali, then Babar Azam and Hafeez bhai. They made sure we had momentum. All we had thought was we have to give 100 percent. We wanted to bowl first as well,” the skipper said.

“No one thought we’ll perform like this. A lot of people thought we couldn’t defeat India. We lost the toss, we scored 338, the fielders caught well and the bowlers did their job as well,” he added.