'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Pakistan men's cricket team's director Mickey Arthur has thrown his weight behind a struggling Shadab Khan, backing him to come good in the 2023 World Cup. The former head coach believes the youngster needs only one performance to turn his form around.
Shadab's leg-spin yielded only six wickets in five Asia Cup 2023 matches, with four of those coming against Nepal. The 25-year-old didn't bowl in the warm-up match against New Zealand and claimed only one wicket against Australia in 10 overs.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, October 5, ahead of facing the Netherlands, Arthur feels Shadab is a complete package and is currently just short of confidence.
"I wholeheartedly back Shadab. He's a wonderful cricketer. You look at his package of bowling, batting, fielding, it's exceptional. If we look at his bowling in isolation, he's just short of a little confidence. He hasn't lost his ability to turn the ball," he said.
The South African asserted that Shadab's form worry doesn't worry him and backs him to come good against the Dutch on Friday.
"His googly is still very, very good. He's one performance away from getting that confidence back and making sure that he has a real big influence on this World Cup. So I'd like that to come tomorrow, but I'm not worried about Shadab because I know he's a quality player," he added.
Shadab's returns with the bat have also been dismal, with scores of 4, 6, and 3 in three Asia Cup innings. The two warm-up games saw him make scores of 16 and 9.
"I think our boys are in a really good place" - Mickey Arthur
Mickey Arthur added that the entire team has loved being in India and he wishes to complete the job that was unfinished in 2019. In this regard, the 55-year-old added:
"The boys have loved being in India. They've embraced being here, which has been fantastic. The pressure of a World Cup is always massive, but I think our boys are in a really good place and part of the attraction for me is it's very similar squad to what we had in 2019 and it's almost unfinished business I felt in 2019."
The Men in Green will hope to lift their first 50-over World Cup since 1992 when Imran Khan captained them to the crown.
