The Green Shirts landed in New York on Friday ahead of the June 9 T20 World Cup match between Pakistan and India, according to state television PTV News.
The Pakistani Consulate General in New York announced the team’s arrival, according to a post on X by PTV News.
“Consul General Aamer Ahmad Atozai warmly welcomed the team, led by captain Babar Azam,” the statement reads, adding that Atozai wished them luck in the T20 World Cup.
“We urge the Pakistani diaspora and cricket enthusiasts in New York and across the United States to come out in large numbers to support our team,” the Consul General said, as reported by PTV News.
On Thursday, in their opening encounter of the competition, the Green Shirts were dealt a crushing blow by hosts the United States, startling both cricket experts and Pakistanis.
Pakistan will now meet archrivals India on June 9 at 7:30 p.m. (PKT) at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, where security will be increased following allegations of threats specifically tied to the event.
They will subsequently face Canada on June 11 at 7:30 p.m. (PKT) on the same pitch. The competition is co-hosted by the United States and West Indies.
Pakistan’s performance in the US encounter falls short, according to Babar.
Pakistan has a habit of underestimating less experienced teams in important events, according to captain Babar Azam, who also stated that his team played much below their potential in Thursday’s encounter.
Babar Azam talks after Pakistan’s defeat against the United States in Dallas on June 6. — DawnNewsTV
The United States defeated Pakistan in a Super Over in Dallas, causing one of the largest upsets in Twenty20 World Cup history and securing their second victory of the tournament.
Pakistan has already lost to lower-ranked competition in key events, with the 2009 winners falling to Zimbabwe in the 2022 T20 World Cup and Afghanistan in the 50-overs World Cup the previous year.
“If you don’t execute your strategy against any team, that team will defeat you. I feel we are not meeting expectations in terms of execution. We are performing well in practice, but we are not implementing our team plans during the contest.”
Babar also regretted his team’s failure to capture wickets in the opening half of the US innings, citing an early 68-run partnership between Mohank Patel and Andries Gous as critical to the host nation’s chase.
“We are not playing good in all three departments,” Babar stated. “We are better than that in the bowling department; we are not taking wickets in the first six overs.” In the middle overs, if your spinner isn’t taking wickets, pressure is on the team.
