Salman Agha won’t let his pacers tone down aggression, says he has “no issues” with his fast bowlers wanting to make a mark.
The aggression that Pakistan’s fast bowlers displayed in their most recent match against India last week shows no signs of abating. As long as things don’t get out of hand, captain Salman Agha stated on the eve of the Asia Cup final that he completely supports his teammates’ ability to force their will on the opposition and the game.
The scenario is set for another intense match between India and Pakistan, their third in as many weeks, this time for the championship. Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan were arrested for violating the ICC’s rule of conduct following their most recent meeting on Sunday. Similar sanctions were imposed on Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav for remarks he made after the two teams’ group match.
“If someone wants to be aggressive on the ground, then why not,” Agha said at a press conference. “If you deprive a fast bowler of their aggression, then what’s left? Every player knows how to deal with their emotions. I give players license to react the way they want at the ground. As long as they’re not disrespecting anyone and stay within the line, I have no issues with that.”
In keeping with the situation between two nations that had been engaged in a military battle earlier this year, India declined to shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts on that particular day, either before or after the game. According to Agha, he has “never before” witnessed something occur during a cricket match.
“I’ve been playing cricket since 2007 professionally. I’ve never seen no handshakes between two teams. My dad is a huge fan of cricket and used to tell me about its history. He never told me about any game where there’s not been a handshake. I’ve heard it’s never happened before.
“When India-Pakistan games took place in even more tense situations, handshakes always happened. Not to have handshakes is not good for cricket. If someone wants to be aggressive, whether they’re from my team or their team, I have no issues with that, but you should shake hands at the end of it.”
As of right now, it is quite likely that no handshakes will take place prior to or following the final.
Over the last two weeks, India has made an effort to disassociate themselves from the notion that a match against Pakistan is any more important than others. Agha had a different perspective.
“It would be wrong to say a Pakistan-India match doesn’t carry more pressure,” he said. “It’s the final. There’ll be a similar amount of pressure on both sides. The pressure of a final is different, of course.
“We can’t control what’s happened out of the ground. One of our philosophies is to not worry about what we can’t control. We are not focused on what people on the outside are saying. We’re here to win the Asia Cup and that’s our only focus.”