LAHORE: Quetta Gladiators captain Saud Shakeel openly admitted that his team’s performance in Pakistan Super League (PSL) Season 11 fell short of expectations, acknowledging both the collective failures and his own struggles with the bat.
In an exclusive interview with Jio NewsThe left-handed batsman admitted that things did not go as planned.
“Overall, our key players didn’t perform as we expected,” Shakeel said.
He attributed the team’s underwhelming campaign to the inability to find the right combination.
“Unlike last season, we couldn’t get our mix right this time, which led to this kind of performance,” he explained. However, he was confident of his spinners. “Our faith in our spinners has been there since day one. The same bowlers won us many matches last year.”
Regarding the team composition, Shakeel mentioned that the team is newly assembled at the auction and will need time to gel. He also spoke about the young talent Khawaja Nafe who was part of the Pakistan national team.
“Sometimes a player gets caught up in certain things. Khawaja Nafe may have taken too much pressure from high expectations. The sooner he learns from these experiences, the better.”
The Gladiators captain criticized his own performance.
“We couldn’t produce the performance we should have or expected. My start was good, but in the later stages, things didn’t go my way and the match turned sour for me.”
Acknowledging his recent struggles in white-ball cricket, Shakeel admitted that despite being given opportunities, he did not live up to expectations.
He emphasized his commitment to improving his performance and adapting his game to the demands of limited overs formats.
“I work hard and I hope to give 100% in my control. Being a professional cricketer, you don’t differentiate between red ball and white ball cricket. I respect what people say but I always try to play according to the situation. I got opportunities but I failed to play the cricket I should have. My aim is to give a different kind of cricket,” said Shakeel Saud.
Despite the disappointment, Shakeel pointed to several positives from PSL 11.
“I was hoping that with more teams, more young players would get a chance, and more youngsters would take advantage of it. Pakistan’s national team will benefit from this new talent.”
He highlighted the value of sharing a dressing room with international stars.
“When Steve Smith plays with you, or shares a dressing room with Maxwell, young players learn a lot. The PSL will only be better and Pakistan will benefit.”
Shakeel also admitted that playing without spectators has dampened his enjoyment of the tournament.
“Without the crowd, the charm is not the same. I’m sure all cricketers miss the crowd – I miss it a lot. I don’t enjoy playing without the crowd, but those circumstances are beyond our control.”
Commenting on teammate Usman Tariq, the Gladiators skipper highlighted the challenges faced by mystery spinners.
“Mystery spinners have come and gone all over the world. They have their position and then teams find them. It depends on what type of bowler brings back. Usman Tariq is facing the same situation as all mystery spinners. Now let’s see how he extricates himself from this situation,” he concluded.
Sohail Imran
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