After Pakistan defeated Afghanistan by 6 wickets in the fourth quarterfinal match of the ongoing ICC U-19 World Cup on Friday to set up a semis clash with India, Pakistan opener Mohammad Huraira said that there will be pressure but they will treat the match against their arch-rivals as a normal one.
“The India-Pakistan rivalry has always been there. There will be a bit more pressure, but we’ll get used to it. Myself, should I play, I’ll try and play it like a normal game, and we look forward to it,” PTI quoted Huraira as saying after Pakistan’s win on Friday.
Riding on debutant Huraira’s knock of 64 runs, Pakistan had a walk in the park while chasing 190 at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom. They achieved the winning total with almost nine overs to spare.
Defending champions India, on the other hand, are the most successful team in the history of the tournament. En route to the semi-final, they had beaten Australia U-19 by 74 runs in the first quarterfinal match on January 29.
Pakistan have also won the title twice when they won it back-to-back in 2004 and 2006. Their second crown had come with a 38-run win over India in the final in Colombo.
Meanwhile, Huraira was adjudged man of the match for his h74-ball knock on his debut match. However, his innings was brought to an abrupt end after Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad mankaded him in the 28th over.
Talking about his performance the youngster said, “The coaches and the support staff gave me a lot of confidence.”
“I also had a lot of self-belief that whenever I get a chance, I will do my best. Today it came off all thanks to the Almighty,” he added.
(With PTI inputs)