Former Pakistan captain Moin Khan believes that the Men in Green are playing mind games ahead of their clash against Sri Lanka in the ICC World Cup 2023 today in Hyderabad.
Moin shared these thoughts after Pakistan team’s Director Mickey Arthur said that he is aware of Sri Lanka´s "strengths and weaknesses" after having spent two years at the helm of his Asian rivals.
“Everyone has enough data these days about players. I think this is just a tactic to build some psychological pressure on Sri Lanka by telling them that we know your strengths and weaknesses. I think these are just mind games,” said Moin on a local sports channel.
Pakistan entered the marquee event following a disappointing Asia Cup 2023 campaign, while they suffered defeats in both their warm-up matches against New Zealand and Australia.
But they bounced back in their opening match against the Netherlands, where Babar Azam and his team overcame a couple of batting collapses to set a challenging target of 287 and secured an 81-run victory.
On the other hand, Sri Lanka entered the tournament after a demoralising loss in the Asia Cup finals against a formidable Indian side.
Similar to Pakistan, Sri Lanka also faced setbacks in their two warm-up matches against Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The Sri Lankan team is missing key performers like Dushmantha Chameera and Wanindu Hasaranga.
In their first game against South Africa in Delhi, their bowling struggled as the Proteas posted a record-breaking 428/5 in their 50 overs, ultimately dismissing Dasun Shanaka's men for 326.
Pakistan aims to secure a win in this clash to gather momentum for their highly-anticipated showdown against India on Saturday, October 14.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka seeks to draw confidence from their recent last-ball victory against Pakistan in the Asia Cup and aims to get their campaign back on track.
