Azhar admits players are homesick

Pakistan ODI captain believes victory in last match against Australia still on cards

Pakistan ODI captain Azhar Ali admitted on Wednesday that the tourists were feeling homesick after consecutive tours against England, the West Indies, New Zealand and Australia in the past seven months.

The hectic schedule has made the visitors longing for home now and Azhar believes that a win in the last ODI against Australia might give the players some respite.

Speaking to the press ahead of the final ODI in Adelaide, the captain said that a win tomorrow would give the squad members a relief and motivate them after a poor series Down Under.

“We just went [home] for a week after the England tour so we have been away from home for a long time and it has been quite hard anyway,” he said. “It’s the last game and the best motivation we have because, after we play tomorrow, we go home – and, if we finish off with a win, that will give us a lot of good relief going home.”



Australia took an unassailable 3-1 lead in the fourth ODI after Pakistan’s clumsy fielding gifted the hosts a victory in Sydney.

While Azhar confessed that poor fielding proved his side’s Achilles heel, the tourists still need to concentrate on what is ahead.

“Obviously, the performance we gave in the field was nowhere near good enough,” he said. “It was one of the days that you want to forget, we were just very poor, so we just want to get our concentration right, our focus right and try and get it better.”



As the hosts celebrate Australia Day on Thursday, the Pakistan captain ruled out using the day as an inspiration for his side.

“You never think like that,” he said. “Australia have been playing really good cricket throughout the summer, especially in the latter half of the summer. We just want to finish the tour very well – we don’t really want to spoil anything.”

Azhar was quoted by sbs.com