Pakistan fast bowler Hassan Ali wouldn't forget the T20 World Cup 2021 semi-final for the rest of his life as he dropped an important catch of Australia wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade. After getting a lifeline in the 19th over, Wade went on to smash three consecutive sixes to secure the match for Australia.
It was Pakistan's star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi who was at the receiving end as Pakistan suffered a five-wicket defeat. Skipper Babar Azam had said at the post-match presentation that the scenario of the match could have been different had the catch been taken.
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Ali revealed that he was unable to ‘sleep for a couple of days’ after the defeat. “It was the tough moment of my career and it was quite difficult for me to forget. I haven’t revealed this to anyone until now but I didn’t sleep for two days, my wife was with me and she was tense as I was not sleeping,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
The 27-year-old tried to move on from the incident on Pakistan's tour to Bangladesh after the T20 World Cup 2021 tournament. “I was quiet and sitting at the side as the dropped catch was appearing in my mind continuously but while traveling to Bangladesh I told myself that I should move on,” he added.
Ali said his teammates know how hard he prepares for the matches and never takes them lightly. The speedster revealed he and his teammate Shaheen were in tears after the outcome of the match.
“All my teammates are aware of how I approach the games and that I don’t take the matches lightly. I prepare well and I always try to perform for Pakistan. After the match, I was crying and so was Shaheen; it was an extremely sad moment,” he said.
Pakistan's veteran cricketer Shoaib Malik had tried to comfort Ali in the tough time, and he also received love from fans on social media which helped him a lot.
“Shoaib bhai came to me and told me that you are a tiger and that I shouldn’t fall. In addition to that, I also received a lot of support on social media which helped me ease through the pain,” he added.
