Pakistan’s hopes of qualifying for the Asia Cup 2023 final were crushed on Thursday (September 14) as they suffered a heartbreaking two-wicket defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka in the Super-4 clash at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.

The members of the Pakistan cricket fraternity are reacting strongly in the aftermath of the national team’s ouster from the continental tournament.

Former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi also expressed his disappointment over the team’s abysmal display in the ongoing Asia Cup.

In particular, Afridi was critical of Pakistan's selection, targeting the team management for not giving a chance to back-up players in place of the struggling ones like Shadab Khan.

Notably, Shadab endured a dismal Asia Cup campaign. The spin all-rounder scored only 13 runs and picked up six wickets in the continental tournament.

Shadab failed to step up to the plate for his side in the Super-4 stage. He was fairly expensive with the ball against arch-rivals India, conceding 71 runs in his 10 overs and then returned with the figures of 1/55 in his 9 overs against Sri Lanka.

“This is an age-old problem. India are playing in Asia Cup, I've seen changes in almost every game in their team. They've rested seniors, played juniors, it shows that they are preparing for the World Cup. These decisions are very important, you select a 15-member squad because the players are bench are as good as those in XI. You shouldn't have a problem with resting the first-choice players,” Afridi said on Samaa TV.

“If Shadab is rested, Osama Mir is there. He has performed well for Pakistan in the past. If someone isn't performing in quite some matches, you should rest him. I'm not saying that drop him from the 15-member squad, you can keep him in the team and still rest him. Let him have sessions with head coach and bowling coach. I don't know what are our plans, really,” he added.

The Men in Green will now return to action in the ODI World Cup, where they will begin their campaign against Netherlands on October 6.