Afridi started off by praising current Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed for his captaincy in the tournament so far. “I want to say that the final has given Sarfraz a God-given opportunity of leaving a lasting legacy. The feisty wicket-keeper batsman is still learning the art of captaincy, yet has grown in stature as leader in every game this tournament. My advice to Sarfraz for the final is simple - take all decisions wholeheartedly and without any fear whatsoever.”

Pakistan have found a perfect opening partnership in the form of Azhar Ali and Fakhar Zaman with the duo getting the Green Brigade off to good starts. And understandably, Afridi praised the pair, saying, “I am heartened by Pakistan’s opening partnership of Fakhar Zaman and Azhar Ali. The two have done a fantastic job for the team at the start of the innings and one more partnership of substance can give the side the required momentum for a possible victory.”

As far as how Fakhar and Ali should approach the final, Afridi suggested, “If Fakhar gets out early, Azhar should take the charge and focus on minimizing the dot balls, Pakistani batsmen need to remember that strike-rotation is as important as hitting boundaries in an ODI.”

“Hafeez’s cameo against England will hold him in good stead for the final. Malik has had a quiet tournament by his standards but I expect him to come good on the big occasion. We all need to back the seniors which will help them focus and help the youngsters in the team who might have some nerves or stage fright on Sunday.”