Champions Trophy | Lack of big match experience hurt us against India: Aaqib

Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed addresses lack of experience as a key factor in team's poor ICC Champions Trophy performance.

Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed found himself in the eye of a storm following the team’s dismal performance in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy.

As the questions ranged from the team’s poor show in the last three ICC events to the lack of aggression against India, the former international admitted that lack of experience hurt the side during its marquee clash against the rival in Dubai last Sunday.

“When Pakistan and India are playing, it’s more than cricket. Numbers suggest that this Indian team was more experienced. Collectively, they have played more than 1,500 games, whereas for Pakistan, we are at the bottom. Collectively, this team has played around 400 games,” Aaqib said on Wednesday.

“Babar (Azam) is the most experienced among the lot, who has played more than 100 games, followed by (Mohammad) Rizwan and Shaheen (Afridi). The rest have played less than 30 games, so when you’re talking about more than a game, experience counts. There is no doubt that there was a lack of experience. There were new guys and we didn’t perform to expectations under pressure,” he said, adding that despite the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, Indian bowlers impressed as they had enough experience under their belt.

While he took responsibility for the team’s poor performance, Aaqib also refused to attribute Pakistan’s defeat to India playing all its matches in Dubai.

“There is a reason India is playing in Dubai. There is an advantage for sure when you play all your games in one venue, but we didn’t lose because of that,” Aaqib said.