Pakistan were thrashed by arch-rivals India in a lopsided Asia Cup Super Four clash in Colombo on Monday. Virat Kohli and KL Rahul smashed centuries as the Men in Green were beaten convincingly by a margin of 228 runs.
Pakistan head coach Grant Bradburn, however, saw the positive side of it and deemed it as a gift since it exposed Pakistan’s weak points which still needs fine tuning. “My gut feeling is that we are grateful for the gift that has been this last two days,” Bradburn told reporters.
“We don’t get to play some of the best players in the world very often,” he added.
“We haven’t lost a game of cricket for the last three months, so it’s a timely reminder that we need to turn up every day, put in our best on the park, and it’s actually a gift in the last two days we haven’t done that.”
Reflecting on the game against India, the former New Zealand all-rounder did not mince words and admitted that his side was beaten in all aspects of the game.
“We lost at all facets of the game,” Bradburn said. “No excuses, we weren’t good enough in the last two days.”
Bradburn was appointed as the head coach of Pakistan on a two-year deal after a successful spell as consultant. The former Scotland head coach previously served as the fielding coach of the Pakistan side from 2018 to 2020 before a stint at their National Cricket Academy (NCA).
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