Former West Indies cricket legend, Sir Vivian Richards, has expressed his disappointment at Pakistan’s challenge in clinching a place in the semi-finals of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2023 in India.

In a recent column for the International Cricket Council (ICC), Richards emphasized that the national team possesses exceptional abilities but has made their aforementioned tournaments journey unnecessarily challenging.

He highlighted that, considering the talent at Pakistan’s disposal, they should have already secured a semi-final berth. 

“I can’t help thinking that with the talent they have, they should have already sealed their spot. I have seen up close in recent years through my coaching work [Pakistan Super League] how much ability exists in that squad but they have made life hard for themselves – I think they are a more talented squad than their place in the table would suggest. They can beat the very best on their day so there may be some punches left in that team,” said Richards. 

The Men in Green will need to go all out in their final World Cup group fixture with England on Saturday despite facing a near impossible task to qualify for the semi-finals.

After New Zealand’s win over Sri Lanka, they have 10 points and occupy the fourth and final knockout berth with a net run rate of +0.743.

Pakistan, fifth in the table with eight points and a net run rate of +0.036 , will have to beat England by around 287 runs while batting first or by about 284 balls to spare while chasing the target.