Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson has backed senior batters Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman to deliver in the ODI tri-series final against Sri Lanka on Saturday, describing the duo as two of the greatest players in the country’s cricket history.Hesson believes the big occasion could bring the best out of the experienced pair, who have struggled to make an impact with the bat during the tournament.“You are talking about two of the greatest players in Pakistan’s history in the top three. I expect big players to stand up in big games,” Hesson told the Pakistan Cricket Board ahead of the final at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium.However, their recent numbers have raised questions over their current form. Babar has registered scores of 45, 34, 10 and 29, while Fakhar’s returns read 16, 0, 10 and 5.Despite their lack of substantial contributions, Pakistan have managed to reach the final with three successive victories. They defeated Sri Lanka by 37 runs and England by 87 runs before edging past Sri Lanka by one wicket in a thrilling encounter, where Shadab Khan’s unbeaten century proved decisive.Hesson said the team’s ability to win games without significant contributions from some of its established batters was an encouraging sign. He also backed them to produce a match-winning performance when it matters most.“The fact that we have been able to achieve the wins that we have without the top order performing as well as we know they are capable of is a good sign,” he said. “A couple of our key players are searching for that match-winning performance, and there’s no better place to do it than in a final.”Pakistan’s campaign has not been without setbacks. They suffered an eight-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka in their final league fixture, but Hesson remained satisfied with the team’s overall progress.He acknowledged that Pakistan had played some good cricket without putting together a complete performance and hoped they would produce their best effort in the title clash.“It’s been a pretty good couple of weeks. We have played some decent cricket without being perfect. To get three wins in a row without contributions from a few of our key players is a good sign,” he said.“I still don’t think we have played our best game yet. Hopefully, we are saving that for the final.”
