But on the eve of Pakistan’s Super Eight match against England, Farhan came to the rescue of his fellow willow-wielders off the field, too, during the pre-match media press conference at the Pallekele Cricket Stadium.
With qualification at stake and little room for error after the washout against New Zealand, Farhan backed Pakistan’s batters to step up.
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“We have collapsed in our batting. We are doing well with our bowling, the spinners particularly. But we will have to think about batting because if you look at T20 cricket, your top three or top four should be able to score more runs. We have not been able to do that. But the boys are working hard, and they are focused on the next match,” Farhan said.
The disparity in run accumulation through Pakistan’s order speaks for itself. The other three batters in its top four—Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha and Babar Azam—have combined for only 184 runs. Shadab Khan, who has batted at number five or lower, is the second-highest scorer with 88 runs.
The clamour around the change in Babar’s batting position and the subsequent lack of runs has not helped either. But Farhan insisted on sharing the burden of scoring runs.
“Sometimes the top order gives you a good partnership, sometimes it’s the middle order. T20 is such that it doesn’t depend on one person. I think this is a team game and everyone should take responsibility,” Farhan said.
The 29-year-old has taken responsibility so far. Traditionally, slow off the blocks, Farhan has initiated a change in approach and tried to accelerate up front. Through his 44-match T20I career, Farhan has scored in the PowerPlay at a strike rate of 129.68. During the World Cup, it has shot up to 163.
Having done so knowing the limitations of his successors in the batting order has magnified the weight of his contributions.
“This is international cricket. No matter how good you are, you cannot come and hit the first ball for six. So, you have to watch the pitch and play according to that. But I try, if a ball is in my range, I try to attack it, which you must have seen. But when I find my momentum, I try to take it long,” Farhan said.
He gave a glimpse of how quickly he can turn things around once he gets his eye in. Against Namibia, his first 50 runs came off 37 balls, before he changed gears to notch up the next 50 runs in just 20 deliveries.
“It is important to score runs, irrespective of the team you are playing against. You will get confidence. But I want to apply my form to all the Super Eight matches so that the team can benefit as well,” Farhan said.
But Pakistan leaning on Farhan makes him an easy target. His early wicket in India resulted in Pakistan’s response withering away under pressure, with no other batter, barring Usman Khan, standing up.
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Against England, Farhan will face the music from Jofra Archer, whose rapid pace could test his vulnerability against the length and hard-length deliveries. Farhan has fallen to these two lengths 19 times.
“It is no big deal to face Jofra Archer. We have faced him earlier too. We also have good wickets back home and bowlers who can bowl at 145 (kmph). You said that he must have planned how to bowl against me. But I have also planned. Hopefully, we will have a good contest,” Farhan said.
With two games in hand, Farhan is nearing Babar Azam’s feat (303 runs) for most runs in a single World Cup edition. Even Virat Kohli’s record of 319 runs from 2014 is scalable.
But Farhan would cherish his team’s win more than bagging a personal milestone. “I don’t look at the stats. Even when I perform well, people come and tell me that I have scored so many runs. You have to take risks in T20s. You cannot take the added burden on yourself of wanting to break records. Records are meant to be broken. I am not focused on that, but I will try my best,” Farhan said.
Published on Feb 23, 2026
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