A very proud moment for me as captain: Sarfraz Ahmed

When Pakistan were humbled by India in their opening clash of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, a visibly disappointed Mickey Arthur, the Pakistan coach, fronted the media. While there were several questions shot at him about the team's ability and the talent they possess, he kept reiterating that the players had worked extremely hard and the loss wasn't an exact representation of what they are capable of.

Pakistan bounced back to stun South Africa and then went on to win the must-win contest against Sri Lanka to seal a spot in the semifinal. On the eve of the semifinal clash against England, Arthur appeared more calm, proud of the way his team had bounced back after the first loss. "We'll be fine. You know we'll be fine," he went on to say with a smile, albeit a little hesitantly, when he was asked about the England challenge.

The message to Sarfraz Ahmed and his men was simple - they need to do the basics right, play their best game and the result should follow. And on Wednesday (June 14), Pakistan did just that, decimating the tournament favourites to seal a spot in the final with an eight-wicket win.

Sarfraz, understandably elated with the performance, credited the team management for bringing the players in the right mindset after the initial blip. "It's a very proud moment for me as a captain, and for our country as well that such a young side which was grossly underestimated at the start of the tournament - and nobody thought we'll make it to the knockouts, has performed so well," he started.

"I have to give credit to my whole team, the team management and because the way we've come back after the India match, everybody deserves a credit there. I think we also need to credit the selection committee because they supported us throughout. They gave us the guys we wanted to see in the side. Now, I can hope that our team will get much more support in the times to come. And if you do get that sort of support, I am very confident that this side will perform very well in the future."

One of the biggest reasons for this splendid turnaround for Pakistan has been the performance of Hasan Ali, the highest wicket-taker of the tournament, and Fakhar Zaman. Arthur had labelled Zaman "a breath of fresh air" and said he was encouraged by how well the younger, less experienced players have taken to the game.

Sarfraz too heaped praised on the young guns. "Honestly, I think, no praise is high enough. The credit should go to the selection committee for watching them closely - in domestic circuit, in PSL - and bringing them to the national side. And more than anything else, these boys deserve the credit for performing incredibly well in such a huge, high-pressure match," he gushed.

"Shadab has been performing well since the first game. Hasan has been improving with every passing day and Rumman, who played unexpectedly well in his debut match. So I think a lot of the credit should go to these guys who have been giving such brilliant performances in the first major [ICC] tournament of their lives We can't thank them enough [for where we are today]. And this, I think, are very good signs for the Pakistan cricket team that whoever has got a chance had grabbed his opportunity with both hands."

Heading into the final game, Pakistan will be well served by a firing top order. Azhar Ali and Zaman have both scored runs. But the think-tank will be slightly worried about the patchy performance of the middle-order. Sarfraz though brushed aside any concerns ahead of the all-important clash.

"I've said this before - ahead of the Sri Lanka game - and I will say it again, I have full confidence on my batsmen. We have some really capable batsmen in our team and they way they performed today, you have to give credit to them," he pointed out.

"Thankfully, our bowlers have been right on the mark consistently and today the batsmen also clicked. Azhar has scored, Babar got a fifty again (38*) and Hafeez bhai has chipped in too, and these I believe, are good signs for the team that the top-order batsmen are in good nick ahead of the final."