LAHORE: Karachi Kings fast bowler Mir Hamza said he had nothing to do with the ball condition changing controversy.
Addressing a press conference following Karachi Kings’ dramatic four-wicket win over Lahore Qalandars, left-arm pacer Mir Hamza touched on the ball condition controversy, the intensity of the rivalry, and Karachi’s strong start to the season.
Hamza distanced himself from the controversy, saying he was focused on his batting at the time: “I was sitting in the balcony focusing on my batting, so I didn’t see exactly what happened. Regarding the color change, I honestly have no idea why or how it happened. I don’t have an answer for that.”
Hamza acknowledged the rivalry’s intensity and praised both sides for fighting hard: “The rivalry between Karachi and Lahore has been intense since Day 1. Most of our matches end up being close like this. Even though we restricted them to 129, we knew they would fight back. Credit to their bowlers, but our batters—especially Waseem and the others—kept us in it. In the end, Abbas finished it brilliantly; he deserves the credit.”
On playing on a used, double-paced surface, Hamza stressed professionalism: “As a professional, you have to be ready for every kind of pitch. Sometimes you get 200+ tracks, and sometimes you get green or slow pitches. There are no excuses. On a slow track like this, you need patience as a batter and variations as a bowler. You find these conditions in international cricket and other leagues too, so you just have to adapt.”
Hamza emphasized focusing on performance rather than off-field issues: “The match referee and officials are there to handle these things; they know what needs to be done. From a player’s perspective, it’s better to focus on the performance and the win or loss rather than the controversies.”
Hamza expressed confidence in Karachi’s squad depth: “Honestly, if you ask other teams, they’ll tell you we have the most balanced side this year. From the openers to the middle order and the bowling attack, everything is well-balanced. Because we look so good on paper, expectations are high. We’ve won both our matches so far, and we want to continue this momentum.”
Hamza admitted the penalty was decisive but credited Abbas Afridi’s composure: “Needing 14 in the last over on a slow pitch is high pressure. Getting those 5 penalty runs changed the requirement to 9, which means you only need one big boundary to seal it. Even then, 9 runs in the final over isn’t easy, but the way Abbas hit those last two shots was amazing—I was jumping and clapping in the dugout.”
Hamza kept his focus on consistency but identified Rawalpindiz as a strong contender: “Last year we had a strong side but unfortunately missed out by losing one crucial game. This year, we first need to focus on reaching the final. But if we get there, I feel the other strongest side in the tournament right now is Pindi (Rawalpindiz).”
