TAUNTON, United Kingdom: Veteran Pakistani batsman Mohammad Hafeez has urged his side to take the confidence from their win over hosts England into their next World Cup match against champions Australia.
The 38-year-old was Pakistan’s savior in their sensational 14-run win over England in Nottingham, riding his luck on the way to a match-turning 84 off 62 balls.
That helped Pakistan post a challenging total of 348-8 and set up a confidence-boosting win after they flopped badly in their opening seven-wicket defeat by the West Indies.
“I think all 10 teams are beatable,” Hafeez told AFP on Sunday. “If you look at England they were playing top cricket and people were thinking it would be hard to beat them.”
Hafeez, speaking before Australia suffered a 36-run loss to India at the Oval on Sunday, added: “But all teams are beatable ... if you talk of our next opponent (Australia) they are also playing very good cricket but they too can be defeated.”
Pakistan, who face the title-holders at Taunton on Wednesday, have a dismal recent record against Australia — they’ve won just one of the last 14 one-day internationals between the teams dating back to October 2014.
Australia — who have won four of the last five World Cups — completed a 5-0 whitewash of Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in March, albeit Pakistan rested seven of their top players.
“Yes, we don’t have a very good record against Australia because they play tough cricket but every day is a new day,” said Hafeez.
“This is a World Cup and we now have momentum after our win over England.”
Pakistan were left to rue persistent rain in Bristol on Friday, which led to a no-result washout in their match against Sri Lanka with both teams receiving a point.
“Yes, that was frustrating but you cannot do much about the weather and now we have moved on. But I am sure when we play again we will put up the same game that we played against England,” Hafeez promised.
Hafeez said Pakistan’s remarkable turnaround in their first two games — they were bowled out for a paltry 105 by the West Indies in Nottingham — was down to acknowledging their mistakes.
“I think we realized that we played a very bad game and we gave confidence to each other and convinced each other that we can win and that positive thinking helped bringing the change,” said Hafeez, a veteran of 212 ODIs.
Their win over England, who defeated them 4-0 shortly before the start of the World Cup, ended Pakistan’s sequence of 11 consecutive defeats since losing the fifth and final one-dayer against South Africa in January.
“Yes, we had been losing but we were playing good cricket,” Hafeez explained. “The best thing about the England win was that everyone contributed.
“Even Hasan Ali, who didn’t get a wicket, but his last three overs were good and brought us back,” said Hafeez of the medium-pacer who finished with 0-66 in 10 overs.
“When you play like that you get confidence and momentum.”
Pakistan need not fear Australia, says Hafeez
Pakistan need not fear Australia, says Hafeez
- The veteran Pakistani batsman was Pakistan's saviour in their win over England in Nottingham
- Pakistan will face the title-holders Australia at Taunton on Wednesday
‘20 years of engagement’ — inaugural Formula 4 championship success signals bright future for motorsport in Saudi Arabia
- Peter Thompson, founder of the Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship and Meritus.GP team principal, spoke about the Kingdom’s first motorsport academy and his hopes for the future
RIYADH: Last year welcomed the inaugural season of the FIA-certified Aramco Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship.
The series, which aims to provide the first step on the ladder towards Formula 1, was the culmination of years of collaboration between various investors and partners, led by the Kingdom’s first motorsport academy, Meritus.GP.
The championship’s mission?
To produce local driving talent, strengthen Saudi national race engineering capabilities and advance motorsport in alignment with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030.
Five Saudi drivers emerged, with standout victories by Omar Al-Dereyaan and Faisal Al-Kabbani, both from Riyadh. Other graduates included race winner Oscar Wurz, who has since won the 2025 Central European Formula 4 Championship.
Arab News spoke with Peter Thompson, founder of Formula 4 Saudi Arabia and Meritus.GP, about the season’s success and his hopes for the future.
How did Meritus.GP build the Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship?
The Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship was the result of more than 20 years of engagement, exploration and groundwork in Saudi Arabia, in anticipation of a potential FIA-certified junior single-seater championship in the Kingdom.
Long before the first Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, we were on the ground exploring circuit development opportunities, assessing infrastructure readiness and evaluating whether Saudi Arabia could host a round of one of the Asian championships operated by the team. Throughout this period, we maintained long-standing relationships within Saudi motorsport circles including former Meritus.GP driver Raad Abduljawad and his brother Mohammed Abduljawad.
A defining moment came with the introduction of Formula 1 to Saudi Arabia. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit quickly became a visible symbol of this ambition, providing confidence that Saudi Arabia could support not only Formula One, but also a structured ladder of junior single-seater racing.
When did Meritus.GP receive formal institutional approval to begin Formula 4 Saudi Arabia?
More than three years of focused groundwork preceded the first race. During this period there was no formal government mandate, no guaranteed institutional backing and no commercial certainty that the project would proceed or be viable.
Then, in December 2022, a formal No-Objection Letter was issued by the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, under the leadership of its then-CEO Sattam Al-Hozami, which allowed the project to progress from concept to reality.
Recognizing the benefits F4 would bring to the Kingdom, Mohammed Abduljawad became an investor in June 2023, and Formula 4 Saudi Arabia moved into full delivery mode.
What were the objectives of the proposal presented to Saudi Aramco?
The proposal positioned Aramco Formula 4 Saudi Arabia as a long-term national development platform aligned with Vision 2030.
Its objectives included creating a structured FIA driver pathway from grassroots to Formula One, as well as developing Saudi engineers, mechanics and officials in motorsports.
How did the championship support Saudi drivers, and what was the impact on local talent?
A core objective of Formula 4 Saudi Arabia was to create a genuine, fair and internationally credible environment in which Saudi racers could develop.
Saudi drivers competed alongside international peers under identical technical and sporting conditions, allowing performance and development to be measured objectively.
They ended up achieving race wins, podium finishes and measurable progress across the season, demonstrating that when provided with the right structure, Saudi talent can compete at international level.
How has Formula 4 Saudi Arabia engaged with Saudi education and skills development?
Education and skills transfer formed an important part of the championship’s wider mission.
During the season, Meritus.GP engineers and senior staff visited Saudi education and research institutions such as KAUST, Alfaisal University, University of Tabuk and the Japanese College in Jeddah to discuss career pathways in motorsport engineering, data analysis, and systems integration. These engagements were designed to connect academic study with real-world high-performance engineering environments.
What level of investment was required and how did you ensure equality of performance?
Approximately $6.5 million was invested prior to the first event.
Was there any pre-season training to help Saudi drivers prepare?
During August and September 2023 Saudi drivers participated in a structured pre-season academy program at Meritus.GP’s training facility in Sepang, Malaysia.
What role did sports psychology and driver well-being play in the championship?
Driver well-being and mental performance were treated as integral components of driver development.
Formula 4 Saudi Arabia appointed a dedicated sports psychologist to support drivers throughout the season, focusing on mental preparation, confidence building, coping strategies, performance consistency and adaptation to high-pressure racing environments.
