Pakistan's head coach Waqar Younis said there was no reason for him to apologise to anyone for his decision to keep Sarfraz Ahmed on the bench for the first four matches of the World Cup after the 27-year-old put in a man-of-the-match winning performance in his WC debut against South Africa on Saturday.

Sarfraz, who scored 49 while opening the innings and equalled the record for most catches behind the wicket in ODI with his six dismissals, did not play in Pakistan's first four World Cup matches with Umar Akmal being preferred as the keeper.

Pakistan had only managed wins against the low-ranked teams of Zimbabwe and UAE, while facing crushing defeats in its opening matches against India and West Indies.

There were calls from former players to induct Sarfraz as an opener to address Pakistan's batting woes but the team management went with Nasir Jamshed who failed miserably in his three outings, causing an uproar at home with fans accusing Younis of favouritism.

Sarfraz's performance in Pakistan's 29-run win added more fuel to the fire.

But Younis rubbished those claims and stormed out of the press conference after Pakistan's thrilling victory, saying he did not have "time for stupid questions".

"Look, I never said I did not believe in Sarfraz. I just didn't think he could deliver as an opener. But he performed really well today," the head coach said.

When asked by a journalist present at the press conference whether Sarfraz was kept out because of a spat with the coach, Younis said it was the media which was portraying this as some sort of "political victimisation".

"I think it's time to end this press conference. We picked the best possible eleven for the previous matches. I don't have time for stupid questions," Younis said before walking away.

Key points from the press conference

• 'We still need to win the last game to get to the quarter-finals'

• 'We played with the kind of aggression we've been known for in the past'

• 'We have started finding the right combination and everyone is starting to believe in themselves'

• 'We bowled extremely well with pace and purpose'

• 'We could do better with the bat, but as long as we're on the right path'

• 'Aggression is key at this World Cup'