Pakistan lost to India in T20 World Cup 2024 match© AFP
Legendary Pakistan cricket team fast bowler Wasim Akram blasted Babar Azam and Co after their loss against India in the T20 World Cup 2024 on Sunday and even said that wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan has “no game awareness”. This was Pakistan’s second loss in two games as they were stunned by United States in their opening match of the competition. Akram was extremely critical of Pakistan’s approach while chasing a modest target of 120 and said that Rizwan throwing away his wicket against India pacer Jasprit Bumrah was one of the moments that led to the defeat.
“They have been playing cricket for 10 years, and I can’t teach them. Rizwan has no game awareness,” Akram said on Star Sports while analysing Pakistan’s innings.
“He should have known that Bumrah was given the ball to take wickets and that the wise thing would have been to play his deliveries cautiously. But Rizwan went for a big shot and lost his wicket.”
“Pakistani players think that if they don’t perform well, the coaches will be sacked, and nothing will happen to them. It is time to keep the coaches and change the entire team,” he added.
Akram also made a startling revelation that some cricketers in the national team do not speak to each other and suggested that such players should “sit at home” and not play for the nation.
“There are players who don’t want to talk to each other. This is international cricket, and you play for your country. Make these players sit at home,” he said.
The defeat means that Pakistan have 0 points from 2 matches and their Super 8 qualification chances are extremely slim. The Babar Azam-led side will have to win their remaining matches against Canada and Ireland while hoping that United States do not win their last two matches. Even if that happens, the race to the next round of the T20 World Cup 2024 may come down to Net Run Rate (NRR).
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