File image of Shoaib Akhtar© Twitter
Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar stated he believes that India are on the right path to repeat the heroics of 2011 as they are strong contenders for lifting the ODI World Cup 2023. Akhtar’s comments came after Team India thrashed Pakistan by seven wickets in their World Cup match on Saturday in Ahmedabad. Put to bat first, Pakistan were bundled out for just 191 with Babar Azam scoring a half-century. Later, the hosts chased down the target in 30.3 overs after Rohit Sharma played a knock of 86 runs.
Akhtar praised Rohit for his magnificent batting performance and stated that the Indian skipper played “ruthlessly”
“I am beginning to believe India is about to repeat that history of the 2011 World Cup. If they don’t mess up in the semi-finals, India is really there to win this World Cup. So well done India. You have done wonderfully well. You destroyed us, demoralized us, and decimated us. Disappointing performance, a very disappointing performance. Today, India completely hammered Pakistan.” said Akhtar on his YouTube channel.
“Rohit Sharma was a one-man army. I don’t know where was Rohit Sharma in the last couple of years. He is a very big player and has a wide range of shots. He is a complete batter, a complete team, Pakistan’s humiliation is in front of us. India ne Bachon ki tarah maara(India beat Pakistan like kids). I couldn’t watch it. Rohit Sharma played ruthlessly,” he added.
Akhtar went on to state that Rohit “humiliated” Pakistan’s bowling attack and took revenge for his poor performances in the last two years.
“The kind of innings he played, he humiliated Pakistan’s bowling attack. He took revenge for the last two years where he didn’t get many runs. Good to see Rohit Sharma back, he did right to smash the bowlers. What’s the need to finish the game at the last overs and take it deep? Rohit hammered the bowlers,” said Akhtar.
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