June 3 (Punjab Khabarnama) : As Rohit Sharma’s Team India is gearing up for their T20 World Cup opener in the United States, former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif has opted to play down the hype around the blockbuster meeting of the arch-rivals at the grandest stage. Former champions India and Pakistan will resume their iconic rivalry in the 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup.
Co-hosted by the US and the West Indies, the T20 World Cup will have Rohit’s Team India taking on Ireland their its curtain-raiser at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium. Three days after the Ireland encounter, India will meet Babar Azam’s Pakistan in its Group A clash at the same venue. Talking about the mouthwatering fixture, former India batter Kaif claimed that Pakistan have a ‘weak’ batting unit for the ICC event.
‘Everyone knows Pakistan’s batting is weak’
“Everyone knows Pakistan’s batting is weak. Fakhar Zaman plays a little fast. If he fires, he can probably win the match alone. Iftikhar Ahmad plays fast but other than that, everyone plays at a strike rate of 120 to 125. You are not that scared of their batting but are scared of their bowling,” Kaif.
Pakistan’s 15-member T20 squad, which reinstated superstar Babar as captain, features a world-class bowling attack. Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, and Shaheen Shah Afridi will spearhead the pace battery of the Green Army at the T20 World Cup. Placed in Group A with rivals India, Babar and Co. will also meet Ireland, Canada and co-hosts USA in the initial stage of the T20 World Cup. The former champions will play their first match against USA in Dallas on Thursday.
‘If you talk about the Melbourne match that Virat Kohli…’
“They will have Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah. Naseem Shah didn’t come to play the World Cup in India. He was injured, but he is fit here. This will be a bouncy pitch. Naseem Shah is a very good bowler. If you talk about the Melbourne match that Virat Kohli won, if you see Naseem Shah’s first spell, he got a nick and the catch was dropped at slip,” Kaif added.
