Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticizes Pakistan’s bowling against India

Pakistan was rather timid with their approach against India in the ODI World Cup 2023. With the ball, the bowlers did not try much. With the bat, the Pakistani batters were slow. The way Pakistan played against India was criticized by many. The former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticized the bowling lineup of Pakistan for not trying cutters against the Indian batters.

“Rizwan is the kind of player who can take the game away from the opposition. He is a very cheeky player. He knows how to play and adjust his game according to the needs of the side. So, his wicket was very crucial or else Pakistan would have ended with 250-260. So that was a huge blow. Next over Bumrah gets another wicket, with another cutter,” said Gavaskar.

“Clearly Pakistan did not learn anything because it was only towards the end when Shaheen bowled that cutter that got Rohit out. We would have thought that they would bowl the cutter even with the new ball. It is not written anywhere that the new ball has to be bowled at a certain pace. You can change it, but nothing of those sorts was seen from the Pakistan bowlers,” Gavaskar added.

‘Shaheen Shah Afridi is no Wasim Akram’ – Ravi Shastri

This came after Ravi Shastri criticized the Pakistani bowling in the commentary box during the match. Shastri felt that Pakistan lacked extra zeal in the absence of Naseem. The former World Cup winner also said that Shaheen is a good bowler but is not a great one like Wasim Akram. The former Indian cricketer felt that Afridi was a bit overhyped as a bowler.

“When Naseem Shah is not playing, and this is the quality of spin… Shaheen Shah Afridi is no Wasim Akram. He is a good bowler with the new ball and can pick wickets, but there is nothing special about him. He is only a decent bowler. He’s no big deal. You have to accept the truth,” Shastri said on Star Sports, giving a brutal analysis of Shaheen.