‘India won in 2011 but…’: Wasim Akram’s reality check to Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid ahead of World Cup 2023
Wasim Akram’s reality check to Rohit, Dravid : Wasim Akram pointed out the cons that come with being the host nation. What a story it would be if India’s long wait for an ICC silverware ends with the biggest trophy of them all – the World Cup. Two months from now, ODI cricket’s biggest extravaganza returns to India for the first time since 2011 – when MS Dhoni made a billion dreams come true – and with the World Cup taking place in India’s neck of the woods, the chances of a win are sky high. India played some awe-inspiring cricket in 2015 and 2019 World Cups, but defeats in the semifinals of both editions ended their campaign in a heartbreak. This time around though, captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid have a golden opportunity to erase the painful memories of Melbourne ’15 and Manchester ’19 and lead Indian cricket to a new high.
“Of course… India have Mohammed Shami, who is very impressive and is bowling like a dream, but Bumrah needs to remain fit. I don’t know what his situation is in terms of fitness but if he is fine, it will make a huge different. Besides, they have really good spinners and all-rounders – Jadeja, Ashwin – let’s see who plays. There have been some really good players coming from India but there are certain disadvantages of home ground. In 2011, India won but there is always an extra added pressure. Same with Pakistan. If they were the hosts, the pressure would be on them. Vice-versa,” Akram said on Radio Haanji.
Venues shouldn’t matter to Pakistan, adds Akram
India and Pakistan will embark on very contrasting campaigns at the World Cup. As per the initial schedule released by the ICC, Pakistan will be playing all their matches across four venues, while India will be travelling to 9 different cities to square off against a bunch of opponents. Initially, the PCB was reluctant with the schedule draft and demanded that a couple of venues be changed, and even now, as Pakistan mull their World Cup participation and a revised schedule is awaited, Akram pointed out how venues should be the least of their concerns.
“See, I said this earlier as well. If I am asked to play on a certain date and at a certain venue, I have to play. Be it Ahmedabad, or Chennai, or Kolkata, or Mumbai… this does not affect players. So just play and don’t worry about it,” added Akram.
