Former Pakistan skipper Rashid Latif has declared India as favourites against his country ahead of their T20 World Cup 2024 clash on Sunday (June 9).

The arch-rivals are slated to square off at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York. It is one of the most highly-anticipated games of the ongoing tournament being co-hosted by the USA and West Indies.

"...the focus is on the game on June 9 against India. Babar (Pakistan captain) will be under a lot of pressure because of the game against India rather than performing in the World Cup," Latif told PTI videos in an exclusive interview.

"But he has to learn to carry pressure, he should learn that from Virat and Rohit. They know how to carry the game. As a batter Babar is one of the best but as a captain and leader, there's a lot that he needs to learn," he added.

Rashid Latif opined that the Men in Blue boast superior spinners and based on current form, Rohit Sharma's hold an edge over Pakistan.

"Kuldeep Yadav is that one player who if remains fit for India throughout the World Cup, he can cause trouble for batters. He is India's key bowler and also a key to success. Given the current form and stats definitely India has an advantage ahead of June 9," he said.

The former wicketkeeper-batter also questioned Pakistan’s preparation for the marquee event, saying that it is nowhere close to being as good as it was during the 2021 and 2022 editions.

"The Pakistan team plays well in the ICC tournaments but the team doesn't look as prepared as they were in 2021 and 2022. The damage happened after the last ODI World Cup with changes in captaincy, the selection committee, and players," he explained.

"The team doesn't know who their openers will be and what they have tried has failed miserably," he pointed out.

The 55-year-old rued the decline of Pakistan's bowling and blamed poor fitness for it.

"A lot of bowlers like Shaheen, Naseem, Rauf, Shadab came back from injury and now Imad Wasim is injured. The biggest issue has been the fitness of the bowlers," he said.

"Former greats like Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Mohammad Asif were way fitter than them and never used to miss any Tests or ODIs. But these guys, despite playing shorter formats, don't have adequate fitness," he added.

Rashid Latif also slammed the selection of bowlers who play similar roles in the side.

"...they bring back Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim. Earlier when these two bowlers used to play for Pakistan and in the PSL, they used to bowl the early overs between 1-4.

"Now, Rauf and Shaheen perform the same role, if you have four bowlers with the same role, who will bowl in the middle overs?" he asked.

He lauded the Indian think tank for getting their bowling combination right. "Look at India, they have got Kuldeep, Axar, Jadeja and Chahal who can bowl in the middle and also the early overs. Pakistan couldn't develop Abrar Ahmed much. If Shadab Khan goes for runs in the middle overs, Pakistan doesn't have a lot of cover," he said.

Latif didn’t mince his words as he also questioned the timing of South African Gary Kirsten's appointment as Pakistan coach.

"The timing of his joining is very wrong. He joined the team on May 19 after the IPL season for Gujarat Titans ended," Latif pointed out.

"He only knows players by their names, but when you are going to the World Cup then you at least need to have spent at least a year with the players. He did not get this time and the Pakistan board is to blame for that," he said.

Commenting on India’s star batter Virat Kohli, Latif said, "Virat has a lot of fans in Pakistan and also the players playing are his fans. Like I also say this whenever Sachin used to play earlier, I never wanted him to get out.

"The world was paying to watch him bat but I was sitting behind the stumps and enjoying it for free," he recalled on a lighter note.

"Virat Kohli is a different player...Virat is a different player after this IPL…It will be really interesting to see where he bats in this World Cup." 

Rashid Latif also expects Babar to grow in stature, provided that the Pakistan captain gets a better team around him.

"Babar is a great player but doesn't have a lot of players to support him. Virat definitely has an advantage because the players are around him. But Pakistan lacks that cushion.

"Babar only has Rizwan and occasionally the support of Fakhar Zaman. Babar's quality is way above his teammates and I think this acts as a disadvantage for him."

(With PTI Inputs)