Former India captain Sourav Ganguly made a huge statement about Pakistan’s chances of bouncing back in the ongoing ICC World Cup 2023 after their recent loss to India in Ahmedabad. He highlighted how the Men in Green are unable to handle pressure.
Pakistan suffered a demoralizing loss to India, their eighth in ICC World Cups, when they faced off in Ahmedabad on October 14. From a prime position of 155/2, Pakistan collapsed to 191 all out after being asked to bat first by India captain Rohit Sharma.
This was despite an 80-odd runs partnership between Babar Azam (50) and Mohammad Rizwan (49). But Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj removed these two players and Pakistan lost their last 8 wickets for 36 runs.
In reply, Rohit Sharma’s scintillating 86 and Shreyas Iyer’s 53* helped India win the match by 7 wickets and 117 balls remaining.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly reflected on Pakistan's defeat against India and said the current team can't bat well under pressure.
"During our time Pakistan was a different team, this is not the type of Pakistan team we used to play. This team can’t handle the pressure during the batting," said Ganguly to Times Now.
Pakistan started the campaign with wins over the Netherlands and Sri Lanka in Hyderabad. They had come to face India after creating the record of the highest chase ever in World Cups against the Lankans.
However, the defeat against India has dented their chances. The team still has a lot of games to play but the hammering they got from the Men in Blue would have left the team in shock.
Ganguly feels that Pakistan will find it tough to bounce back in this World Cup 2023 from this drubbing. He also showed concerns about Pakistan’s batting unit.
"It will be hard for Pakistan to come back in this World Cup with this batting," Ganguly added.
On the other hand, the ex-BCCI chief was all praises for the Indian team and captain Rohit Sharma. Ganguly lauded Rohit’s knock against Pakistan, which flattened any hopes of Pakistan to cause an upset.
"Rohit played superbly against Pakistan. India’s every department is doing well. Batting, bowling, and fielding is firing together and at the right time," he concluded.
Pakistan will now face Australia in Bengaluru on October 20.
