New Delhi, Nov 10 (IANS): Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday took a cheeky dig at India men's cricket team after they suffered a crushing 10-wicket loss to England in the second semifinal of the Men's T20 World Cup 2022 at the Adelaide Oval.
England openers Jos Buttler (80 not out from 49 balls) and Alex Hales (86 not out from 47) made a chase of 169 look like a walk in the park in the semifinal of the Men's T20 World Cup 2022, powering their team to the final with a convincing 10-wicket win over India.
This was only the second time India lost in a T20 World Cup game by 10 wickets, and the only ever team to register this unwanted record. Notably, Pakistan had also registered a similar win last year in their T20 World Cup opener in Dubai when the opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan stitched a 152-run stand to beat India by 10 wickets.
Pakistan PM reminded India fans of that heartbreaking defeat in his tweet where he mentioned that the final was down to the two teams England and Pakistan, who had defeated India by 10 wickets.
"So, this Sunday, it's, 152/0 vs 170/0," Sharif said in a tweet after India's loss to England in the semifinal.
Meanwhile, former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar also criticised Team India post their defeat to England.
"India did not deserve to meet us in the MCG or be allowed to take a flight to come to Melbourne because their cricket has been exposed today," Akhtar said on his YouTube channel.
"It is no big deal to reach the semifinals. Indian cricket, I think, is at the lowest right now because when it comes to ICC events, India will need to look at their captaincy, the management will need to take the blame," he added.
Akhtar targeted India's bowling as the key area of concern -- selection of Mohammed Shami in the squad, exclusion of Yuzvendra Chahal -- who the pacer believes could've been of use in the semifinal.
"All of a sudden they added Shami to the squad, he's a good fast bowler, but didn't deserve to be in the squad. I can't tell what the final XI is for India right now. I don't think India has depth in spin bowling. Chahal could've played well. He wasn't included in the lineup. If Adil Rashid can play, why not Chahal?," he said.
"On a flat track, they (England) were successful in revealing that Indian fast bowling doesn't have an express pacer. They don't have a cut for role spinners. The team went in with confusing selection calls. The Indian fast bowlers are reliant on conditions, they'd only do well if assisted by them," he added.