Former Indian cricketer-turned commentator Aakash Chopra has taken a cheeky dig at Pakistan after latter’s hopes for the ICC World Cup 2019 semi-finals berth were crushed following New Zealand’s loss against hosts England by 119 runs at the Chester-le-Street in Durham.
Pakistan were backing the Black Caps to record a win over the Three Lions in a bid to make their semi-finals roads easier. The Sarfraz Ahmed-led side will take on Bangladesh on July 6 (Friday) at iconic Lord’s.
Earlier, the Men in Green were hoping to see India beating England. But that did not also happen as hosts halted India’s unbeaten run by the 31-run win at Edgbaston on June 30.
While chasing a formidable target of 338 runs, India managed to score 306 for five. Many accused MS Dhoni alongside, Kedar Jadhav for not showing ‘intent’ during a run chase.
It’s pertinent to mention that England had bowled well against India. In the initial overs on a wicket which tends to get slower and slower as the game progressed, India managed 28 in first ten overs.
Following the blame, many former cricketers were involved in a debate what went wrong in India-Pakistan game.
Meanwhile, Aakash, who’s the part of Hindi commentary for the broadcasting giant Star Sports, takes a dig at Pakistan. It came following their eerie 1992 World Cup similarities after 27 years.
It is pertinent to point out that Pakistan had lifted their maiden and only ODI showpiece title in 1992 under the leadership of now-serving Pakistan Prime Minister, Imran Khan.
The similarities between the 1992 World Cup and the 2019 World Cup has left many perplexed. Recently. Pakistan managed three back-to-back wins following a poor start at the ongoing twelfth edition of the World Cup.
Aakash Chopra takes a subtle dig at Pakistan:
While considering the comparisons and citing Kiwis loss against England, Chopra takes a sly dig at Pakistan. He maintained with a hashtag that it did not happen in 1992.
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) July 3, 2019
In their last league clash, Pakistan could finish on 11 points if they managed a win over Bangladesh. Meanwhile, New Zealand has almost booked their spot for the knockout stage as they’ve far better net run-rate than Pakistan.
With England qualifying as the third team into the semis, Pakistan had to beat Bangladesh by 300-plus runs in a bid to pip the Kiwis which is highly unlikely in this scenario.