"Lot Of IPL Teams" Can Beat Pakistan: Irfan Pathan's Brutal Comment After Loss vs India
Pakistan's meek display against India in an Asia Cup Group A match has led to widespread criticism
Pakistan's meek display against India in an Asia Cup Group A match has led to widespread criticism. Batting first in the high-voltage match, Pakistan, at one point, was struggling to even cross the 100-run mark. However, a late cameo by Shaheen Afridi saw them set a 128-run target for India. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side chased down the target in just 15.5 overs. India captain Suryakumar top-scored with an unbeaten 147. Apart from Sahibzada Farhan and Shaheen Afridi, no other Pakistan batter could even reach the 20-run mark. In the bowling department, only Saim Ayub took wickets. Former India star Irfan Pathan said that the Pakistan cricket team's current state in T20s is such that even IPL teams would beat them.
"If you ask which of our domestic teams can beat Pakistan, I know for sure Mumbai can beat them. Punjab can beat them. Next, which IPL team can beat Pakistan? A lot of them," said Irfan on Sony Sports Network.
Former Indian assistant coach Abhishek Nayar termed the match a 'practice' game.
"We were thinking about how to build up the game. Pakistan came with spinners and did not have fast bowlers. Their bowling was different, but there was no actual difference. From the start to the end, after winning the toss and batting first to the chase, Pakistan was not in the competition at all. If India were playing versus India, it was more of a practice match for the future," said Nayar.
Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar also slammed skipper Salman Ali Agha for opting to bat against India in the Asia Cup 2025 match in Dubai on Sunday. The pitch at the Dubai International Stadium has been favoring spinners since the beginning of the tournament, and Salman's decision to bat first left Akhtar fuming.
"Good luck to them. Suryakumar Yadav ne poori pitch report di hai toss par. Usne kaha, 'Baad mein dew aayega. Ball bat par accha aata hai tab, humari batting lambi hai. Hum chase hi karna chahte the, hum pehle bowling hi karna chahte the. Par humare Einstein ne kaha humay pehle batting karni hai.' (Suryakumar Yadav gave an entire pitch report at the toss. He said, 'There will be dew later in the game. The ball comes better to the bat then, and our batting lineup is deep. We wanted to chase anyway; we wanted to bowl first. But our Einstein said, "We will bat first."')" said Akhtar.
India Cricket Team
Pakistan Cricket Team
Irfan Pathan