- Thursday, February 27, 2025
It was India’s first defeat in the tournament in which they have beaten top teams such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka to reach the final.
By: Shubham Ghosh
FORMER Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar on Friday (15) said he was “relieved” that India lost their final game in the Super Four of Asia Cup 2023 against Bangladesh at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka the same day.
The match, which was inconsequential with Bangladesh having already been eliminated and India securing a place in the final, was an interesting one and the Men in Blue lost it by six runs in the final over. India were without the service of their five top players, including Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav who they rested ahead of the final while Bangladesh also took the field with a few changes.
Invited to bat first by India captain Rohit Sharma who won the toss, Bangladesh overcame an early batting slump to post 265 for 8 in 50 overs. India also had a less-than-satisfactory batting display and despite a brilliant hundred by Shubman Gill and a late charge from Axar Patel, they were all out for 259. It was Bangladesh’s first win over India in the Asia Cup after 11 years.
Akhtar, 48, called the defeat “embarrassing” for India and lauded Bangladesh for their effort.
“India have lost the game. Embarrassing loss. We can’t criticise too much. Bangladesh are here to play. People were criticising Pakistan, saying that they got beaten up. Sri Lanka are a good team, not an average team. The same is the case with Bangladesh. They are all playing international cricket. Finally, some relief for the Pakistan fans, including me, that India have lost the game,” the former tearaway fast bowler said on his YouTube channel.
Akhtar, who was called the ‘Rawalpindi Express’ during his playing days, said the defeat against the Tigers was a wake-up call for India ahead of their final against Sri Lanka on Sunday (17).
India have won the crown a record seven times while Sri Lanka six.
“What a wake-up call for India before the final. You can’t take teams lightly after winning a few games. No disrespect to them but Bangladesh made a statement that they are here to prove a point,” he said, adding that there were no clear favourites to win the upcoming world cup in India.
Pakistan, who came into the tournament as the No.1 team in the 50-over format and as favourites, got knocked out after losing to India by 228 runs and to Sri Lanka by 2 wickets. Bangladesh’s win over India saw them sliding to the fourth position in the Super Four.
