Team India started their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 campaign on a disastrous note, as arch rivals Pakistan beat them in a World Cup match for the first time ever with a 10-wicket romp in a Super 12 blockbuster in Dubai on Sunday. After losing against India in the ODI and T20 World Cups for years, the Men in Green finally pulled the monkey off their backs that too in the most stunning fashion as they handed the Virat Kohli-led side a mauling for ages.
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While there has been a lot of speculations on the form, team choices and other aspects which led to India’s defeat,former Pakistan skipper Salman Butt feels playing Varun Chakravarthy was a big mistake and the mystery bowler was no surprise to the Babar Azam-led side in the recently concluded match. Chakaravarthy was named in the playing XI for the marquee clash between the Asian rivals, at the expense of veteran spin ace Ravichandran Ashwin. However, the spinner had a forgetful outing with ball, as he went wicketless and also leaked 33 from his quota of four overs in the low-scoring contest.
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Citing the Indian bowler’s performance in the high-octane clash, the ex-Pakistan captain Butt took a sly dig at Chakravarthy and opined that every kid in Pakistan gets to play the same kind of bowling in the street cricket. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Butt questioned Chakravarthy’s selection and said, “Varun Chakravarthy may be a mystery bowler, but we play a lot of tape ball cricket in our streets while growing up.”
Watch it here:
The tainted cricketer also drew similarities with Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis and reiterated that while Mendis “troubled many teams”, he does not enjoy a “good record against Pakistan”. He further mentioned that there was a time when the Islanders stopped playing him against Pakistan as his bowling was not a mystery to them.
He also talked about Indian bowling line-up and said the team didn’t induct “enough pace in their attack,” and went on to explain they opted for a mystery spinner even though they had experienced lot in their arsenal.
Meanwhile, Pakistan won their second game of the T20 World Cup by five wickets against New Zealand at Sharjah on Tuesday. Team India will clash with the Kiwis in their next encounter of the marquee tournament on Sunday, October 31.
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