In an exclusive interview with Star Sports’ “The Final Take,” former Pakistani pacer Wasim Akram examined the factors that contributed to India’s elimination in the championship game. India’s almost flawless World Cup campaign came to an agonizing end in the finals, when Australia defeated the hosts by six wickets. Australia outperformed India in all areas, including batting, bowling, and fielding, because of their tactical prowess and clinical play. Along with discussing Rohit Sharma’s offensive strategy during the World Cup, he also offered his opinions on India’s choice to alter their strategy and bowl Mohammad Shami before bowling Siraj.
“If you ask me, I found [Mohammed] Siraj to be bowling really well throughout the World Cup, though his wickets column may not suggest that, but the break-throughs he gave in the Asia Cup and his recent performances have established him as the future of Indian cricket,” he said in response to India’s decision to alter their strategy and bowl Mohammad Shami before bowling Siraj. Shami was introduced early in this game, and he did make an early effect on the game by removing [David] Warner, but it was more like Warner removed himself by slashing at a wide ball.
“Another issue is that the due set in after the three wickets were lost in the first fifteen overs, which made it simpler to bat because the ball wasn’t doing much after that. Not that Australia’s batting isn’t impressive, but it does have a psychological impact on the bowlers. “I think teams should always stick to what they have been doing and what has been working for them in big games like the finals,” he continued.
When asked to pinpoint a single factor that led to Team India’s elimination in the finals, Wasim Akram responded, “I suppose the middle-order should have played with a ‘do or die’ mindset.”
I can appreciate what was going through [KL] Rahul’s head when he realized that he had to bat deep and that he couldn’t take chances of being out since there was no batting to follow [Ravindra] Jadeja. Hardik [Pandya] would have taken that chance if he had been on the squad, but if he had taken a chance and escaped this predicament, he would have also come under fire. It would have been a different ballgame if they had maintained their pace and scored rapidly in the middle overs.
Regarding Rohit Sharma’s offensive style during the World Cup and whether or not he ought to have altered his strategy for the championship match, Wasim Akram stated: “He’s played like that the entire World Cup; that’s his game.” People are finding reasons to criticize now because he has performed the same in the finals, even though nobody moaned during the World Cup about his starts or his frequent exits in the 40s. He is also among the world’s greatest spin players; nevertheless, despite losing to Glenn Maxwell in that match—credit to both Maxwell and Pat Cummins—that is just the nature of Rohit’s game, and I don’t think he should alter it.
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