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Journalism of Courage
Former Pakistan Cricketer Mohammad Hafeez believes that team India is the most dominant side in bilateral series in world cricket but they need to work on their pressure handling abilities in ICC tournaments.
Hafeez, speaking to SportsTak during the ongoing Legends League Cricket, said that while India has been dominating bilateral cricket, particularly at home, stepping up in the high-stakes matches in ICC competitions is a whole different game.
“Talking about the last 10-12 years, whichever country they (India) go to play in, they become the favourites. No one can beat India in a bilateral series. So far, I think their success rate has been very high but when it comes to ICC tournaments they fail to perform,” he said.
“You cannot compare playing domestic cricket with international cricket. In the same manner, you cannot compare the pressure in playing a bilateral series with knockouts of an ICC tournament. We have seen in the recent past that India hasn’t been able to handle the pressure. They lost crunch matches, semifinal and even couldn’t qualify,” he added.
“They lost the 2017 Champions trophy. I believe it’s a pinching point for India to prove again by performing well in an ICC event”
Hafeez also said that former India captain Sourav Ganguly set the foundation for India’s dominance in international cricket, and that MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli carried on that tradition.
“India has always been the hot-favourite. This is a plus point for India and the foundation for it was laid back in the era of Ganguly when the belief and mindset was instilled in the team that they can be a world beater.”
Speaking about the Pakistan team, the veteran said, “I am positive for Pakistan because they have versatile and the most lethal bowlers in the world. They have match winning fast bowlers.”
Talking about the challenges Pakistan might face whilst playing in India, Hafeez said, “The most challenging situation for Pakistan to play in India is the pressure taking ability. The pressure on players while playing in India is greater than that of any other country in the world. A lot will depend on how much momentum Pakistan take into the World Cup and how the dressing room atmosphere is created to deal with pressure.”
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