Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram shared his thoughts on the drama surrounding the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) request for a change of venue for the ICC ODI World Cup 2023. In the lead-up to the ODI World Cup, PCB had urged the BCCI to change the venue for some of their games, including the match against India which is slated to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Akram points out how the venues should be the least of the concerns in such a big tournament like the ODI World Cup, and that it merely affects the players wherever they are asked to play.
The ‘Sultan of Swing’ also shared his thoughts on the pressure of being a host nation, as he talked about India’s chances of winning the World Cup on home soil.
Akram lavished praised on many Indian players but said that the Rohit Sharma-led unit will undoubtedly be under pressure. And that’s no different for the Pakistan side as well.
“Of course… India have Mohammed Shami, who is very impressive and is bowling like a dream, but Bumrah needs to remain fit. I don’t know what his situation is in terms of fitness but if he is fine, it will make a huge difference,” said Akram on Radio Haanji.
The 57-year-old continued, “Besides, they have really good spinners and all-rounders – Jadeja, Ashwin – let’s see who plays. There have been some really good players coming from India but there are certain disadvantages of home ground.”
“In 2011, India won but there is always an extra added pressure. Same with Pakistan. If they were the hosts, the pressure would be on them. Vice-versa,” he added.
With the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 set to kick-start on 5 October, it has been reported that due to the request of multiple boards, there could be some changes made in the schedule that was earlier announced by BCCI.
While Rohit Sharma’s men will be playing in 9 different cities during the World Cup, Pakistan will play all of their games in 4 venues in Southern cities.
With the revised schedule set to be announced soon, Akram said that venues shouldn’t impact any team, the players should simply play and not give it too much thought.
“See, I said this earlier as well. If I am asked to play on a certain date and at a certain venue, I have to play. Be it Ahmedabad, or Chennai, or Kolkata, or Mumbai… this does not affect players. So just play and don’t worry about it,” added Akram.
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