Wasim Akram Takes A Jibe On Pakistan Team After Defeat Against India, Says 'There Is No Fitness Test'
Former players have been critical of Pakistan's poor performance against India in the World Cup, but Wasim Akram has gone over and above by questioning the fitness of his teammates.
Pakistan has been under scrutiny following their crushing seven-wicket loss to India, their bitter rivals, in the current ODI World Cup 2023. In the 50-over main event, India's unbeaten streak was maintained as they extended their advantage over Men in Green to 8-0 thanks to the underwhelming performance of the Babar Azam-led team at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
The legendary Pakistani pacer Wasim Akram criticised his squad, casting doubt on the players' level of fitness and asserting that there is no "fitness test" for the team.
"I have concerns regarding these players' level of fitness. There isn't a fitness test anymore. Misbah used to administer the Yo-Yo Test and other tests while he was the coach and selector. A fitness test should be performed on a professional cricket player at least once every month. "You will face this (loss against India) if you don't do this," Akram stated on a Pakistan TV programme.
"In the past three years, PCB has had three chairmen. The management and team members became anxious about their potential inclusion in the upcoming series as a result of this. It was really, terribly disheartening to go from 154 for 2 to 191 all out," the former Pakistani captain continued.
After a solid start, Pakistan's batting collapsed in the middle overs, given the opportunity to bat first by Indian skipper Rohit Sharma. In just 13 overs, the visiting side lost eight of their wickets and managed to score just 36 runs. With two wickets apiece from Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja, Pakistan was bowled out for 191/10 in 42.5 overs.
Chasing 192, Rohit Sharma struck six sixes and fours in 63 balls, good for an 86 run. Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer was undefeated at 53* runs. With 117 balls remaining, India won the match by seven wickets to claim their third straight tournament victory.
On Thursday, October 19, India will play Bangladesh in Pune, and on Friday, October 20, Pakistan will play Australia in Bengaluru.