India was scared even before the start of their T20 World Cup match against Pakistan: Inzamam-ul-Haq

Former batter Inzamam-ul-Haq reckoned that Team India was under immense pressure even before the start of their T20 World Cup 2021 match against Pakistan. On Sunday, October 24, Babar Azam and Co. defeated the Men in Blue by 10 wickets to register their maiden World Cup win over their Asian opponents.

Babar and Mohammad Rizwan stitched together a 152-run stand for the opening wicket to take Pakistan home with utmost ease. Inzamam said that between Babar and Virat Kohli, the one, who was more under pressure, was clearly palpable.

Indian team never plays the way they did, says Inzamam-ul-Haq

“I feel the Indians were scared even before the match started. Their body language, if you see Virat Kohli and Babar Azam’s interview at the toss, you could sense who was under pressure,” Inzamam told on ARY Sports.

“Our team’s body language was much better than theirs. It wasn’t that India were under pressure after Rohit Sharma’s dismissal. Sharma himself was under pressure. It was evident that they all were under pressure even before the match began,” he stated.

Once Shaheen Shah Afridi got rid of KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma early, there was no stopping Pakistan. Inzamam said that India were title contenders from the beginning, but extreme pressure got the better of them.

“Indian team never plays the way they did. They are a good T20 team, there is no doubt about it. If you look at their performance in the last 2-3 years, they were the favourites. But that India-Pakistan match put so much pressure on them that there was no looking back.

After losing to Pakistan, India lost by eight wickets at the hands of New Zealand, led by Kane Williamson, at the same venue in Dubai.

“Their feet weren’t moving at all. After losing to Pakistan, they were handed so much criticism and there was a 3-4 day break. The poor guys couldn’t even play Santner and Sodhi. They are such good players of spin,” Inzamam added.

India beat Scotland, Namibia and Afghanistan to win three games in a row, but failed to qualify for the semis. The tournament was also Virat Kohli’s last as the skipper of India’s T20I team.