Mumbai: Speaking exclusively in a special Star Sports Press Room to preview the India vs Pakistan match at the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, former Pakistan cricketer Misbah-ul-Haq discussed Virat Kohli performance against Pakistan during 2022 ICC T20 World Cup and how world-class players like him cope with pressure: “Everyone feels the pressure of playing in the India-Pakistan match. Whenever I used to play against India, if the start was good, I was confident and comfortable that I would perform. It’s in the player’s muscle memory and mind that when you perform well, you really have a big impact on the match, and the position you are in during the match also has an influence. Virat Kohli performed well in all the matches, against many teams, and especially against Pakistan. Virat Kohli played such an innings at a crucial stage that he caused a lot of damage to Pakistan. So even in Pakistan’s mind, there is a mentality, there’s a supremacy, and even in Kohli’s mind, he knows that he can perform well against Pakistan. He’s such a player that when the occasion is big, instead of taking pressure, he takes motivation from it. Whenever there was a pressure situation and the team was in a bad situation, I used to feel like I had to do something. And this is a factor in Virat Kohli as well, and he is a top-class cricketer. So to play against a team like India, like we did in the Champions Trophy, Pakistan or any team has to get him out early. You can talk about strike rates as much as you want, but he’s a player who knows how to win a match and is used to it. If he is at the crease, then there is no situation or position where you are safe.”
Speaking exclusively on a special Star Sports Press Room to preview India vs Pakistan at the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, former Indian legend spinner Harbhajan Singh discussed the unknown pitch conditions in New York and how India should select its playing XI: “No one knows about the pitches. To be honest, those who are making it also don’t know how long it will last, how much heat and water it can take, how firm these pitches are, or what the bounce will be on this pitch. Once the practice matches are over, we’ll get an idea of the pitches and what should be the right combination for our side. So, we should not comment on whether we should play with three spinners or two spinners. I think the team should be formed once the conditions are properly assessed. Overall, I think to start with, we should go ahead with our five best bowlers. Kuldeep and Chahal should definitely play. Three seamers, including Bumrah, and any two from the rest of the options should play. When it comes to batting, we have a lot of options. But the bottom line is that no matter what the pitch is, we will have to adapt to it.”
Speaking exclusively on a special Star Sports Press Room to preview India vs Pakistan at the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, former Pakistan cricketer Misbah-ul-Haq spoke on the strike rate conundrum with players like Babar Azam and Virat Kohli:“Even if you talk about Babar, outside noise definitely affects you when you hear it. But there are good players, who are mentally strong and the best players in the world are the ones who take motivation from it and they show them how they can give an answer on the ground. They take motivation from those voices and criticism and hopefully he can bat like that when the team requires him to do so. If they don’t, and he needs to be an anchor, you have to keep telling yourself that if the situation comes I can play at a 160, 170 or a 200 strike rate as well when the team needs me. Only then am I world class. It’s not that I’ll play at a strike rate of 130 when the team needs to score 200. So this will be important for Babar in this world cup.”
Speaking exclusively in a special Star Sports Press Room to preview India vs Pakistan at the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, former Pakistan cricketer Misbah-ul-Haq discussed the ideal opening combination for Pakistan: “What I think is the best way to do that is to see how they can get a right-left combination. That is the ideal scenario. Gary Kirsten has been trying that, he’s playing Saim Ayub in that role, but he’s not delivering at the moment. But I see that this combination, they are two different types of players, Saim Ayub with either Babar or Rizwan. They can complement each other; he is a player who right from the first ball can go after the bowling and put pressure on the opposition bowling lineup. On the other side, whether it’s Babar or Rizwan, they play more conventional cricket and keep rotating the strike to make an impact. So I think this is the ideal scenario, but going into the England series, it will be very important. He’s not performing consistently, and when it comes to America, the bowling conditions are such that if you have an extra spinner who bowls a carom ball or a seam-up delivery in between, that can give an edge to Pakistan, the right-left combination, but that will depend on the next series and how they perform. Otherwise, we have the Babar-Rizwan pair who have previously performed very well. So even if you go that route, it is a good option. But I personally think that the right-left and the different nature of the players, that can offer you more.”
