Pakistan began their World Cup campaign with a 81-run win over the Netherlands at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad last Friday.
Batting first, they overcame an early wobble to post 286. Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq and skipper Babar Azam were sent back to the pavilion early in their innings which saw reduced to 38/3 in the 10th over.
Muhammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel started to rebuild their innings with each scoring 68 runs which helped them reach near the 300-run mark.
However, former India cricketer, Krishnamachari Srikkanth, believes that the Pakistan team have no bite and they have come only to tour Indian cities.
What did Krishnamachari Srikkanth say about Pakistan?
Srikkanth opined that India, England and Australia are the favourites and Pakistan without Naseem Shah, their premier fast bowler, is not one of the contenders for a top-four spot.
"India, England and Australia are the top teams at the World Cup and will reach the semifinals," he said.
"Pakistan have basically come as tourists to India to see cities like Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata etc. There is no scope for Pakistan reaching the semifinals. Their main bowler is Naseem Shah and he is not available," he added.
ஸ்ரீகாந்த் எனும் 🐛🔥 தாக்கப்பட்டார் 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/ZXVcgDBL6b
— தென்குமரி தென்றல் (@Stalinkumari) October 8, 2023
However, in the absence of Shah, their other bowlers ensured the Dutch never got away from them, eventually bowling them out for 205. Haris Rauf and Hassan Ali were the pick of the pacers as they bagged three and two wickets respectively.
Whereas, Shaheen Afridi, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan picked one wicket each.
When is Pakistan next match at Cricket World Cup 2023?
Pakistan's next match at the 2023 World Cup will be against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad. The match will begin at 2:00pm IST.
Here's when the match starts around the world and where to watch:
| Start time | TV/Live Stream | |
| India | 2:00pm (IST) | Sports Star/Disney+ Hotstar |
| Australia | 7:00pm (AEST) | Fox Cricket/9Now, Kayo Sports |
| UK | 8:30am (BST) | Sky Sports/Sky Sports Go, Now TV |
| New Zealand | 9:30pm (NZDT) | Sky Sport/Sky Sport Now |
| USA/Canada | 4:30 am (ET) | Willow TV/ESPN+ |
Ready to make your predictions and win on the Cricket World Cup 2023? To find all the latest odds, betting and cricket scores and fixtures from India click here.
Fans in the UK can check out all the latest promotions, bonuses and free bets on the Cricket World Cup 2023 via our partners BetOnSports here.
