"He deserves to lift the trophy"- Shoaib Akhtar betrays Virat Kohli to back this player to win T20 World Cup 2024

Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has come out in support of Rohit Sharma and backed India to lift the T20 World Cup 2024 title. India is among the only two unbeaten teams in the tournament so far, alongside South Africa.

The Men in Blue have been clinical so far. They produced their best cricket in the last Super 8 game against Australia, where they thrashed the ODI World Cup champions by 24 runs in St. Lucia.

India captain Rohit Sharma played a key role in the victory as he smashed a breathtaking 92 off 41 balls, which included 7 fours and 8 maximums. With this innings, Rohit now holds the record for the most no. of sixes hit by an Indian in a T20 World Cup innings.

After the superb win over Australia, India secured its semi-final spot by topping Group 1. But they face a stern test now as they will be up against defending champions England at Providence Stadium, Guyana. The game will be a repeat of last edition's semi-final, where England thrashed India by 10 wickets in Adelaide.

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Shoaib Akhtar wants Rohit Sharma to lift the T20 World Cup 2024

While speaking on his YouTube channel, Shoaib Akhtar credited India for their brilliant performance and backed them to lift the trophy this time around.

"Well done India, this is your World Cup now. You should win this and the World Cup should stay in the subcontinent. You should have won the previous too and this too. You deserve it one hundred percent. My support is with you," Akhtar said.

Shoaib Akhtar, also known as Rawalpindi Express, was particularly impressed with Rohit Sharma's intent and backed the Indian captain to win the trophy this time. "Rohit's intent is good and his conscience is clear. He deserves to lift the trophy," the former fast bowler added.

India's road to ICC T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final

India started the tournament slowly but found a way to win matches. They defeated Ireland convincingly in the opening game but had to dig deep to overcome arch-rivals Pakistan in the next game. Despite a batting wobble, the Men in Blue produced an enthralling bowling performance to leave Pakistan short of the target by 6 runs.

Team India faced some trouble against the USA's bowlers but used their experience to good effect to win the match. In the Super 8 stage, India was far more clinical as they outclassed Afghanistan and Bangladesh by big margins. The batters and bowlers put their hands up at different stages of the game to take their team over the line.

Afterwards, they defeated Australia convincingly to knock them out of the semi-final contention. But the semi-final and the final (if India qualifies) will be the biggest test for Rohit Sharma and his men. India hasn't won any ICC trophy since 2013 despite reaching the semi-finals and final several times.

Meanwhile, the other semi-final will be played between Afghanistan and South Africa in Trinidad. The final of the tournament will be played in Barbados on June 29.