IND vs PAK: "Can't expect much from..." - Babar Azam reveals why Pakistan lost to India in T20 World Cup 2024

The Babar Azam-led Pakistan National Cricket Team locked horns with the Rohit Sharma-led India National Cricket Team in the biggest match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 on Sunday, June 9, at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.

Pakistan won the lucky toss and elected to bowl first in the match. They managed to dismiss the batting superstars Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma early. Pakistan bowlers looked threatening with the ball and they kept every Indian batter quiet, barring Rishabh Pant (42). Also, the Men In Green bundled out India (119) for the first time in T20I history.

Chasing the target, Pakistan were off to a good start, but Babar Azam failed to score big and was dismissed in 5th over. Then, Mohammad Rizwan, Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, and Imad Wasim scored scratchy yet crucial runs and took the game deep. In the end, Pakistan's lower order failed to chip in and they were restricted to 113/7, losing the match by 6 runs.

Speaking after the match, Babar Azam revealed why Pakistan lost the match. He stated that they lost back-to-back wickets quickly and played too many dot balls, which cost them the match. Babar Azam said:

"We bowled well. In the batting, lost back-to-back wickets and had too much dot balls. Tactics was simple to play normally. Just strike rotation and the odd boundary. But in that period we had too many dot balls. Can't expect much from tailenders. Our mind was to utilise first overs in batting. But one wicket down, and again we weren't up to the mark in first six."

Talking about the pitch, Babar Azam said that it was decent. He also asserted that they would go back to the drawing board and figure out the mistakes. Babar Azam said:

"Pitch looked decent. Ball was coming on nicely. It was a little bit slow, and some balls extra bounce. Have to win last two matches. Will sit and discuss our mistakes but looking forward to last two matches."

What Happened In The Previous T20 World Cup Match Between India And Pakistan

The previous ICC Men's T20 World Cup clash between India and Pakistan was held in 2022. It was the 16th match of the competition when the Group 2 teams went head-to-head at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground on October 23.

The jam-packed stadium saw an absolutely thrilling match between the arch-rivals as both teams put in their best efforts to make sure that they finished on the winning side. India were lucky at the toss and they decided to bowl first.

The Indian bowlers showcased sheer class and bowled some great lines and lengths throughout the 20 overs. The Pakistan batters struggled and found it hard to deal with the bowlers. Had Shan Masood (52) and Iftikhar Ahmed (51) not stepped up with their half-centuries, the Men In Green would've been bundled out for a very low total.

Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya picked up three wickets each for India while Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar got one as they restricted Pakistan to 159/8.

While chasing, India were off to the worst possible start as they were reduced to 31/4. The match seemed to have slipped away from India's hands, but Virat Kohli displayed his greatness and produced arguably the greatest-ever T20I innings. His knock also featured an unbelievable six down the ground off Haris Rauf, which went on to be declared by ICC as the Shot of the Century and the Greatest Moment in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Virat Kohli smashed a stupendous 82* runs and Hardik Pandya (40) also made a decent contribution as India won the match by 4 wickets on the very last ball.