IND vs PAK: "We Don't Have Shaheen, Naseem, And Rauf In Our Nets, So..." - Rohit Sharma Ahead Of Blockbuster Asia Cup Clash

India National Cricket Team captain Rohit Sharma was addressing the media ahead of the blockbuster India vs Pakistan clash in the Asia Cup 2023 and he was asked about the team’s preparations for the pace-trio of Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf.

Rohit Sharma-led India will open their Asia Cup campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on Saturday, September 2, in the 3rd match of the event at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.

The biggest threat for India will be the pace-bowling unit of Pakistan, which is regarded as one of the best attacks in the world. Ahead of the high-octane match, Rohit Sharma was asked about their preparations and he responded hilariously, saying that they don’t have Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf to prepare in the nets. He added that they will rely on their experience to negate the threat of Pakistan pacers.

“Dekhiye, net me hamaare paas Shaheen, Naseem, Rauf toh hai nahi! (Look, we don’t have Shaheen, Naseem, or Rauf with us in the nets). We’ll practice with the bowlers we have available. We have quite a few quality bowlers, all performing well and playing together. Yes, all three are performing brilliantly too,” Rohit said.

“Look, Pakistan has always had quality bowlers. And we’ve been playing for many years now, so we have some idea about how they bowl, where do they usually like to bowl and all that. We have to capitalise on our experience,” the India captain said further.

Pakistan is a very good team – Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma also showered rich praise on Team Pakistan and said that they have worked very hardwork to become the No.1 ranked team in ICC ODI Team Rankings.

“Pakistan is a very good team. They’ve been performing very well in the last few years, whether in the T20 World Cup or 50-over cricket. No team becomes Number 1 just like that, it takes a lot of effort. I’m sure the Pakistan team has worked hard to become Number 1. They play like a unit and are playing good cricket, so it’ll be a challenge for us.”

Notably, Pakistan recently became the No.1 ranked ODI team after hammering Afghanistan by 3-0 in the ODI series in Sri Lanka.