Wasim Jaffer fires 'Australia' warning to high-flying India with memories of WTC Final and World Cup 2023 heartbreaks

Former India opener Wasim Jaffer has picked Australia as Team India's biggest threat in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Both India and Australia have already booked their spots in the next round of the tournament by winning their first three games and are very much on the collision course.

India and Australia are two of the strongest contenders for the T20 World Cup and they have started their respective campaigns in a strong fashion as well. They had played the final of the World Test Championship as well as the ODI World Cup against each other last year and it won't be surprising if they go on to lock horns in the final of the ongoing T20 World Cup as well.

Australia had defeated India in both finals last year and are eying the T20 World Cup title to become the first-ever team to hold all three ICC trophies at once. India, on the other hand, have not won the World Cup in any format since 2011 and will be desperate to end their long wait by winning the ongoing competition.

And while they do have a very strong squad for the competition, Wasim Jaffer believes that the Rohit Sharma-led side needs to be wary of the Australians. Speaking in a video posted on his YouTube channel, Wasim Jaffer highlighted that Australia have all the bases covered for the tournament.

"We lost the WTC final as well as the World Cup final to Australia. And the way they are playing in this T20 World Cup, they are the one team that India need to be wary about. They have the fast bowlers, all-rounders and Adam Zampa is bowling well. The batting is also explosive," said Wasim Jaffer.

Captaincy in T20 not overrated: Wasim Jaffer:

Speaking further, Wasim Jaffer also spoke on the importance of captaincy in T20 cricket. The former Test opener dismissed the notion that captaincy is overrated in T20 cricket, emphasizing how great captains have done well in the shortest format of the game over the years. He also stated that captaincy is one of the most important things in the T20 format where the captains are needed to make quick decisions.

"Absolutely not (on whether captaincy in T20 cricket is overrated). In fact it is so crucial. If you see in the IPL, the teams that have won multiple titles have had great captains like MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, David Warner and Gautam Gambhir. It is a fast game and you have to decide quickly. It is one of the most important things in this format," said Jaffer.