T20 World Cup 2021: They Are Exceptionally Dangerous Because They Are A Team That’s Unafraid – Sunil Gavaskar On Afghanistan

Legendary Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar has labelled Afghanistan National Cricket Team as an ” exceptionally dangerous” side for their unafraid way to play the game.

Virat Kohli-led India will lock horns with Mohammad Nabi’s Afghanistan at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi, on Wednesday, November 3.

Gavaskar believes that Afghanistan has got excellent spin bowlers in the team, and they can trouble Indian batters a lot when the two teams clash. He stated:

“Yes, they are exceptionally dangerous… because they are a team that’s unafraid to play their shots in the 20-over game, they just go out and swing their bats quite happily. They have got mystery spinners and Indian batters in recent times have shown a certain vulnerability against top-quality spin, particularly the back-of-the-hand spin.”

Afghanistan Are A ‘Banana Peel’ Opponent – Sunil Gavaskar

Former India captain feels that Afghanistan are a “Banana peel” opponent, and if someone takes them lightly, they often slip down.

“I think they are, like the commonly used word, a ‘banana peel’ opponent because you tend to not take them too seriously and you can, you know, slip and fall down playing against them,” said Sunil Gavaskar in a chat with Sports Today.

Gavaskar opined that Afghanistan spinners will bring a bigger challenge for the Indian team than the Pakistan and New Zealand spinners, and the Indian batters need to be aggressive if they want to counter the attack. He elaborated:

“You’ve got to say that the Afghanistan spinners, Rashid Khan, in particular, are going to be a bigger challenge than, say, an Ish Sodhi or Imad Wasim. So India really needs to step up, need to be aggressive, [the batters] need to come down the pitch a bit more to counter the turn.

“There won’t be much turn here in Abu Dhabi… so I think you need to try and throw the bowler off by trying to step down the pitch by making him change his length, the line,”

Gavaskar concluded by saying that India needs to bring two different games plans for Mujeeb-ur-Rahman and Rashid Khan in the match. He stated:

“Do something different to both these bowlers because if you don’t do that then they are going to bowl their four overs for 25-30 runs and that’s going to be tremendous. Because if you have bowled 8 overs for 55-60 runs, you have done a fabulous job for your team,”

Also Read: IND vs AFG Live Streaming Details- When And Where To Watch India vs Afghanistan Live In Your Country? ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Match 33