“2nd time it has happened in 12 months” - Salman Butt on Team India’s bowling going wicketless in T20 World Cup 2022 semis against England

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt reckons that Team India have every reason to be concerned about their bowling after they failed to claim a single wicket in the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final against England. He pointed out that something similar happened during India’s T20 World Cup 2021 opener against Pakistan.

England won the toss and invited India to bat in the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final in Adelaide. The Men in Blue put up a competitive 168/6 on the board. However, Alex Hales (86* off 47) and Jos Buttler (80* off 49) added an unbeaten 170 - a record for the highest T20 World Cup partnership - as England entered the final with a dominating 10-wicket triumph.

Team India’s bowling has been under the scanner ever since that listless performance in the knockout match. Asked about the same, Butt said on his YouTube channel:

“India’s bowling is being talked about because the batters scored (close to) 170 in the semi-final, yet the bowlers could not take a single wicket. And this is the second time it has happened in 12 months. The alarm bells will obviously ring. At least fight and take five to six opposition wickets and take the match to the end. These things will obviously concern people.”

Earlier, Pakistan hammered the Men in Blue by 10 wickets in the first match for both teams in their T20 World Cup 2021 campaign. Chasing 152 in the game in Dubai, Pakistan romped home with all 10 wickets in hand as Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan slammed half-centuries.

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“There is no substitute for genuine pace” - Ravi Shastri wants Team India to groom Umran Malik

Sharing his thoughts on Team India’s bowling, former head coach Ravi Shastri opined that the Men in Blue are missing a genuine pacer.

He termed the New Zealand tour as a good opportunity for young speedster Umran Malik to learn and get better. Elaborating on the importance of pace, Shastri told Prime Video:

“He is one of the fastest bowlers in India and you saw what happened in the World Cup where genuine pace rattled opposition, whether it was Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, and Anrich Nortje.

“So, there is no substitute for genuine pace. Even if you are defending small totals, so this is an opportunity for Umran, hopefully, he will learn from this exposure.”

Umran has played three T20Is for India so far in which he has claimed two wickets at an average of 56 and an economy rate of 12.44.