India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2023: Wasim Akram disagrees with Rohit Sharma toss decision to bat first

Add as a preferred source on Google

As the India vs Pakistan match got away in the group stages of Asia Cup 2023 at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy amid fear of rain, Pak bowling legend Wasim Akram couldn't agree with Indian skipper Rohit Sharma's decision at the toss in overcast conditions.

Rohit Sharma opted to bat first after winning the toss, saying the weather has affected the match but he is not reading too much into it as his team is only focussing on playing good cricket.

"We are going to bat first," Rohit Sharma said after winning the toss. There is a bit of weather around, but can't think much about it. Got to play good cricket, you need to embrace the challenge, embrace the situation."

Wasim Akram, however, felt that with heavy rain before the match and overcast weather conditions, it's advisable to bat second as dew will come into play in the second innings under the light, making it easier to chase down a total. The former pacer, who took 500-plus wickets in ODIs, made the remark during a post-match show by the official broadcasters.

Interestingly, Babar Azam said he would have batted first on the Pallekele surface as well but now asked to field first, they will try to utilise the overcast condition to take early wickets with an armoury of pacers in Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf.

Indian cricketer-turn commentator Sanjay Manjrekar also reckoned that bowling first could be the right decision on the track with Duckworth-Lewis expected to come into play later in the game.

"A high-quality and unique pitch. Fast bowlers can get some seam, the spinners will get some turn, and a good batter can also score a century on this wicket. With DLS in picture, the captain winning the toss might prefer to bowl first," said Sanjay Manjrekar on Star Sports.

Rohit Sharma went for the game with three pacers in Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur and Mohammad Siraj while Hardik Pandya is the extra pace option.