World Cup 2023: Mystery clouds Pakistan’s no-show at training session in Bengaluru
Pakistan cricket team opted not to train in Bengaluru on Tuesday, October 17, days ahead of their 4th World Cup 2023 match against Australia.
Babar Azam’s men are set to lock horns with the 5-time champions Australia at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday, October 20 in a defining clash of the World Cup.
According to a report in the Pakistan media, the team management opted to give a day’s rest to the Pakistan players and recover from the defeat against arch-rivals India.
However, a section of the media in Pakistan claimed that a couple of players, including their young opening batter, Abdullah Shafique fell ill upon their arrival in the South Indian city. There has been no official confirmation of the same from the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Notably, Pakistan players arrived in Bengaluru on Sunday, a day after their defeat to India at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Bengaluru. On Monday, Pakistan stars went on for dinner in the city as the likes of Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Nawaz were spotted enjoying the food and the ambiance at a restaurant.
Pakistan players, according to GeoSuper, will train in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
Pakistan face a stiff test against Australia, who recovered from 2 successive defeats to beat Sri Lanka in their third World Cup match in Lucknow on Monday. After bowling out Sri Lanka for 209 on the back of an Adam Zampa 4-wicket haul, fifties fromJosh Inglis and Mitchell Marsh helped the 5-time champions gun down the total in just 35.2 overs.
Pakistan were hapless in their defeat to India as they were bundled out for 191 after Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl. Pakistan were in a position of strength at 155 for 2 as Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan had stitched a 155-run partnership, but the former champions collapsed, losing their last 8 wickets for just 36 runs.
India rode on a Rohit Sharma special – 86 from 63 balls and a steady fifty from Shreyas Iyer to hammer Pakistan and make it 8-0 against their rivals in World Cups. Notably, India will take the field again in Pune, against Bangladesh on October 19.