Pakistan will find it hard to beat India’s B team: Gavaskar

Pakistan’s cricket team continued to invite scathing criticism a day after being knocked out of the Champions Trophy with the great Sunil Gavaskar saying that it would struggle to beat even a second-string Indian team.

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India, the 2023 ODI World Cup finalists, defeated defending champions Pakistan by six wickets in the Champions Trophy in Dubai on Sunday, continuing their dominance over the arch-rivals.

“I think a B team (from India) certainly (can give Pakistan a run for their money). A C team, I am not too sure. But a B team will be very, very hard to beat for Pakistan in their current form,” Gavaskar said.

Pakistan, hosting an ICC tournament for the first time since 1996, were knocked out of the Champions Trophy after New Zealand beat Bangladesh in another Group A match. Pakistan are still winless in the event.

Since winning the Champions Trophy in 2017, Pakistan’s cricketing fortunes have declined, with the team finishing fifth in the last two ODI World Cups.

“I think it’s surprising, this lack of bench strength. Pakistan always had natural talent. Natural in the sense that they may not have always been technically correct, but they had an instinctive understanding of bat and ball,” Gavaskar said.