T20 World Cup 2022: "Without him, they are just medium pacers"- Aaqib Javed on India missing Jasprit Bumrah

Former Pakistan cricketer Aaqib Javed believes Team India's pace unit may not be as threatening as they could have been had Jasprit Bumrah been a part of their T20 World Cup squad.

Bumrah has been ruled out of the showpiece event with a stress fracture in his back and Mohammed Shami has been named as the replacement. Javed claimed that there is no such fast bowler in the Indian ranks that could send shivers down the spine of the opposition even before a ball is bowled.

Speaking in a video posted by Paktv.tv, here's what Aaqib Javed had to say about the intimidation factor that's needed in a bowling attack:

"India's form hasn't been great as of late. Their batting has had problems and Jasprit Bumrah's absence is a big blow to their bowling. Without him, they are just (ordinary) medium pacers. You need someone who has an intimidating presence as it makes a huge difference."

Mohammed Shami will need to step up in Jasprit Bumrah's absence

The BCCI took to Twitter on Friday to announce that Shami will replace Bumrah in India's T20 World Cup squad.

Despite Shami not having played a single T20I since last year's T20 World Cup in the UAE, the team management seems to have backed him because of his experience.

🚨 NEWS 🚨: Shami replaces Bumrah In India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Squad. #TeamIndia | #T20WorldCup

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Questions have been asked about this selection since there were options like Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur who had enough match practice under their belt.

This could also mean that Shami could be in the playing XI against Pakistan and this could be a match-defining decision.

India squad for ICC T20 World Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh, and Mohammed Shami.