"Did they fight a war to ensure their team plays well?" - Salman Butt cites India's example to take a dig at Afghanistan
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has slammed the fans and experts who suggested that Afghanistan were motivated to do well at the 2024 T20 World Cup due to the suffering the country has gone through. He pointed out that nations like India and Australia don't have such problems, yet they have been consistent performers.
Butt mentioned that the passion of the Afghan players alone isn't enough for a World Cup victory. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the cricketer-turned-expert remarked:
"What are the Pakistani players saying? They say Afghan players get motivated by being reminded of the conditions in their country. However, Australia have no such issues, so why do they win everything? India's conditions are also good, but they are still very consistent. Did they fight a war to ensure their team plays well? It is fine to a point. I understand that they come from difficult conditions and are passionate about the game, but that's about it. You cannot become world champions just on this basis."
Afghanistan trumped formidable teams like New Zealand and Australia at the recently concluded 2024 T20 World Cup. They made it to the semifinals, where they suffered a nine-wicket loss to South Africa.
Butt suggested that Afghanistan didn't deserve to win the tournament. He reckoned that winning a couple of games doesn't make Rashid Khan and company a strong team. Highlighting the team's weak batting lineup, he added:
"I heard someone say that Afghanistan should have won. How will they win with just two batters? There's nobody after their openers and people said they should win the World Cup. What's this logic? Winning two matches doesn't mean that you have a complete team."
Afghanistan went down without a fight in the semifinal against South Africa. After electing to bat first in the knockout fixture, they were bundled out for a paltry score of 56.
"You should speak about what went wrong for you" - Salman Butt's advice to Pakistani players
The Babar Azam-led Pakistan team suffered a group-stage exit at the 2024 T20 World Cup. Salman Butt mentioned that the Men in Green must focus on the mistakes they made instead of talking about what worked in Afghanistan's favor.
Speaking about how Pakistan would have performed better had they shown the same kind of teamwork as Afghanistan, Butt said in the same video:
"Afghanistan have played magnificent cricket and have stuck together. But if Pakistan couldn't do that, it's their failure and not Afghanistan's achievement. If Pakistan had done that, they surely would have won. You should speak about what went wrong for you, but you get everything else part from the real answer."
Pakistan's campaign began with back-to-back losses against the United States of America (USA) and India. While they trumped Canada and Ireland, it wasn't enough to take them to the Super 8 round.