"We used to say that fast bowlers fall when we shake a tree in Pakistan" - Aakash Chopra on Men in Green's seam-bowling issues in 2023 World Cup
Aakash Chopra has questioned Pakistan for their depleting seam-bowling resources, an area that used to be their biggest strength in the past.
The Men in Green will lock horns with England in their final 2023 World Cup league game at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday. They need a humungous win to pip New Zealand for the final semi-final berth.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra highlighted Pakistan's bowling issues in the tournament. He elaborated (7:20):
"When Naseem Shah got injured, everything was put on him, that how will it happen if Naseem is not there? He is a good bowler but you will have to manage. We used to say that fast bowlers fall when we shake a tree in Pakistan. Where have all the fast bowlers gone? Spin is totally missing."
The former India opener feels Babar Azam has been found wanting in the batting department. He explained:
"If we talk about batting, (Mohammad) Rizwan played well at the start but Babar (Azam) hasn't played well in the entire tournament. Whenever he has played, he has played at almost a run-a-ball and we didn't see any dominating knock, although these are good batting conditions."
While acknowledging that Fakhar Zaman has played scintillating knocks in the last two games, Chopra added that Pakistan's middle order hasn't delivered the goods. He said:
"Fakhar Zaman was there at the start, then he wasn't, and he played well when he came back. However, by the time he came, Imam-ul-Haq was out. Abdullah Shafique is playing and if we see down the order, the might was not seen."
Babar's 282 runs in eight innings have come at a below-par strike rate of 82.69. Mohammad Rizwan (359) and Abdullah Shafique (336) are the only Pakistan batters to cross the 300-run mark.
"I had more expectations from this team" - Aakash Chopra on Pakistan's underwhelming performances
![Pakistan lost four consecutive matches after winning their first two games. [P/C: AP]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/11/96b52-16996731954584-1920.jpg?w=500)
Aakash Chopra believes Pakistan haven't lived up to expectations because they are playing old-fashioned cricket. He stated (6:45):
"The truth is that it has not been a very good tournament. I will be very honest, I had more expectations from this team. Maybe my expectations were wrong because the way they played the Asia Cup, you could figure out that this team is not playing modern-day cricket."
The cricketer-turned-commentator concluded by picking England as the likely winners in Saturday's game. He added that if Pakistan are desperate and try to be overaggressive in search of qualification, they won't even get two points.