T20 World Cup 2021 | Anyone could upset India in any knockout game, opines Nasser Hussain
India start their T20 World Cup 2021 campaign against Pakistan on Sunday
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Former England captain Nasser Hussain has said that India might get knocked out in the semi-finals if they don't have a Plan B. Nasser pointed that burden of expectation will be high on India in the knockout stage of the T20 World Cup 2021 and if the top-three fails, the team could be exposed.
HussainĀ recalled India's World Cup 2019 semi-final against New Zealand and said that the Virat Kohli-led team were ousted from the tournament because they lacked Plan B. He added that a batting collapse could be on cards as India rely heavily on their top-three and the middle-order batsmen are very frequently spectators in the dugout.Ā
"When they get to a stage you look at the last World Cup against New Zealand and suddenly it's a low-scoring game and they don't have a Plan B. They got rolled over a very good New Zealand side. So that's going to be an issue for them," Hussain said on 'Sky Cricket'.Ā
"The other problem with India is that they are so good at the top with Rohit Sharma , Virat Kohli and KL Rahul boss games and the middle order hasn't had much of a hit. "You get to a knockout or final and suddenly they are at 30 for 3 because the standard has gone up and the middle order hasn't had a hit and you go now you need to do it," he added.
The 53-year-old also pointed out that theĀ it takes only player to change the course of the game in the shortest format.Ā
"They are favourites. I wouldn't say clear favourites simply because of the format. The shorter the game, things can happen," Hussain said.
"... an individual brilliance of 70 or 80 or three deliveries suddenly changes the other away around. So anyone could upset India in any knockout game," he added.
The cricketer-turned-commentatorĀ also highlighted India's poor track record in the knockout stages of recent ICC events. India's last ICC title came under the leadership of MS Dhoni in 2013 when they defeated England to lift the Champions Trophy. The Chennai-born also spoke about the burden of expectation on India.Ā
āTheir record of late in the ICC tournaments is not good and that's something they are going to have to deal with with the weight of expectations of the Indian audience and fans heavy on their shoulders when they get to a knockout game, all of a sudden you cannot afford a mistake and that's going to be a thing for them,ā he said.
"When they get into a knockout game all of a sudden they can't afford any mistake and that's because on paper they have everything."
"They have some of the greatest white-ball batters. Depth in the batting, got the fast bowlers and the mystery spin and a mentor on the sidelines in MS Dhoni."
"These are the areas India have to focus on. On paper, they have pretty much every base covered," he added.
The match between the two arch-rivals will be played from 7:30 PM IST and will be broadcasted on Hotstar and Star Sports Network.Ā
