Former England all-rounder Dominic Cork has hailed the Indian men’s cricket team as a complete package following their triumphant performance in the Asia Cup 2023. The tournament, which took place in Pakistan and Sri Lanka from August 30 to September 17, 2023, saw India emerge as the champions, defeating Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in the final. Cork praised India’s dominant performance at the tournament, especially their commanding victory over Sri Lanka in the final, which sets a strong precedent for their participation in the World Cup 2023.
“We watch a lot of India and Pakistan, you know, we all do. The PSL, so we know what Pakistan cricket is like and how strong that is. But being around, you know, the Bangladesh team, the Sri Lankan team, the Afghanistan team. It was a really good tournament and obviously, India won it in the end. Quite comprehensively, bowling Sri Lanka out for 50 in an extraordinary game. Yeah, every ball swung, every pitch we played on a little bit of bounce, a little bit of carrying them, a little bit of spin. It was perfect conditions and some really good performances throughout,” Dominic Cork said while speaking to Sky Sports.
Pakistan faced significant criticism after being knocked out of the tournament in the Super 4 stage; despite a strong start in the second round with a victory over Bangladesh, Pakistan encountered difficulties in their campaign, particularly after a resounding 228-run loss to arch-rivals India in Colombo.
Babar Azam’s team made a valiant effort to recover in a rain-affected must-win match against Sri Lanka, with Shaheen Afridi and Zaman Khan bowling impressive final overs. Charith Asalanka, on the other hand, kept his cool and led his team to victory on the final ball of the run-chase. Cork said that in the current state, it looks like Pakistan have no chance in the World Cup, but added that one should never write them off.
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“Who’s looking good there? India and Pakistan are just looking like I know him a look. discombobulated? I think that’s the word. I’m looking for this. Discombobulated. I think that’s the word I was looking for. I just think the way that you look at Pakistan and think they’d have no chance in the World Cup, You know, you could never write them off. But when you look at India, they just look like a complete package. And you’ve got people who want on their side. Shreyas Iyer won’t be on their side. The likes of Suryakumar Yadav will miss out,” Cork added.
