“It’s not as if they are Malcolm Marshall” - Shoaib Akhtar slams Hardik Pandya & Shivam Dube for their expensive spells vs SA

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has slammed the Indian bowling attack after their 76-run defeat to South Africa in their first Super8 clash of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026 campaign.

Speaking exclusively on Tapmad, Akhtar was critical of Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube, who leaked 67 runs in their six-over spell, scalping only one wicket, adding that they lacked pace and intimidation against the South African batting line-up.

“Hardik and Shivam Dube were bowling at around 120 kmph. It’s not as if they are Malcolm Marshall, someone who would intimidate a batting line-up of South Africa’s calibre. If you deploy them in the death overs, such a counterattack from the Proteas is inevitable,” Shoaib Akhtar said on Tapmad.

Furthermore, Akhtar asserted that the Indian bowling looked exposed against the strong South African batting unit. He went on to reckon that Varun Chakravarthy’s pace got dropped after he was hit for a no-look shot by Dewald Brevis. Moreover, he stated that Kuldeep Yadav should be brought into the playing XI.

“Indian bowling has been exposed. If you look at Varun, whose strength is bowling at 97-98 kmph, he was clocking 94. And when he came into the attack, he was hit for a no-look six by Dewald Brevis,” he added.

“The missing link here is Kuldeep Yadav. He is someone who can deceive batters in the air and pick up wickets when needed. He is a proven match-winner,” he concluded.

India squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh.

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