“Our Einstein” - Shoaib Akhtar slams Pakistani skipper for his surprising decision against India

Former Pakistan pacer and commentator Shoaib Akhtar has lashed out at the captain, Salman Ali Agha, for opting to bat first against India despite the dew factor in the ongoing Asia Cup 2025 campaign on Sunday, September 24, in Dubai.

Terming Salman Agha as ‘Einstein’, Akhtar, while speaking on a local Pakistani show, slammed the Pakistani skipper for his decision at the toss. On the other hand, Suryakumar Yadav clearly stated that with dew coming later in the game, we anyway wanted to bowl first.

"Good luck to them. Suryakumar Yadav ne poori pitch report di hai toss par. Usne kahan, 'Baad mein dew aayega. Ball bat par accha aata hai tab, humari batting lambi hai. Hum chase hi karna chahte the, hum phele bowling hi karna chahte the. Par humare Einstein ne kaha humay pehle batting karni hai.(Suryakumar Yadav gave an entire pitch report at the toss. He said, 'There will be dew later in the game. Ball comes better to the bat at that time and our batting lineup is deep. We wanted to bowl first'. But our Einstein said, 'We will bat first'.)," said Akhtar on a local Pakistani show.

Batting first, Pakistan could score only 127/9 in 20 overs. Kuldeep Yadav was the wrecker-in-chief with a three-wicket haul while Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah picked up two wickets each.

In the chase, India took only 15.5 overs to finish off the game with seven wickets in hand. Suraykumar was the star batter, amassing an unbeaten 47-run knock off 37 balls, while Abhishek Sharma scored 31 runs in 13 balls.

Moreover, Akhtar also slammed the Indian team for not shaking their hands with the Pakistani players after the game came to an end. Interestingly, Indian players, including Surya and Shivam Dube, walked out to the dressing room without following the customary handshakes.

"I'm speechless. It is disheartening to see and I don't know what to say. Hats off to India. Just don't make things political. Cricket match hain isko political mat banao. Hum ne acchi statement di hai aapkee liye. Hum bohut kuchh bol sakte hai. Hoti rehte hain ladayi jhagre, ghar me bhi ho jaati hain. (Don't make a cricket match political. We have said nice things about you. We can say a lot of things about the no handshake. Fights happen, even inside your house. Forget it, move on. It is the game of cricket, shake your hands, show your grace.),” he concluded.

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