 "Different balls, DRS, coin toss: Pakistan’s bizarre conspiracies about India’s World Cup wins")
India is on a roll at the 2023 Cricket World Cup. The team beat New Zealand on Wednesday to rattle off 10 consecutive victories en route to Sunday’s final – where they will now meet Australia. A victory in Ahmedabad would see India equal Australia’s record of winning 11 straight matches in a world cup – which the Aussies set under the captaincy of Ricky Ponting in 2007 and 2003. But India’s dominant performances seem to have gone down badly – particularly in Pakistan – who are peddling conspiracy theories. Let’s take a closer look: Different balls! Arguably the first to kick off the wave of conspiracy theories was retired Pakistani cricketer Hasan Raza when India played Sri Lanka. Raza suggested that perhaps the ICC is providing Indian bowlers – who have been on an absolute tear in the world cup particularly Mohammed Shami – with different balls.
“The balls given to Indian bowlers should be checked. They are getting more swing and seam. Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj are bowling like Allan Donald and Makhaya Ntini. Even Mathews was surprised to see the amount of swing Shami’s ball got in Mumbai. Either ICC is helping them, or BCCI is coming to help their bowlers. There could be an involvement of the third umpire as well,” Raza was quoted as saying by the website OTTplay.com. It is a subject Raza would return to three days later on 6 November.
“We are seeing that when they are batting, they bat really well and suddenly the ball starts doing things when India bowl,” Raza was quoted as saying by The Times of India. Raza also suggested that something was awry with the Decision Review System. “There have been 7-8 close DRS calls that have gone in their favour. The way Siraj and Shami were swinging the ball, it seemed like the ICC or the BCCI were giving them different and suspicious balls in the second innings. There needs to be an inspection done on the ball. There could also be an extra layer of coating on the ball for swing.” Raza, speaking about the India-South Africa match, was quoted as saying, “I will say again what I feel. Rassie was given out when the ball would have clearly missed the leg stump. The technology showed otherwise. I don’t understand how the ball can hit the stumps. Rassie was one of the best batters of South Africa. Jadeja managed to take five wickets. DRS has been manipulated in favour of the Indian team," Raza said on a Pakistani news channel.
Raza even raked up a DRS decision made in 2011 to back up his claims. “I will go back to the delivery that Saeed Ajmal bowled to legendary Sachin Tendulkar (during India vs Pakistan 2011 world cup semi-finals). He Tendulkar took review (after being given out LBW against Ajmal). The ball was on the middle and it showed missing leg by two feet,” Raza was quoted as saying by SportingNews.com. Former Pakistani captain and cricket legend Wasim Akram took Raza to task over his comments on The Pavilion Show on A Sports. “I have been reading about it for the last couple of days. I want to have the same thing these guys are having, sounds like fun. Because their mind is not there,” Akram said. Akram also urged Raza not to make Pakistanis look like fools in front of the entire world. Pakistani journalist Fakhar Durrani on 5 November took it one step further – bringing up the cricket’s “F word”.
Former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq claimed that all the teams did not want Pakistan to reach the semi-finals. Razzaq, who had previously faced flak for some ill-advised comments on Aishwarya Rai, did not explain why this would be the case.
Coin toss Another ex-Pakistan player Sikander Bakht peddled a novel conspiracy theory – that Indian captain Rohit Sharma was tossing the coins too far for the Opposition players to check if their call was correct! “Can I give you a conspiracy theory? At the time of the toss, Rohit Sharma throws the coin far from the range of any opposition captain. Thus, the opposition captain cannot go and cross-check about the call,” Bakht told Geo News.
“Very strange the way Rohit Sharma throw the coin at the toss, far away, don’t let other Captains see, compare to other Captains in the WC, any reason??” But Akram again poured cold water on the theory. Speaking on The Pavilion show on A Sports, Akram said, “Who decides where the coin should land? It is just for sponsorship! I feel embarrassed.”