 "India 'played very badly': Shoaib Akhtar slams Men in Blue after England semi-final loss")
Adelaide: The potential and tantalising India-Pakistan contest in the T20 World Cup final was denied with the Rohit Sharma-led unit suffering a semi-final defeat on Thursday. India were convincingly beaten by 10 wickets by England at the Adelaide Oval. In so doing, India were sent packing in the semi-finals of a World Cup for the fourth straight time. T20 World Cup: Full coverage | Schedule | Results | Points Table | News | Photos Former Pakistan seamer Shoaib Akhtar criticised the India team for lacking spunk in their disappointing loss. He also questioned the absence of Yuzvendra Chahal from the playing XI and in missing out the T20 World Cup entirely.
“It’s a very embarrassing loss for India. They played terribly and they deserved to lose. They didn’t deserve to qualify for the finals. India were beaten very badly. Their bowling was exposed very badly. These conditions are helpful for fast bowling and India don’t have an express pacer. I don’t know why they didn’t play Yuzvendra Chahal in a single match. The team selection for India is confusing,” said the Rawalpindi Express in a video on Twitter. Akhtar added the Indian team lacked aggression required to win such crucial matches and appeared to thrown in the towel after the powerplay overs. “It was a really bad day for India as their heads went down after they lost the toss. When England batted their first five overs, the Indians had their arms up in the air. At least, India should have tried to fight, maybe the bowlers could’ve bowled round the wicket and delivered a few bouncers. There was no aggression from the Indian side,” he added. Akhtar concluded by saying he believes Gujarat Lions skipper Hardik Pandya could lead the Indian team in the future. “There is a lot to think about for Indian cricket and now Hardik Pandya is an emerging captain for New Zealand and he has a chance of being permanent,” the retired pace bowler concluded. Pandya will captain the Indian team in New Zealand for the three match series beginning 18 November. Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .