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ICC World Cup 2019: Mohammad Azharuddin makes bold prediction about India’s fortunes
Mohammad Azharuddin was quite impressed by Virat Kohli & Co’s win against West Indies on Thursday and backed them to stay unbeaten in the competition till 14th July.
Former India skipper Mohammad Azharuddin was quite impressed by Virat Kohli & Co’s win against West Indies on Thursday and backed them to stay unbeaten in the competition till 14th July - date of the ICC World Cup 2019 summit clash. India have won five out of their six matches in the tournament - South Africa, Australia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and West Indies being the opponents - and their match against New Zealand was abandoned due to rain. As a result, they are currently second in the points table with an impressive net run rate of +1.160.
“India will be unbeaten till the 14th (July), I think. It appears that way. It looks like that. India are a very happy team. Everybody is performing. I don’t see any reason why can’t go all the way,” Azhar told India Today.
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The Kohli-led side will next take on hosts England who started the tournament as favourites but have suffered a number of upset losses. When asked about India’s chances in the encounter, Azhar said that the hosts’ morale is not that great and he is of the opinion that the hosts will find it difficult to reach the last four of the competition.
“England’s morale is down. They have a very good side but I think they are struggling. They won’t even qualify for the semi-final. That would be a disappointment,” he said.
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While the form of the Indian batsmen has been quite good, the issues surrounding the No. 4 position continue to exist. Vijay Shankar has failed to fire at that position till now and Azhar said that Rishabh Pant can be a good option.
“We need to play the best side. Vijay Shankar has a lot of talent and skill. But he doesn’t have the experience. I think we should go with Rishabh Pant. He has done well against England in the Tests,” he concluded.
