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‘USA will beat Pakistan in 2026 World Cup’: Ex-PAK pacer's brutal prediction for Babar Azam and Co
Asif didn't mince words while slamming the Pakistan team and predicted that they would suffer defeat against the USA again in the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Pakistan cricket has been experiencing difficulties over the past couple of years, with below-par performances across formats. Under Babar Azam's captaincy, Pakistan failed to reach the semi-final of the ODI World Cup 2023 and suffered their first-ever international defeat against Afghanistan in the league stage. Babar and Co. also had a forgettable T20 World Cup 2024 campaign, where they lost their opening match to the non-Test-playing nation USA. Meanwhile, the recent loss to Bangladesh in the Rawalpindi Test added more misery for them.
The Pakistan cricket players and management have been under intense scrutiny. Several veteran cricketers have raised concerns over their performances and said they need a complete overhaul.
Former pacer Mohammad Asif didn't mince words while slamming the Pakistan team and predicted that they would suffer defeat against the USA again in the 2026 T20 World Cup.
“We lost to the USA, who are playing in the T20 World Cup for the first time. They didn’t even qualify, they played because they were the hosts. The way the situation is going at this moment, the USA will beat Pakistan in the next World Cup, in 2026. I’ll guarantee you that,” Asif said on the YouTube podcast ‘The Nakash Khan Show’.
Pakistan suffered an embarrassing defeat in the super over against the USA in the T20 WC, which left a big scare on them. In the next match, they failed to overcome the Indian team and were eventually knocked out of the group stage.
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‘Pakistan have to change the captain, coach and the players’
Asif further said that the Pakistan team needs big changes in their set-up, including the captain and the coach, before the 2026 T20 WC to avoid repeating the same mistakes from the past.
“Before the 2026 World Cup, we have to change the captain, coach and the players. There needs to be planning for the two years that this is the team, this is the 20 players we want to work with. But we are repeating the same things, which is why I am telling you this,” Asif highlighted.
“When the likes of India, and South Africa are moving forward in the next two years, we are still in the same spot,” he added.
