With Arshdeep Singh taking a three-wicket haul in his maiden World Cup for Team India, former player Anil Kumble lavished praise on the bowler and predicted that he would follow in the footsteps of Zaheer Khan. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Kumble said, "I was really impressed with Arshdeep, how he's come through."
"I worked with him for three years and I could see the kind of development that he has had in the T20 format, and last year's IPL was a classic example of how he handled the pressure."
"He perhaps bowled the tough overs for the team and yeah, you don't always look at the wickets column in the T20 game, you look at what moments the bowler comes up with. And the temperament that he's shown, it's wonderful. We saw that again in the India-Pakistan game. When you have 90,000 people at the MCG, it's always challenging."
"So yes, Arshdeep has certainly matured and I'd like to see him carry on. Probably what Zak (Zaheer Khan) did for India, I expect Arshdeep to go on to do some wonderful things for India", he further added.
{{/usCountry}}"So yes, Arshdeep has certainly matured and I'd like to see him carry on. Probably what Zak (Zaheer Khan) did for India, I expect Arshdeep to go on to do some wonderful things for India", he further added.
{{/usCountry}}Arshdeep's three-wicket haul helped India restrict Pakistan to 159 for eight in 20 overs, setting a target of 160 runs. Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya also bagged three wickets for Rohit Sharma's side. Shan Masood was in good form and played an unbeaten knock of 52 runs off 42 balls and Iftikhar Ahmed registered 51 runs off 34 deliveries.
Chasing a target of 160 runs, India reached 160 for six in 20 overs with Ravichandran Ashwin hitting the winning run. Virat Kohli was the Player of the Match and smacked an unbeaten knock of 82 runs off 53 balls, packed with six fours and four sixes. Hardik also played a crucial knock of 40 runs off 37 balls, including one four and two sixes. Mohammad Nawaz and Haris Rauf bagged two-wicket hauls for Babar Azam's side.