In the wake of India‘s comprehensive victory over Pakistan in the 2023 ODI World Cup, former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer took a humorous dig at Pakistan’s team director, Mickey Arthur. Pakistan faced a crushing defeat at the hands of India in the group stage match, raising questions about their performance.
Mickey Arthur, in his post-match comments, alluded to the match feeling like a bilateral series heavily favoring India, rather than a neutral ICC event. He mentioned that the match seemed more like a BCCI event, and the iconic Pakistani anthem “Dil Dil Pakistan” wasn’t as prominent in the stadium.
Mickey Arthur said
“Look, I’d be lying if I said… It didn’t seem like an ICC event, tonight, to be brutally honest. It seemed like a bilateral series; it seemed like a BCCI event. I didn’t hear Dil Dil Pakistan coming through the microphones too often tonight,” Mickey Arthur said.
“So yes, that does play a role, but I’m not going to use that as an excuse because for us, it was about living the moment, it was about the next ball and it was about how we were going to combat the Indian, the Indian players tonight,” he added.
In response to Arthur’s comments, Jaffer humorously suggested that the reason Pakistan lost home series against Australia and England was that the stadium DJ didn’t play “Dil Dil Pakistan” often enough, and many fans were seen wearing blue jerseys. Jaffer’s tweet adds a touch of light-heartedness to the discussion while highlighting the significance of team performance in cricket.
Jaffer’s reply on X
“I wondered why Pakistan lost home series vs both Aus and Eng, but thanks to Micky Arthur now I know it was because stadium DJ didn’t play ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’ enough and majority of fans were wearing blue jerseys :)” Jaffer wrote on Twitter.
Former Pakistani fast bowler Wasim Akram also weighed in on the issue, describing Arthur’s comments as bizarre. Akram emphasized the importance of discussing strategies and reasons for the team’s success or failure rather than focusing on external factors.
“I don’t know what to make of this statement. Tell us what your plans were against Kuldeep Yadav, that’s what we want to hear, not just random stuff. You think you can get away with this? You can’t, unfortunately,”Wasim Akram said.
“Winning and losing is a part of the game, but we want to know why we lost and what went wrong,” Wasim concluded.
The banter between Jaffer and Arthur reflects the intense rivalry between India and Pakistan in cricket, spicing up the ongoing World Cup. Despite the banter, cricket enthusiasts eagerly await insights into the strategies and technical aspects of the game as teams continue to compete in this high-stakes tournament.
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