"Hopes Of Winning World Cup Less": Former India Player Comes Down Hard On Team's Recent Poor Show

After a lacklustre campaign in the Asia Cup, the Indian cricket team started their bilateral T20I series against Australia on a losing note on Tuesday. Despite scoring 208/6 batting first, India lost the match by four wickets. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (4-0-52-0), Harshal Patel (4-0-49-0), Yuzvendra Chahal (3.2-0-42-1), Umesh Yadav (2-0-27-2), Hardik Pandya (2-0-22-0) all leaked runs. Former India player Aakash Chopra feels that with this bowling line-up, India's hopes of winning the 2022 T20 World Cup, that starts in mid-October, has been dented.

"We are saying that Harshal will be back, Bumrah will be back and everything will be alright. It does not happen that way.  This is the sad reality of life. Bumrah was in the Mumbai Indians team, others did not bowl well and see what happened to MI this year. In one match you can take five to six wickets, in the rest of the days you won't get that many wickets," Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

"According to me, Indian bowling is looking very weak, no wicket-taking options are in sight. Yuzi Chahal continues to bowl faster. He is not bowling slower ones. The same was the case in Asia Cup. How will you get wickets if you don't bowl slower at all?

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"The reality is that India have a weak bowling line-up. With this line-up, hopes of winning the World Cup become less. If you can't defend 208, then things are going to be difficult. Remember, this Australian team is without four of its main members."

India face Australia in the second ODI in Nagpur on Friday.