4 min readMar 9, 2026 05:54 PM IST
Former Pakistan player Shahid Afridi heaped praises on India for retaining the T20 World Cup title with a 96-run win against New Zealand on Sunday, especially lauding Sanju Samson and Jasprit Bumrah for their performances not only in the final but during the entire tournament.
“The World Cup is over. I think India deserved the title. They have a great team combination. The players sitting on the bench were also as good as the playing XI. This is why I say that you bench needs to be strong. India’s bench was very strong, they could have picked anyone from there and slotted them into the playing XI. They played the whole tournament as champions,” Afridi posted in a video on his X account.
“Sanju Samson was outstanding. He got the opportunity and he delivered with his sensible hitting and his ability to build the innings. Abhsihek Sharma also performed well tonight. Ishan Kishan also performed outstandingly, just like he had performed against Pakistan. Jasprit Bumrah was the backbone of their bowling who has carried India on his back for a long time with his impressive performances. Be it with the new ball, old ball, slower or yorker, he is one of the best bowlers in my opinion,” he added.
Former Test captain and batting great Javed Miandad said any team that could get 250-plus totals in the semi-final and final deserved to be champions. “Their team (India) is now reaping the benefits of a strong process-driven cricket structure,” Miandad said.
“If you look at the talent they are producing now, it is because of their strong structure. They are not short on batters, spinners or fast bowlers and their young players are result-driven and have game awareness,” he added. The former great noted that when there is a winning culture and mentality established in a team’s dressing room, it always leads to title wins which is why India also won the Champions Trophy last year. “We had this environment in our dressing room once and we won frequently,” he said.
Former captain Rashid Latif said India’s triumph didn’t come as a surprise because their players had now become accustomed to performing under pressure.
“When you regularly reach finals of big events players also get accustomed to winning,” he said. He also said that continuity and stability in the Indian cricket team was also an essential reason for their success unlike Pakistan where frequent changes and impatience has caused a host of problems.
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Former Test pacer Sikander Bakht said until the prevailing culture of likes, dislikes and making incorrect selection and captaincy calls doesn’t end, the Pakistan team would continue to struggle against big teams in big events.
“We must stop finding excuses for our failures and take the right decisions.” Former Test batsman and chief selector Muhammad Wasim, who was until last year the head coach of the Pakistan women’s team, said until everyone in Pakistan accepted India’s superiority as a team nothing will change.
“We generally try to find faults and float conspiracy theories whenever we lose to India or they do well in big events. We need to stop that and accept their team is a top side and we must try to improve ourselves by learning from our mistakes,” Wasim said.
(With agency inputs)
