Kamran Akmal feels the Pakistan cricket team will have an advantage in the upcoming T20 World Cup to be held in the UAE instead of India.
Kamran Akmal: Pakistan Should Have The Advantage In The T20 World Cup
Wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal feels that Pakistan will have an advantage in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2021 which is set to be shifted from India to the United Arab Emirates. Kamran Akmal believes that the experience in the UAE will benefit the team in the marquee event since Pakistan has been regularly playing international cricket in the UAE for around a decade.
While speaking with the YouTube channel ‘My Master Cricket Coach’, Kamran Akmal explained why Pakistan would enjoy playing the T20 World Cup in the UAE.
“Pakistan should have the advantage in the T20 World Cup. We’ve played international cricket for 9 to 10 years in the UAE. That makes Pakistan the most experienced side under the conditions,” Akmal said.
Following the 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka national cricket team’s bus, no Test cricket was played in the country until 2019. Between 2009 and 2016, their home matches have been mostly held in the United Arab Emirates.
However, due to the increase in security and comparatively fewer terrorist attacks, many teams have toured Pakistan since 2015. These teams include Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Bangladesh, South Africa, and an ICC World XI team, with England scheduled to tour in October 2021. In addition, the Pakistan Super League has seen games hosted on Pakistan soil.
Kamran Akmal: It’s Difficult To Pick A Favourite For The T20 World Cup
UAE has been the base for several T20 tournaments in the last few years. The Pakistan Super League (PSL) was recently conducted in Abu Dhabi while the second phase of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 is going to be held in September, after getting suspended earlier this year.
IPL 2020 was also held in the UAE for Covid-19. Since many foreign players have been participating in these leagues, Kamran Akmal feels they would also get benefitted from the experience of playing in the UAE.
“Not only players from India and Pakistan but from other countries will also benefit going into the T20 World Cup since a lot of them play in both PSL and IPL. Given the conditions in the UAE, Afghanistan can also prove to be a dangerous side, looking at the players that they have. So, it is difficult to pick a favourite for the T20 World Cup,” Akmal said.
The upcoming edition of the World T20, initially scheduled to be held in India, will be shifted to the United Arab Emirates due to the prevalent Covid-19 situation in the country. BCCI President Sourav Ganguly informed that the board has already intimated the International Cricket Council (ICC) about the eventuality.
“We have officially intimated the ICC that the T20 World Cup can be shifted to the United Arab Emirates. The details are being chalked out,” Ganguly was quoted.
The BCCI has communicated to its member associations that this year’s T20 World Cup will be held in the UAE. They will, however, retain the hosting rights of the 16-team event that is scheduled to begin on October 17, two days after the completion of the IPL 2021 final, also in the UAE.
The T20 World Cup, last held in 2016 in India, was originally scheduled to be held in Australia 2020. With the Covid-19 pandemic disrupting the global cricket calendar though, the ICC postponed the tournament, deciding that India would host it in 2021 with Australia hosting the 2022 edition.
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