'India B team will be very, very hard to beat for Pakistan'- Sunil Gavaskar's bold claim over Pakistan's current form

The Champions Trophy was set to be a tournament where Pakistan not only went in as the defending champions but also as the favourites by being one of the hosts of the tournament. Unfortunately, the Mohammad Rizwan-led side has lost both of their big matches with New Zealand and India and has crashed out of the tournament.

There have been many experts who have expressed their disappointment after seeing how the Green Shirts have performed in the tournament. Former India legend and commentator Sunil Gavaskar has also shared his views on the team and claimed that the Indian B team was good enough to give the Pakistan side a run for their money. Gavaskar also talked about the approach of some of the batters taking the example of their skipper and star wicket-keeper.

“I think a B team certainly (can give Pakistan a run for their money). C team, I am not too sure. But a B team will be very, very hard to beat for Pakistan in their current form," Gavaskar said on Sports Today.

“The first ball (Mohammad) Rizwan faced, he hit for a boundary. Straightaway, I thought there would be a change in approach because, until then, it was all about knocking the ball around. But nothing changed. Before they knew it, the Indian spinners were finishing their overs quickly. It was quite surprising that nothing went their way, Gavaskar added.

Gavaskar even went on to criticise the selection process of the team and blamed the lack of bench strength. The Little Master also stated that it is surprising that a team that possesses so much natural talent has not been able to produce a lot of great players in their squad taking the example of Pakistan legend Inzamam-ul-Haq.

“I think it's surprising-this lack of bench strength. Pakistan always had natural talent. Natural in the sense that they may not have always been technically correct, but they had an instinctive understanding of bat and ball. Look at Inzamam-ul-Haq, for example. If you look at his stance, you wouldn't recommend that to a young batter, but he had great temperament. With that kind of temperament, he made up for any technical shortcomings," Gavaskar said.

“It's surprising that Pakistan have not been able to produce such talents. They also have the Pakistan Super League. How has India produced so many young stars in white-ball cricket? It's because of the IPL. Players from there have gone on to play in the Ranji Trophy and eventually for India. That is something Pakistan cricket must analyse. They need to figure out why they no longer have the bench strength they once did,” Gavaskar concluded.