CT 2017: Waqar Younis picks four teams likely to win the tournament

Former Pakistani cricketer Waqar Younis recently spoke at length about the various propositions of the upcoming edition of the Champions Trophy. The tournament kicks off on June 1 with the hosts England taking on the Bangladeshi side in the tournament opener. In a conversation with the Sky Sports, Waqar was asked to name the teams he feels stand out for the ICC mega event.

Surprisingly, Waqar Younis did not take the name of his country, Pakistan. Interestingly, earlier, another former cricketer Ramiz Raja had noted that the lack of power hitting could hurt the chances of Pakistan in CT 2017. Waqar picked the hosts England to be the one standing apart from the rest in the league. The kind of form they have been in the recent past speaks volumes about their preparation.

“There are three or four teams that stand out. England at home look the team to beat. They have a very long and attacking batting line-up and give the opposition bowlers no respite. Their approach to the limited-overs formats is very impressive,” quoted Waqar Younis.

Cannot rule out India

He further added that the defending champions India cannot be ruled out as well. However, the fact that India do not have the 50 overs practice to their backing might hurt their claims in the tournament. The former cricketer also noted that South African team looks very solid on paper as well.

“India, the reigning champions, cannot be counted out of the reckoning either, but they have just come out of playing in the IPL, a different format to the 50-over version, so that may go against them. I also like the look of South Africa, who some people call chokers, but with their squad strength, they cannot be written off,” said Waqar.

Aussies in the ICC events

Elaborating further, he also picked the Australian team to be one of the favorites for the tournament. Waqar Younis rightly cited that the Aussie camp can never be ruled out in the global events. Lastly, he had a word of praise for the way the 50 overs cricket has evolved over the years. If he had to pick one team as the favorites out of the four, he went with the hosts – England.

“The other team that really impresses me is Australia – they can never be ignored when it comes to any major tournament. I think the quality of cricket should be superb, especially as the 50-over format has evolved so much recently with scores of 300 now just being par. If I had to pick one team who I think are the favorites, I would say it’s England,” conceded Waqar.