ICC T20 World Cup: Not Rohit or Kohli, but THIS Indian player will pose ‘major threat’ to Pakistan, says Matthew Hayden

With everyone hyped up for India vs Pakistan clash in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, former Australian opener Matthew Hayden has spoken about how leadership will be key in the much-awaited match.

The Aussie is currently working with the Pakistan team as the head coach said the margin for error will be very little in the iconic match so captaincy will be the key to the outcome of the match.

Hayden even cited examples of former Indian skipper and current mentor MS Dhoni and England’s Eoin Morgan, who had led their respective Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises – Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) – with success despite their own individual performances not being up to the mark.

“Their individual performances were not as good as they have previously done as per their statistical records but the way they led their troops and conducted themselves played an important part in their teams reaching the IPL final in UAE conditions,” Hayden said in a media interaction.

“I feel leadership will be key in the coming match as conditions in UAE leave very little margin for error and there are dogfight conditions out there.”

Talking about Pakistan captain Babar Azam’s role to play in the match as a leader and a premium batter, he said, “There will be additional pressure on him as captain and batsman because he will be wanting to like they say, put him in their pocket. Babar has command and presence and he needs to fulfil that role in a batting sense and captain.

“More or less, I have watched KL Rahul grow and he is a major threat to Pakistan. I have watched him grow up as a boy. I have seen his struggles and his dominance in shorter formats. I have seen someone like Rishabh Pant, his brash nature and beautiful vision for the game, how he destroyed bowling attacks because he has got the opportunity because he sees it that way,” he added.