Shoaib Akhtar predicts winner of T20 World Cup, says 'India will lose to Pakistan'

Former Pakistan's fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has made quite an interesting prediction regarding the winner of the upcoming T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to take place from October 17 to November 14 this year in the UAE and Oman. India and Pakistan are slated to play in the group stage as they are in the same pool, however, the former cricketer has predicted the arch-rivals will play the final clash also and not just that, Pakistan will end up defeating India. 

While speaking to a media house, Akhtar said, "I have a feeling Pakistan and India will play in the T20 World Cup final and India will lose to Pakistan. Conditions in UAE will favour both India and Pakistan."

Pakistan team has never defeated India in World Cup matches as the Indian team boast a stunning 11-0 record. It is worth noting that India and Pakistan have not played any bilateral series in over a decade due to political tensions, however, they have faced each other in ICC tournaments. Despite the ban, India vs Pakistan is considered one of the fiercest rivalries in the cricket world. Particularly this year, as both the teams will contest to get the trophy for a second time.

Previously, India was supposed to host the T20 World Cup but owing to the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, the entire event has been shifted to UAE. 

'Today's batmen are fortunate...'

Recently, Akhtar commented that the batsmen of today's generation are "fortunate" as they haven't faced some of the legendary bowlers like Shane Warne, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and himself. During an interview with an India-based media house, the 45-year-old former fast bowler spoke about how the game of cricket has deteriorated over the past few years. He said that cricket has "not evolved", only the shots have "evolved". Akhtar said, "The quality of the game has deteriorated in the last 10 years. The deterioration has happened."