'Unprofessional, Unacceptable, Unforgivable': Why Did Gavaskar Scold Siraj On Air During IND vs PAK?

Team India extended their dominance against Pakistan in ICC events, defeating them by 6 runs in the T20 World Cup 2024 fixture at Nassau County Stadium on Sunday. Despite putting up a low total, the men in blue defended it in style to top the Group A points table. The trio of Jasprit Bumrah (3/14), Hardik Pandya (2/24), and Axar Patel (1/11) produced brilliant bowling efforts to steer India’s stunning comeback. However, there was also a moment when the men in blue faced a minor scare.

It was the 17^th over when Mohammed Siraj bowled a no-ball at a crucial juncture of Pakistan’s chase of 120. The opposition needed 29 runs off 17 deliveries when the right-arm quick overstepped, gifting them a freebie – Free Hit. Siraj’s blunder left legendary Sunil Gavaskar furious who slammed the bowler on air.

“Unforgivable. Professional cricketers, whatever you are, you cannot bowl a no-ball. It is in your control. Wide balls are not always in your control but no-ball is. Unprofessional, and unacceptable at this level. No excuses whatsoever,” Gavaskar said on air.

However, Siraj’s overstepping didn’t affect India’s momentum as the pacer conceded just 2 runs off the Free Hit. Even though Pakistan batters collected 9 runs from the over, Siraj ended up with economical figures of 0/19 in his four overs.

India captain Rohit Sharma termed Bumrah as a genius and wants his lethal weapon to perform at the same level for the entire duration of the T20 World Cup. The ace pacer returned 3/14 in four overs which included an astounding 15 dot balls while defending a paltry total of 119 on Sunday.

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“He is going from strength to strength (Bumrah). We all know what he can do. Not going to talk too much about him. We want him to be in that mindset throughout the World Cup. He is a genius, we all know that,” Rohit said, praising one of India’s greatest fast bowlers.

“With a bowling line-up like that, you feel confident to do the job. Halfway through the stage when they were batting, we got everyone together and said that if it can happen to us, it can happen to them,” he added.

(With PTI Inputs)

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