Mumbai: As Team India march from strength to strength in their quest to win the ODI World Cup at home, the men in blue are also facing some controversies.
Ahead of their semifinal against New Zealand in Mumbai, there were reports that the pitch on which the match was to be played was changed at the eleventh hour.
A few days earlier, ex-Pakistan cricketer Hasan Raza accused the International Cricket Council (ICC) of providing Indian bowlers with specially designed balls that swing more.
Now, India skipper Rohit Sharma has been accused of toss fixing!
Former Pakistan fast bowler Sikandar Bakht has suggested that Rohit’s method of tossing the coin could be a deliberate ploy to gain an unfair advantage.
Bakht, who took 100 international wickets in 26 Tests and 27 ODIs, said that the Indian captain tosses the coin so far that the rival captain can’t verify which side the coin has landed on the ground.
“Shararat kar sakta hoon? Mai ek sawal kar raha hoon agar hum dikha sake toss ke waqt. Rohit Sharma jab toss karte hai vo dur fenkte hai aur dusra captain jaa ke kabhi nahi dekhta ki vo sahi usne call kiya (Can I give you a conspiracy theory? At the time of the toss, Rohit Sharma throws the coin far from the range of any opposition captain. Thus, the opposition captain cannot go and cross-check about the call),” Bakht said during a World Cup TV programme on Geo News in Pakistan.
And The bizarre observation, following India’s 70-run win in the semifinal against New Zealand, came in for criticism by fellow-Pakistan former cricketers.
An angry and embarrassed Wasim Akram slammed Bakht’s claims made by Sikandar Bakht accusing Rohit Sharma of ‘toss-fixing’ following India’s semi-final win over New Zealand.
Now, Akram has slammed the claims made by Bhakt.
“Who decides where the coin should land? The mat is there for sponsorship reasons. I feel embarrassed,” Akram told A Sports.
