'India went down only because...': PCB chief Ramiz Raja explains why Men in Blue failed to deliver in Asia Cup

India started the 2022 edition of the Asia Cup T20 tournament as favourites, but they were unable to live up to that tag in the competition. Despite making a good start in the tournament, India failed to reach the summit clash and was sent packing in the Super 4 rounds only. There could be many reasons for India’s premature exit. Be it the form of their batters, the consistency in performance, the lack of experience in death bowling and so on.

After India’s exit, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman and former cricketer Ramiz Raja, while drawing comparisons between the Men in Blue and the Pakistani team, said that the Indian team’s approach of experimenting with players in different positions has hurt them.

Ever since Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid came to the helm, the management has been trying out various combinations. The trend continued in the Asia Cup 2022 as well, where in all 5 games a different playing XI took the field.

Pakistan, on the other hand, kept the core group intact throughout the tournament and made the changes only if they were forced to do so.

"You have seen the team’s ranking; the results are also visible. If we compare the teams of India and Pakistan, people have been asking me why I am playing the same combination. You will leave them injured or so. My point is that we have handled a particular situation and won games. So, why should I change the winning model," Raja told reporters before the big final on Sunday between Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

"India went down only because they were not letting the model set. They are making too many changes. They have a bigger pool of players with which they are experimenting. So, unless you don’t have that kind of bench strength, you don’t need experimentation.

"You have got a strong position, so just hold that and keep winning games," he added.

Pakistan started their Asia Cup 2022 campaign with a five-wicket defeat against India on August 28, but then roared back to life with a 155-run triumph against Hong Kong. Babar Azam & Co. then went on to win their first two matches in Super 4 and that confirmed their place in the final.