Former England National Cricket Team all-rounder Ravi Bopara has humiliated the Pakistan National Cricket Team, saying that they are the least threatening rival for the India National Cricket Team.
Ravi Bopara said that India look at Australia, England, South Africa, and New Zealand as big threats and Pakistan are placed at the very bottom on that list.
India register a 3-0 sweep over Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025
Suryakumar Yadav-led India annihilated the Salman Agha-led Pakistan three consecutive times in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2025, which was played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
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There was a lot of optimism in the Pakistan camp heading into the Asia Cup 2025 as they had just won the T20I Tri-series in the UAE and head coach Mike Hesson had plenty of confidence in his team, even labelling Mohammad Nawaz as the best spinner in the world.
However, Pakistan got a reality check as the tournament began because they won no matches in a comprehensive fashion. The batting unit of the Men In Green even struggled against minnows.
In the group stage match against India, Pakistan suffered a massive 7-wicket loss before losing by 6 wickets in the Super Four game. Then, somehow, the Salman Agha-led side made it to the final against India and had a revenge in their minds.
While defending their score of 146 runs, Pakistan succeeded in dismissing Abhishek Sharma early, but then Tilak Varma came and conquered, steering India to an epic 5-wicket win. With this, India won their 9th Asia Cup title and registered a 3-0 sweep over Pakistan.
I don’t think India see Pakistan as a major threat – Ravi Bopara
In a recent interaction, Ravi Bopara stated that India don’t consider Pakistan as a threat and they are always confident of beating them.
“I don’t think India see Pakistan as a major threat. They might see England as a major threat. They might see Australia or New Zealand or South Africa. Pakistan will be at the bottom of that list,” Bopara said on the Beards before Wicket podcast (via Times of India).
“The rivalry will be right at the top of the list, but in terms of cricketing quality, it’s different. I’m pretty sure in India’s dressing room, the talk is something like: ‘Let’s not take them too lightly today, let’s make sure we bury them.’ “In Pakistan’s dressing room, it’s probably more like: ‘Hey, one of us has to have a day out today and we’ll win,” he added.
They don’t think they’re going to out-skill India – Ravi Bopara
Ravi Bopara further said that Pakistan are aware of the fact that they cannot outskill India and are mostly dependent on some miraculous performances to register a victory over the Men In Blue.
“They don’t think they’re going to out-skill India. They just hope that if someone like Fakhar Zaman has a big day, that might be enough. But India’s mindset is completely different,” the former player said.
The former England star also opined that there is some talent available in Pakistan and is emerging through PSL, but the discipline issue stops them from reaching new heights.
“It’s been going on for a very long time, actually. A very long time. But PSL has produced good players. I’ve watched guys like Shaheen Shah Afridi since he first came on the scene for Peshawar Zalmi, and they’ve improved a lot. The talent is there, but maybe it’s a discipline issue,” he noted.
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