Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra had to eat humble pie after wrongfully accusing Pakistan U19 players in the ICC U19 World Cup for deliberately slowing down in the match against Zimbabwe.
In their final
group stage match, Pakistan secured a victory over Zimbabwe, which knocked Scotland out of the tournament.
Zimbabwe U19 were bowled out for 128 in 35.5 overs, with Nathaniel Hlabangana top-scoring on 59; Pakistan's bowlers Ali Raza (3/16) and Mohammad Sayyam (2/36) starred. In the chase, Pakistan raced to 68/2 in 10.5 overs before intentionally slowing down, finishing at 132/2 with Sameer Minhas unbeaten on 74.
Why did Pakistan Slowdown?
Pakistan slowed after the 14th over to ensure the chase extended beyond 25.2 overs, knocking Scotland out of Super Six qualification on NRR and allowing Zimbabwe to advance instead. Under tournament rules, Super Six NRR carries forward only results against fellow group qualifiers; Pakistan's bigger win over Zimbabwe (vs. Scotland) boosted their NRR compared to if Scotland had qualified.
Tactical Impact
This "shrewd" strategy, defended by commentator Andy Flower, gave Pakistan a superior NRR edge over rivals like England in Super Six, while securing Zimbabwe's spot as hosts. It sparked controversy with fans alleging poor sportsmanship or match-fixing, though no rules were broken.
Aakash Chopra makes Honest Mistake
Aakash Chopra took to social media with a post accusing the Pakistan players of foul play and the spirit of the game. Although he took apart Sameer Minhas and co with a post on X, the former Indian cricketer didn't account the advantage for Pakistan, which makes them well within their right to do so.
The former India player was notified about the rule and he deleted his previous tweet and replaced it with a clarification message.
Got the Pak’s U-19 deliberately ‘slowing down’ context wrong. Only the NRR against the qualified teams go to the Super-6 stage I this U-19 WC.
- Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) January 23, 2026
Since the margin of Pak’s victory over Scotland was a lot smaller as compared to Zimbabwe, they carried forward better NRR by allowing…
"Got the Pak's U-19 deliberately 'slowing down' context wrong. Only the NRR against the qualified teams go to the Super-6 stage I this U-19 WC. Since the margin of Pak's victory over Scotland was a lot smaller as compared to Zimbabwe, they carried forward better NRR by allowing Zim to qualify instead of Scotland. Therefore, have deleted the earlier posts. Thanks for the attention to this matter," Chopra wrote on X.
