Pakistan got it totally wrong’ vs India in 2019 ICC WC, says ex-captain Waqar Younis

India thrashed Pakistan by 89 runs in the group stage match of 2019 ICC World Cup at Old Trafford, Manchester.

The Men in Blue maintain an envious record 7-0 against the neighbours in ICC World Cup, a statistic that is often used by Indian fans to showcase their team’s dominance.

"I think Pakistan got it totally wrong against India in 2019 starting right from the toss. I think they were hoping that the pitch will do a lot more and they will get early wickets which will put India under pressure," Waqar said on 'Q20', a chat show presented by 'GloFans'.

Waqar, who has been part of India-Pakistan World Cup high-profile clashes on four occasions, said Pakistan did not know how to handle the duo of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, who gave a brilliant start.

"...they did not really let the bowlers settle. And, the pitch did not really do much and once they get going it was very difficult to stop them. They piled up so many runs to which Pakistan had no answers at all," he said.

"So, I think it was a silly mistake when, to begin with, winning the toss and asking India to bat because batting first on that pitch was the way to go and it did not really help Pakistan that day and India was too good, way too good," he added.

While there have been a lot of brilliant individual performances every time India and Pakistan have locked horns in the World Cup, it was Sachin Tendulkar's innings back in 2003, which is widely regarded as one of the best performances.

Chasing a steep target of 274, Sachin clobbered the famed Pakistani bowling attack all across the park eventually falling two runs short of a century.

However, his epic show helped India earn a comfortable six-wicket victory.

Answering to Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary, Sachin Tendulkar’s biggest fan, on that particular innings, Waqar said, ''Tendulkar’s innings against Pakistan in 2003 is hard to be described in words because he played so well and especially because India was under pressure on that day and we were good at bowling.''

''So that innings! Probably even if you would ask Sachin about this he might also say the same thing, that it was probably one of his best innings. The way he faced Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim and me under pressure and the way he attacked and got early runs, I think it was amazing innings, one of the best innings I’ve seen,'' he added.

Speaking about what makes Tendulkar stand apart from others, Waqar said, ''Sachin is not only a great player, but a great human being also. I mean, keeping aside his Test records and One Day records, as a human being and because of his qualities, people of all ages like him.''

''He is a very humble man and everyone has seen his achievements and has seen him performing on the field. Overall, full marks to him for the way he has handled his career,'' he added.