“They have won more games than your team in ICC events”, Jadeja reminds Pakistan of Afghanistan’s consistency

Ajay Jadeja reminded all why Afghanistan’s win against England is not ‘one-off’ thing anymore. In Champions Trophy special chat show, former India cricketer explained Afghanistan’s current mindset in context of winning matches and their rise in international cricket.

Jadeja takes a jibe at Pakistan

When Afghanistan knocked out England of the Champions Trophy 2025, many called it an upset. However, former Pakistan cricketer Wasim Akram did not just praise them for the all-round performance, he expected consistency from the side. Speaking of this in a chat show called Dressing Room, he said, “The way they won that game against England… Ibrahim Zadran played so well after they lost early wickets and then to defend 320 with a wet ball was commendable. The ball was literally wet because of the dew. That will give them a lot of confidence. Yeah, Australia can make it one-sided, but if Afghanistan are on song, then they can beat any team in the world,”

Former India cricketer, Ajay Jadeja who was in the same chat show did not miss a chance to remind world and Akram about Afghanistan’s consistency over the years. “They have won more games than your team, my friend, in ICC events. Anybody who thinks it’s a one-off thing is fooling themselves,” Jadeja said.

“There’s a collective hunger to do well …”

Interestingly, Afghanistan in recent times have won more matches than Pakistan in ICC events. They have won 10 matches in last three ICC events; five of them came in the last T20 World Cup. They knocked Australia out and made it to the semifinals of the coveted tournament. In 2023, during the ODI World Cup, Afghanistan won four matches out of nine but missed out on a semi-final spot.

Pakistan, on the other hand, have failed to qualify from the group stage of any of these tournaments. They managed to win just six matches across these events. This time they lost to India in the beginning of the Champions Trophy 2025. Their chance of advancing to next stage was gone with the washed out game against Bangladesh.

While speaking of the winning mindset of Afghanistan player, Akram said, “The best thing about that team is that whenever they come onto the field, they want to win, whether it’s batting or fielding. There’s a collective hunger to do well against the best teams in the world.”

On the other hand, Jadeja who worked with the Afghanistan side as a consultant during the 2023 ODI World Cup opined, “Now they believe they can get out of any situation. When you win close games then it’s all about belief. That they have shown in this tournament.”

Stay updated with all the cricketing action, follow Cricadium on WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Telegram,  and Instagram