Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Amir place bets over India's place in T20 World Cup semis: 'Will quit if they don't qualify'

Former Pakistan players Mohammad Amir and Ahmed Shehzad are at loggerheads, with the duo holding diametrically opposite views on India's prospects at the T20 World Cup 2026. On Sunday, Suryakumar Yadav's India and Shai Hope's West Indies will face each other in a do-or-die clash at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, with the winner set to qualify for the semi-finals. Amir, the left-arm pacer, stuck by his previous prediction, saying India would not make it to the last four; however, Shehzad disagreed with the assessment.

Amir, who was dubbed an “astrologer” by the anchor after South Africa defeated India, stated that the West Indies are in remarkable form and they can take advantage of India's “weak bowling”, considering no one is in form apart from Jasprit Bumrah.

Both India and the West Indies lost their Super 8s Group 1 matches against South Africa, but managed to get the better of Zimbabwe. Hence, the winner-takes-all clash was set up. Amir said that if India loses against the West Indies, then Shehzad and Rashid Latif should not come for the post-match show, and only Amir will hold the fort.

“West Indies can easily beat India. The match is in Kolkata. If you look at India's bowling, aside from Bumrah, the rest isn't that great. Even Zimbabwe scored 184. West Indies went to 170 odd after being 90/7. I think the West Indies can easily beat India,” Amir said on the ‘Haarna Mana Hai’ show.

“Daren Sammy is a very good coach. He's very lucky; the West Indies will beat India. Rovman Powell will score big. If West Indies, then only I will come for the post-match show, and these two gentlemen (Latif and Shehzad) won't come,” he added.

Shehzad disagrees

The former Pakistan opening batter said that India is very strong and won't have any difficulty getting the better of the opposition, considering they are well versed in playing high-pressure games. He also said that if it is proven correct, then Amir would no longer be called an astrologer.

“I disagree with Amir here. I think India will beat the West Indies and qualify for the semi-finals. India are a very strong team, their players know how to handle pressure in the big games. Just see how they perform against Pakistan every time. India were able to score 250 in a must-win match against Zimbabwe, I strongly feel India will play the final,” said Amir.

“If India qualifies, then we will snatch the tag of astrologer from Amir. If India doesn't qualify, then I will quit this show,” he added.

Former Pakistan captain Latif was also on the same boat as Shehzad, saying India will beat the West Indies in Kolkata and set up a potential semi-final against England at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.

It is worth mentioning that Amir has been giving statements against India right from the beginning of the World Cup, and it all started with him labelling Abhishek as a “slogger”, and he then predicted that India won't make it to the semi-finals as South Africa and the West Indies will qualify for the semi-finals from Group 1.

Speaking of the West Indies, the team from the Caribbean are yet to lose a match in Kolkata, and the side even defeated India in the last T20 World Cup encounter, which happened to be the semi-final of the 2016 edition.

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