'India is like a rich kid calling poor kids to play': Shoaib Akhtar on T20 World Cup 2026

Following India’s 96-run triumph in the T20 World Cup 2026 final, former Pakistan bowler Shoaib Akhtar compared the Indian team to a “wealthy brat” who dominates the game.

While the Indian dressing room was awash in celebration following their dominant victory over New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium, the “Rawalpindi Express” was busy making waves online with a humorous yet scathing allegory. During a conversation on the popular chat show Game On Hai, Shoaib Akhtar compared the current Indian team to the stereotypical “wealthy kid” in the neighborhood who controls the game simply because he owns the bat and ball.

Akhtar made these comments while on a panel with legends Sana Mir and Saqlain Mushtaq to discuss India’s clinical performance in Ahmedabad. “India has become like that rich kid in the neighborhood,” Akhtar joked. “He invites all the ‘poor kids’ from the locality to come and play cricket, but he has already decided that only he is allowed to win. India is doing the same to us. They beat everyone and then say, ‘Lo, main jeet gaya‘ (Look, I’ve won again).”

🚨 MELTDOWN OF SHOAIB AKHTAR AFTER INDIA WIN 🚨

Shoaib Akhtar – “India tried this, there’s no such rich kid in the neighborhood, yet he calls all the poor kids, “Come play cricket, only I win.” India is doing the same to us”

Whats your take 😅 #INDvsNZ pic.twitter.com/QItC4zVfu8

— Fan Account Richard Kettlebourogh (@RichKettle07) March 8, 2026

While the panel erupted in laughter, Shoaib Akhtar soon shifted from humor to praising India’s structural control. He attributed India’s third T20 World Cup title to a robust domestic system and the audacious leadership of head coach Gautam Gambhir.

According to Akhtar, Gambhir took a significant but successful risk by making Sanju Samson a pillar of the starting XI. “Samson is very mature now. He showed why merit matters,” Akhtar remarked, highlighting Samson’s unprecedented run of half-centuries in the knockout stages. This feat made Samson only the second Indian batter, after Virat Kohli, to register fifties in both the semi-final and the final of the same T20 World Cup.

Akhtar also praised Abhishek Sharma, who scored the tournament’s fastest fifty in the final. Although he referred to the young opener as “young and brash,” he acknowledged that the rest of the cricketing world finds it “ominous” that India can produce talent like Abhishek while moving on from icons like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

Finally, the former pacer admitted that the BCCI has successfully utilized its financial resources to stabilize the sport. “It is a testament to their policies and merit. In many places, money isn’t utilized properly, but India ensures the right players get the opportunities,” he concluded.