Before the 2023 ODI World Cup opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the 10 captains sat in the GCA Club House for a pre-World Cup press conference.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri, one of the two moderators, asked Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi how bowling was his team’s strength. It sounded like a rhetorical question, but Shahidi’s response indicated a different nucleus. “In this World Cup, our batting will also make a strong statement,” Shahidi said.
Sitting to his right was Pakistan skipper Babar Azam, who turned and nodded his head in agreement.