'Let them breathe': Yousuf hails Amir after India's heavy defeat against South Africa

KARACHI: Pakistan's legendary batter Mohammad Yousuf showered praise on former pacer Mohammad Amir for his recent analysis following India's 76-run defeat at the hands of South Africa in their first Super Eights match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

Amir, who represented Pakistan in 36 Tests, 61 ODIs and 62 T20Is, has been in the headlines for calling India's left-handed opener Abhishek Sharma "just a slogger" during Geo News' programme, Haarna Mana Hai, earlier this month.

"From what I have seen of him so far, in my opinion — if I'm being completely honest — he looks like a slogger to me. He just tries to hit every ball. If it connects, it connects. But most of the time, the chances of failure are higher," Amir said.

Amir's remarks regarding the top-ranked T20I batter grew in weight after Sharma bagged two more ducks against Pakistan and Netherlands, respectively.

After three ducks in as many games, the 25-year-old eventually struck his first T20 World Cup 2026 runs in the recently concluded fixture against South Africa with a scratchy 15 off 12 deliveries.

Following his pinching analysis regarding Abhishek, Amir also ruled out India in qualifying for the semi-finals from Group 1 due to their inconsistent batting and instead placed his trust in South Africa and West Indies.

"South Africa and West Indies," Amir had said when asked which teams would advance further from Group 1 of the Super Eights.

"Look at all their matches except the Pakistan game — their batting collapses," he remarked while referring to India's performances.

Although the 76-run defeat against South Africa did not rule India out of the semi-final contention, it inflicted a massive blow to their campaign, reducing their net run rate to a negative 3.8.

Consequently, India would need to register dominant victories in their remaining Super Eights matches against Zimbabwe and West Indies to advance into the knockout stage.

Meanwhile, former Pakistan captain Yousuf praised Amir for his recent analysis regarding the defending champions in a cheeky way, highlighting the pacer's dominant record against the side, before urging him to "let them breathe".

"Oye [Mohammad Amir], you menace! You tormented [India] on the field, and now you're rattling them from the studio. Let them breathe, they're already under fire," Yousuf wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Yousuf also showered praise on South Africa, labelling them as a "formidable" side.

"South Africa, the finalists, have picked up right where they left off last [T20 World Cup]. A formidable side! Top order stumbled, but the lower order delivered, and the bowling discipline was exceptional."