Did Inzamam accuse India of ball-tampering in T20 World Cup 2024?

Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq raised concerns over Arshdeep Singh's ability to reverse swing the ball as early as the 15th over in India's win over Australia in their final Super 8 Group 1 fixture.

While speaking on a local talk show, he suggested that the umpires should be vigilant about such occurrences.

“Arshdeep Singh when he was bowling the 15th over, the ball was reversing. is it too early (for reverse swing) with the new ball? This means the ball was ready for reverse swing by the 12th or the 13th over, Umpires should keep their eyes open (to spot) these things,” Inzamam said.

Inzamam’s former teammate Salim Malik, who was the first player to be banned – from all cricket – for match-fixing, when Justice Qayyum’s inquiry found him guilty in 2000, also echoed similar thoughts.

“Inzy, I always say this, eyes are kept shut when it comes to some teams, and India is one of those teams. I remember in Zimbabwe, when Wasim (Akram) was bowling, he made it wet, and we all were surprised at it; as in how come one side was wet, and when I went and complained I was fined quite heavily,” Malik said.

Inzamam further commented that if Pakistani bowlers had reversed the ball this early, it would have caused an uproar.

“If it was Pakistani bowlers (reverse swinging the ball) this would have been a big issue (shor mach jaata). We know reverse swing very well and if Arshdeep can come in the 15th over and start reversing the ball, it means some serious work had been done before.

“Because for reverse swing … look Bumrah can do it, because of his action; but for some bowlers – their action and their speed, the ball has to be in that perfection condition and prepared well (to reverse). It could be that the wicket was hard and rough, that could be the reason (for the ball getting scruffed up on one side), but these things have to be noticed”.