Former India cricketer-turned-commentator Navjot Singh Sidhu tore into former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir for his predictions during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. Amir had predicted that India won't reach the semifinals, they did. Amir said that England will beat India, they couldn't. After India's seven-run win in a high-scoring semifinal at Wankhede Stadium, Sidhu called Amir a 'dhongi baba' for his comments that have gone viral on social media.
“People around us have a big habit of making fake predictions. If it comes true, good; if not, they just brush it off. If it works, they call it an arrow; if not, they say it was just a guess. And still they continue to act like some kind of wise baba,” Sidhu said in a video he posted on Instagram.
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“Honestly, I think such people are just fake babas. First they said India wouldn’t even qualify, wouldn’t reach the semifinals. They claimed West Indies and South Africa would go ahead. But the moment Sanju Samson made his comeback, both those teams were sent packing. And today they said England would win the semifinal, and England also got knocked out.
“So my point is, predictions don’t decide these things. Matches are decided on the battlefield. You don’t earn a throne by begging for it. Empty vessels make the most noise. That’s the whole point.”
Amir not ready to accept his mistake
Jacob Bethell scored a record-breaking century but Jasprit Bumrah’s accurate bowling turned the tide in India’s favour. After India beat England, Amir did not change his tune. Rather, he blamed Harry Brook for the dropped catch of an in-form Sanju Samson. He felt that England would’ve chased down the target with an over to spare had Brook taken Samson’s catch in the powerplay overs.
“I talk about cricket. India played very good and complete cricket in this match after the entire tournament. We have to give credit where it is due. I did make a good prediction, but dropping a catch, that’s not in my hands. If you drop the catch of an in-form batter, this is what happens,” Amir said on Geo News’ Hasna mana hai.
“The only difference between the two teams was Bumrah. If Harry Brook would have taken the catch of Samson, this target would have been chased down by England with an over to spare,” he added.
Amir has been proved wrong by his fellow panellist and former teammate Ahmed Shehzad as well. The out-of-favour Pakistani batter had predicted that India will beat England and reach the final against New Zealand at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.