'I'm getting messages and calls saying India fixed the match,' Shoaib Akhtar slammed the conspiracy theories

Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar slammed those who are claiming that India planned to underperform in their Asia Cup Super 4 match against Pakistan. He said he received messages and calls that claimed "India have fixed the game" and will "lose deliberately (vs Sri Lanka) to eliminate Pakistan from the Asia Cup".

India defeated Pakistan by 228 runs. Pakistan needed India to beat Sri Lanka in their next Super 4 match to have a better chance of qualifying for the final. But India won the match after struggling with the bat.

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20-year-old Dunith Wellalage, the left-arm spinner gave a major scare to India by dismissing Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, and Hardik Pandya. He picked up his maiden five-wicket haul to bowl India out for 213. India made a strong comeback with the ball as Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj got three Sri Lankan wickets inside the powerplay before Kuldeep Yadav trapped Sri Lanma's middle-order.

Wellalage stood in front of India again, this time with the bat in hand. The left-hander smashed an unbeaten 42 off 46 balls and looked like taking the game away from the Men in Blues. Kuldeep, Hardik, and Ravindra Jadeja got crucial breakthroughs at the other end to bowl Sri Lanka out for 172 and won the match by 41 runs.

Shoaib Akhtar slammed the Social Media theories and people behind it

Shoaib Akhtar praised the efforts of Wellalage and said the allegations and theories are pointless. Wellalage's effort had nothing to do with India's struggle. "I don't know what you guys are doing. I am getting memes and messages saying 'India have fixed the game'. They are losing deliberately in order to eliminate Pakistan. Are you alright? They (Sri Lanka) are bowling their heart out. Wellalalge and Asalanka bowled their heart out. Did you see that 20-year-old kid? He scored 43 runs and took 5 wickets. I am getting phone calls from India and other countries, saying India were losing deliberately."

"Why would they lose, tell me? They want to go through to the final. You end up making memes without any reason. It was a great fightback from India. The way Kuldeep played, it was massive. Look at Jasprit Bumrah, look at the fight while defending a small total," Akhtar added.

India is the only team to win both their Super 4 matches. Bangladesh are already out of contention after losing two. Pakistan and Sri Lanka will now play a knockout match in Colombo on Friday. The winner will go on to play the final against India but if rain spoilsport then Sri Lanka have the upper hand thanks to their higher net run rate.