T20 WC 2021: Former India selector Saba Karim picks his semifinalists of the tournament

The second leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to commence on September 19. However, all the international teams and players also have one eye on the much bigger picture, the T20 World Cup. The tournament is happening after a long gap of five years and the excitement around it is already huge. Several cricket experts and former cricketers have picked their semi-finalists and Saba Karim has also joined the bandwagon now.

According to him, West Indies, the defending champions, are the biggest contenders to make it to the top four yet again. The Caribbean side won the World Cup for the second time in 2016 and even though they are ranked ninth in T20Is, the Kieron Pollard-led side pose a threat to all the sides. Their stars are back just in time for the mega event and have the ability to go all the way.

Saba Karim, while speaking to Sports Tak, also felt India and England could be the other semi-finalists. Both the sides are looking strong on paper. While England were the finalists in 2016 and would be looking to build on the 2019 World Cup win, India bowed out of the semi-finals after losing to West Indies in the previous WC edition. They will be keen on winning the tournament which is also Virat Kohli‘s last assignment as the T20I skipper.

Saba Karim feels South Africa or New Zealand could be 4th semi-finalists

Saba Karim highlighted South Africa’s recent performances in T20Is and felt that they can also make it to the semi-finals. However, he also reckons that New Zealand have a good chance of making the cut. Going by Saba’s picks, only two teams out of South Africa, England and West Indies can qualify for semi-finals as they all are pitted in the same group along with Australia and two other qualifying teams.

As far as the other group is concerned, India and New Zealand will face the challenge from Pakistan and Afghanistan alongside the two teams qualifying from round 1 of the World Cup.