Speaking to the media on Monday, Nannu said that within the subcontinent, Bangladesh-India fixtures generate more genuine contest and attention than the traditional India-Pakistan rivalry.
“It now feels like Bangladesh-India matches are livelier than India-Pakistan games. I believe people focus more on Bangladesh-India matches at the moment. We are missing that in this World Cup,” he said.
His comments came after India’s dominant win over Pakistan in Colombo on Sunday evening. Batting first on a spin-friendly surface, India posted 175 riding on Ishan Kishan’s blistering 77 off 40 balls.
Pakistan, in reply, were bowled out for just 114. The defeat marked Pakistan’s eighth loss in nine T20 World Cup meetings against India. They were also comfortably beaten by India in last year’s Asia Cup and ICC Champions Trophy, underlining the growing imbalance between the two sides across formats.
Even India captain Suryakumar Yadav had remarked during last year’s Asia Cup that the rivalry no longer holds the same competitive edge, a sentiment echoed by former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar after Sunday’s match.
Meanwhile, with Bangladesh not featuring in the ongoing T20 World Cup, the focus shifts to domestic cricket. The Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL) One-Day tournament is set to begin on February 23.
Nannu believes the competition will be crucial preparation ahead of the upcoming Pakistan series and the longer-term goal of the 2027 World Cup.
“It will definitely be effective. We haven’t played much 50-over cricket recently. If we start from here as preparation for 2027, I think we can build good momentum and see quality cricket,” he added.
