“They have the talent. I find that the bowling unit of Pakistan is very good. If the batsmen can perform to the best of their abilities then I believe Pakistan has the chance,” Richards said.
Pakistan won the 2017 Champions Trophy after beating the host England in semi-finals and arch-rivals India in finals.
“Before they won the Champions Trophy they were inconsistent as well. It goes to show that till the time if these guys play together as a unit they can deliver. I believe all the teams who would play, especially, when you take some examples from the Champions Trophy in England, so India I think have been successful over the year. Pakistan came and showed promise and beat some of the best teams in the world. So there are a lot of teams,” the 67-year-old said.
Richards is currently in Pakistan mentoring Quetta Gladiators in Pakistan Super League's fourth season.
Pointing out other probable candidates for the World Cup Richards said, “West Indies started to show some good promise. England always have a good one-day team but I am not quite sure whether or not in England they have the capability of trying to win at home. They always have a good team but they never came to the finish line due to certain reasons.”
The prediction by the West Indian great came as a shock for everyone as Pakistan did not perform up to the mark in ODIs in recent past. The Men in Green suffered a 5-0 whitewash in New Zealand last year.
Not just that the Pakistan team has failed miserably in the Asia Cup as they were defeated twice by India and once by Bangaldesh.
Unsurprisingly Pakistan are not being even considered as favorites for the showpiece event in England by many cricket experts.
Pakistan will take on West Indies to start their 2019 World Cup campaign on May 31.
