Daily Times

When Pakistan embarked upon their journey to the World Cup 2019 in England and Wales in May-June, there was a little hope among critics for skipper Sarfraz Ahmed and his charges qualifying for the last four stage of the mega event. On the other hand, majority in the country was hoping for a miracle that happened in the World Cup 1992 in Australia and the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 in England and Wales. But miracles seldom happen. People in Pakistan need to get out of this miracle syndrome. We are a nation of those people who always allow their hearts to rule over their heads. Pakistan cricket is loved blindly but at the same time it is hated with a passion. Pakistan are a mercurial team that oscillates between sublime cricket and farce, and are cursed with a legendary ability to self-destruct.

To achieve something out of the ordinary there has to be discipline, professionalism and aggressive approach. Lacking in all three, Pakistan crashed out of the World Cup despite beating Bangladesh by 94 runs in their last league match. Teenage fast bowler Shaheen Afridi, who was named player of the match, shone brilliantly as he took six cheap wickets, giving up just 36 runs in the process – the best figures for a Pakistan bowler in the competition’s history.

To reach the World Cup 2019 semifinals, Pakistan needed to rewrite the record books with the biggest margin of victory in a one-day international, a Herculean task. The qualification of the Black Caps was dependent on whether Pakistan — trailing New Zealand by two points in the standings — could pull off a win of monstrous proportions against Bangladesh in their final group match at Lord’s on Friday, with Net Run Rate (NRR) to then separate the sides. Pakistan batted first, setting Bangladesh a target of 316. To then book a place in the semi-finals, Pakistan had to bowl Bangladesh out for seven or less to have their NRR climb over New Zealand’s. Bangladesh passed seven from the 11th ball of their innings, a single from Tamim Iqbal off Mohammad Amir confirming a fourth consecutive semi-final for New Zealand at the World Cup. Pakistan secured 11 points in nine games, as many as New Zealand scored, but were ousted on an inferior NRR.

Until and unless Pakistan players’ minds don’t match their skills and they don’t show consistency in their behaviour and playing tactics, they won’t be able to win big tournaments. Pakistan cricket needs to find genuine batsmen, genuine all-rounders and genuine bowlers, having consistency, and should get rid of those who have become a liability than an asset. Pakistan coaches must be taken to task for their awful job at the World Cup. And above all, Pakistan cricket needs new selectors, having no personal interests, with no strings attached. Luckily for Pakistan, there is a crop of talented youngsters who can form the nucleus of the team for years to come. Every defeat is not only an opportunity to assess things but also gives an opportunity for introspection. To achieve all this, Pakistan cricket needs professionals at the helm of affairs and not inept political appointees, ‘imported’ officials and imposed cronies

It was a disappointing conclusion to Pakistan’s campaign that had plenty of highs and lows. In the first phase, Pakistan had just one win, against hosts England, from five games with three defeats, including a loss to archrivals India, and a no-result. In the second phase, they staged a comeback by winning the next four games but still failed to qualify. No doubt, a seven-wicket defeat against the West Indies in the first game hurt Pakistan badly. At the same time one must understand is that even before the start of the World Cup, Pakistan were placed seventh in the ODI rankings and they played like one in the competition till they were able to strike a balance and show a bit of grit to elevate their sinking reputation.

But the reality is that lack of vision, along with flaws in Pakistan’s preparations, personnel, and game plan were too great to overcome in the space of a few weeks of sunshine and rain in England. Inclusion of out-of-form players and last-minute finalisation of the squad also affected the morale of the team tremendously. Pakistan never played like a well-knit unit. There were some individual performances, but overall, Pakistan’s performance was mediocre. Pakistan’s actual World Cup campaign ended when they lost to India because their NRR was below all other teams’ except Afghanistan. Later it became an uphill task for Pakistan to be among the top four teams despite inspiring wins over South Africa, New Zealand, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. And they hoped that results of other teams go their way. But this did not happen.

The skill level of Pakistan cricketers has deteriorated over the last two years. The ‘unpredictable’ tag with Pakistan has become more prominent now. Unfortunately, Pakistan has been unable to produce quality batsmen during the past five years. What is the benefit of Fakhar Zaman’s talent if he cannot give consistence performance? Veterans Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez were huge disappointments and failed to live up to their reputation.

Batsman Babar Azam was in superb form in the World Cup, having hit a century against New Zealand to go along with four 50s. But Babar’s exploits did not prove enough for his side to qualify for the semi-finals. Azam also became the leading run-scorer for Pakistan in a single World Cup edition, breaking Javed Miandad’s record of 437 runs from 1992. Miandad’s record stood the test of time for a lengthy period of 27 years before Azam owned it in style against Bangladesh. Out of form Hasan Ali’s bowling was also not in the right length and he was the most expensive bowler for Pakistan. Similarly, Wahab Riaz was also unable to bowl to his strength. Shaheen Afridi did some good bowling, particularly against Bangladesh. Barring Mohammad Amir, Pakistan’s bowlers were not able to sparkle when they needed the most. Pakistan has a fielding coach but during the World Cup it seemed as if he was not there: Pakistan recorded highest number of dropped catches with appalling fielding.

What worse was the interference of chief selector Inzamamul Haq and his uncanny presence in England, which it seemed unsettled the squad dynamic. His overbearing presence fueled speculations of growing disagreement between him, skipper Sarfraz and head coach Mickey Arthur that earned the ire of the players. The ubiquitous ex-skipper, no doubt, stumped the experts and the knowledgeable fans with his audacity to step out of his selector’s role to inspect the pitches prior to key games and render pep talks to the players. This is a sad reflection on the Pakistan Cricket Board’s current regime headed by former ICC president Ehsan Mani who has proved, beyond any shadow of doubt, to be a weak, confused and incompetent administrator who is more interested in passing on his responsibilities to a newly ‘imported’ managing director, who knows nothing about Pakistan cricket and its culture. The team’s dismal run of defeats, the ruckus over domestic cricket revamp, the nasty Board of Governors saga, the renewal of contracts of the tried and failed lot in the PCB, among other things, have shown to all and sundry that the PCB just loves to be in the lime light for all the wrong reasons. Instability in the PCB ranks in the past too had affected the players’ morale.

Sarfraz is another conundrum. He can’t handle the burden of keeping wicket, batting, and leading the team in all three formats. He was unable to lead the team from the front at the World Cup. There is a big question mark even on his performance. The PCB must look for alternatives. For failure to qualify for the World Cup semis, Pakistan have to blame themselves entirely and while the other factors were insignificant. Why expect other teams to win matches for us when our own performance is below par. Until and unless Pakistan players’ minds don’t match their skills and they don’t show consistency in their behaviour and playing tactics, they won’t be able to win big tournaments. Pakistan cricket needs to find genuine batsmen, genuine all-rounders and genuine bowlers, having consistency, and should get rid of those who have become a liability than an asset. Pakistan coaches must be taken to task for their awful job at the World Cup. And above all, Pakistan cricket needs new selectors, having no personal interests, with no strings attached. Luckily for Pakistan, there is a crop of talented youngsters who can form the nucleus of the team for years to come. Every defeat is not only an opportunity to assess things but also gives an opportunity for introspection. To achieve all this, Pakistan cricket needs professionals at the helm of affairs and not inept political appointees, ‘imported’ officials and imposed cronies. *