It has been a great comedown for the cricket lovers of Pakistan. The team they love and adore has betrayed them again and again. First, there was the humiliation of the Asia Cup in Bangladesh at the hands of the home team. The enthusiastic fans then expected the team to make amends in the World T20 Cup in India. But that was not to be.
A decisive defeat by India was followed by a mauling at the hands of New Zealand. The last hope was that our cricketers would go all out to recover ground in the do-or-die match against Australia. But the miracle did not happen. The Australians, a professional side, proved too good for the Pakistanis. They put up a splendid display with the bat and then followed up with a scintillating show with the ball, scoring a 21-run victory against a bewildered and out-of-form Pakistani team.
Three defeats in a row threw the former champions out of the World T20, a huge disappointment for a side that was expected to do a repeat of their 2009 title-winning feat in England. It was a humiliating early exit from the iconic tournament. Defeat does not cause rancor if you lose by playing well. But this was not the case with Pakistan. The team failed in every department of the game. Their batting was lousy and bowling worse. As for fielding, the less said the better. More than anything else, it was fielding that cost them the match against Australia. There was no game plan and no team work.
It was not defeat per se that infuriated the eager crowd back home, but the manner in which the team lost. The World T20 tournament thoroughly exposed the weaknesses and shortcomings of the Pakistan team. Pakistani players played like a bunch of novices. So inept and so devoid of the spirit of fight they were, that they looked like neophytes compared to the hardy professionals of other teams. Flashes of individual brilliance notwithstanding, Pakistani players showed an utter lack of professionalim, determination and team spirit.
Above all, the tournament underlined the limitations of Shahid Afridi’s leadership. Performing poorly both with the bat and the ball, he miserably failed to lead by example and inspire his team. As a captain, he was just out of his depth and failed to develop an overall strategy to deal with the changing fortunes of the game. The result was that the team looked like a disparate lot, with each player concentrating on his individual game. Ultimately, Shahid Afridi broke under pressure and admitted that he was not cut out for the challenging task of captaincy.
All through the tournament, Pakistan never looked like a front-line cricketing nation. There were mistakes galore. The team was packed with fast bowlers and went into crucial matches without a specialist spinner. Many players were not in their top physical form, while others showed that they needed training and practice. Field placements were poor, batting order was sloppy and bowlers were not used to their best potential.
Clearly, there is something drastically wrong with Pakistan cricket that needs to be corrected. No wonder, a number of former Pakistani cricketing greats have called for an overhaul of the national team and the country’s domestic structure. Wasim Akram has said that the Pakistan team is miles behind their competitors and for this “I blame our system, which is extremely faulty.” Targetting Shahid Afridi, Javed Miandad told a news channel: “The man who is unpredictable and no one knows how he will perform is playing as a team captain.” In the opinion of former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, very few members of the Pakistan team are “technically sound”.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has formed an inquiry committee to look into the World T20 Cup debacle. In all probability, the axe will fall on Shahid Afridi and coach Waqar Yunis. The senior national selection committee led by Haroon Rasheed will also be shown the door, while the junior committee headed by Basit Ali will be dissolved as well.
According to the latest reports, the Pakistan Cricket Board is preparing for a major shake-up in the team management and the senior and junior selection committees. But will this end the crisis? Pakistan cricket is at a crossroads today and nothing less than a total shake-up of the entire domestic cricket structure and, beyond that, the higher management - the Cricket Board - will produce any tangible results. As Imran Khan has pointed out, the ailments of the national team have shown the PCB in the worst possible light, especially the lack of unified vision among senior members of the PCB.
The truth is that over the last few years the game of cricket has been politicized, and the management has fallen into non-professional hands. The appointments in the PCB are not made on merit but on political grounds. The rebarbative Shaheryar Khan-Sethi duo best exemplifies the situation. Until we hand over PCB to professionals of high merit like Javed Miandad and Zaheer Abbas, the crisis in Pakistan cricket will continue to deepen.
A decisive defeat by India was followed by a mauling at the hands of New Zealand. The last hope was that our cricketers would go all out to recover ground in the do-or-die match against Australia. But the miracle did not happen. The Australians, a professional side, proved too good for the Pakistanis. They put up a splendid display with the bat and then followed up with a scintillating show with the ball, scoring a 21-run victory against a bewildered and out-of-form Pakistani team.
Three defeats in a row threw the former champions out of the World T20, a huge disappointment for a side that was expected to do a repeat of their 2009 title-winning feat in England. It was a humiliating early exit from the iconic tournament. Defeat does not cause rancor if you lose by playing well. But this was not the case with Pakistan. The team failed in every department of the game. Their batting was lousy and bowling worse. As for fielding, the less said the better. More than anything else, it was fielding that cost them the match against Australia. There was no game plan and no team work.
It was not defeat per se that infuriated the eager crowd back home, but the manner in which the team lost. The World T20 tournament thoroughly exposed the weaknesses and shortcomings of the Pakistan team. Pakistani players played like a bunch of novices. So inept and so devoid of the spirit of fight they were, that they looked like neophytes compared to the hardy professionals of other teams. Flashes of individual brilliance notwithstanding, Pakistani players showed an utter lack of professionalim, determination and team spirit.
Above all, the tournament underlined the limitations of Shahid Afridi’s leadership. Performing poorly both with the bat and the ball, he miserably failed to lead by example and inspire his team. As a captain, he was just out of his depth and failed to develop an overall strategy to deal with the changing fortunes of the game. The result was that the team looked like a disparate lot, with each player concentrating on his individual game. Ultimately, Shahid Afridi broke under pressure and admitted that he was not cut out for the challenging task of captaincy.
All through the tournament, Pakistan never looked like a front-line cricketing nation. There were mistakes galore. The team was packed with fast bowlers and went into crucial matches without a specialist spinner. Many players were not in their top physical form, while others showed that they needed training and practice. Field placements were poor, batting order was sloppy and bowlers were not used to their best potential.
Clearly, there is something drastically wrong with Pakistan cricket that needs to be corrected. No wonder, a number of former Pakistani cricketing greats have called for an overhaul of the national team and the country’s domestic structure. Wasim Akram has said that the Pakistan team is miles behind their competitors and for this “I blame our system, which is extremely faulty.” Targetting Shahid Afridi, Javed Miandad told a news channel: “The man who is unpredictable and no one knows how he will perform is playing as a team captain.” In the opinion of former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, very few members of the Pakistan team are “technically sound”.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has formed an inquiry committee to look into the World T20 Cup debacle. In all probability, the axe will fall on Shahid Afridi and coach Waqar Yunis. The senior national selection committee led by Haroon Rasheed will also be shown the door, while the junior committee headed by Basit Ali will be dissolved as well.
According to the latest reports, the Pakistan Cricket Board is preparing for a major shake-up in the team management and the senior and junior selection committees. But will this end the crisis? Pakistan cricket is at a crossroads today and nothing less than a total shake-up of the entire domestic cricket structure and, beyond that, the higher management - the Cricket Board - will produce any tangible results. As Imran Khan has pointed out, the ailments of the national team have shown the PCB in the worst possible light, especially the lack of unified vision among senior members of the PCB.
The truth is that over the last few years the game of cricket has been politicized, and the management has fallen into non-professional hands. The appointments in the PCB are not made on merit but on political grounds. The rebarbative Shaheryar Khan-Sethi duo best exemplifies the situation. Until we hand over PCB to professionals of high merit like Javed Miandad and Zaheer Abbas, the crisis in Pakistan cricket will continue to deepen.
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