KARACHI:
The entire nation was excited and eager to see England and New Zealand cricket teams in action in Pakistan. After the loss in the final of the T20 World Cup, we had hoped for some respite to see Pakistan perform well against the two visiting teams after a very long break. Unfortunately, sub-par wickets and poor performance by our team, especially in fielding and batting have crushed our hopes. As if a shameful three-nil loss at the hands of England was not enough, our team does not look any better against the touring New Zealand side. The main culprits are the unreliable brittle batting line-up and poor fielding.
To make things worse, our government keeps experimenting with the structure of the cricket board creating confusion and a lack of continuity in policies. After every loss, we hear our worthy captain Babar Azam saying that we will learn from our mistakes and do better the next time. However, they seem to be doing everything but learning from their mistakes as they keep repeating their mistakes over and over again.
Thanks to the bad light, we were able to avoid a loss in the first test against New Zealand, but our position is not any better in the second test match either. Gradually, the nation’s disappointment is converting into indifference and people are no longer interested in the game. I am afraid that if our cricket does not pick up any time soon, it might face a decline similar to that of the national hockey team, which went from glory to oblivion over time. It appears that repeating the same mistakes perpetually and expecting different results every time is our national trait. Be it politics, the economy, or sports, we never correct the mistakes of the past but continue expecting success.
Raja Shafaatullah
Islamabad
Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2023.
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