New players inducted into the national side have miserably failed and frustrated the expectations of the spectators.
ISLAMABAD: Our cricket team has been comprehensively defeated in the second Test match against Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankans outclassed our team in every department of the game. The new players inducted into the national side have miserably failed and frustrated the expectations of the spectators in the stadium and viewers at home. The efforts of veterans like Younus Khan and Misbahul Haq couldn’t produce a victory due to the irresponsible and lethargic attitude of the youngsters. Younus also offered a lazy and unnecessary shot to a rising ball that was wide of the off stump. The players have refused to learn the lessons from their past mistakes and continue to commit the same blunders, while still hoping to get a positive result. At times, the players looked towards the clouds, hoping for the rain to intervene and rescue them. In previous matches, when our batsmen failed, the bowlers performed admirably well. But in this match, the bowlers also matched the performance of the batsmen.
In the first Test of the previous series that we played against South Africa, the latter could only give Pakistan a target of 40-odd runs. Even then, the South Africans defended this lowest of targets valiantly, giving a tough time to our team and sent back our top order to the pavilion before we were able to win the match. Compared with that performance of South Africa, our players did not look like a team but a group of street boys with no drive, determination and will to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. I hope the team wakes up from its slumber and performs well in third and final Test to avert a series loss.
Raja Shafatullah
Published in The Express Tribune, January 14th, 2014.
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