Now or never for Pakistan in ODIs

Burden is on top-order who need to expand their games else it will become tougher for former world champions

White ball formats — T20s and ODIs — once considered strength of Pakistan cricket have off-late become increasingly complex equations as the Men in Green continue to grapple with the ever-changing rules and regulations especially in ODIs.

Languishing at the absolute pits of International Cricket Council’s (ICC) ODI rankings — number nine — Pakistan enter the five-match series against England with their qualification for World Cup 2019 hanging by the thread.

The English team in their home conditions have been the most obstinate opponent for Pakistan who have beaten every team in a bilateral ODI series on their home soil but haven’t taken the spoils in England since the inaugural two-match series played in 1974 with a 2-0 win.

In 36 games, Pakistan have won 13 only as opposed to 22 defeats and with the current setup still mired in a by-gone era of ODI cricket, Azhar Ali and his charges start the series rooted on the back foot.

Imad Wasim took five-for against Ireland in first ODI. PHOTO: AFP

England have gone from strength to strength since Alastair Cook was left out of the plans on the eve of last year’s World Cup. The tournament was a disaster but Eoin Morgan, who replaced captain Cook, went on to overhaul his team’s approach to the 50 overs game with England burying their ancient ‘safety-first’ approach and replacing it with the all-guns-blazing-from-the-get-go mantra.

Morgan led the team to a series win over World Cup finalists New Zealand, a 2-3 defeat to World Champions Australia before a 3-1 win over Azhar’s men in the UAE last year.

Against New Zealand at the supposed ‘seam and swing friendly’ home conditions, England pummelled totals of 408 and 365 before chasing down 349 in only 44 overs.

Good luck team Pak... hopefully we get to see another match like the one against Ireland... @TheRealPCB @ICC #BleedGreen #PakvEng

— Junaid khan (@JunaidkhanREAL) August 24, 2016

In the last match of the Pakistan series, Jos Butler bludgeoned 116 off 52 balls as the visitors amassed 355 batting first. Sri Lankans were at the receiving end earlier this season when openers Jason Roy and Alex Hales hunted down 255 in 34.1 overs courtesy an unbroken opening partnership.

While England have overhauled, Pakistan are plagued by lack of firepower especially in the batting department. Misbahul Haq was replaced by Azhar after the World Cup; his elevation to captaincy was a hugely contentious call considering the fact that he wasn’t even part of the ODI make-up.

Persuaded by the then coach Waqar Younis, the PCB hierarchy hand-picked Azhar to take the team forward. Waqar implored a change in style, in many one-to-one conversations he openly expressed his desire to see his batsmen play shots and alleviate themselves of the fear of failure.

Series wins over Zimbabwe — home and away — and Sri Lanka gave an illusion of a revival with Pakistan succeeding in qualifying for next year’s Champions Trophy by the skin of their teeth.

England and the 2-0 defeat to New Zealand earlier were the kind of reality checks that gave some serious perspective and kick in the teeth to the perceived resurgence.

The equation isn’t complicated any more: Pakistan must start winning ODI games immediately and after walking all over a below part Ireland, Azhar’s side have to blank England 5-0 to improve their chances of qualifying directly for the 2019 World Cup.

If the bleeding doesn’t stop Pakistan would be faced with the embarrassment of playing  World Cup qualifiers and the two finalists from the qualifiers will join the first eight teams in the ICC rankings at the end of Champions Trophy. This means that a slip-up will send the Asians packing even before the commencement of the actual tournament.

To turn the tables, Pakistan need to reform their batting; other than the swashbuckling Sharjeel Khan who caned the Irish with his maiden century, the rest generally score well under the run-a-ball mark.

Sharjeel scored 152 against Ireland in the first ODI. PHOTO: AFP

The quartet of Azhar, Hafeez, Babar Azam and Shoaib Malik can’t be expected to bash a 70 ball 100; quite frankly the batting order shouldn’t be sending chills down the spines of leading attacks around the world.

Even the lower-order which was a long-standing strength of Pakistan looks short of players possessing power-hitting ability. Sarfraz Ahmed and Imad Wasim like their top-order teammates aren’t known for consistently clearing the ropes.

Pakistan desperately need to play out of their skins and shed their ancient batting mantra if they are to given England a run for their money.

Better strike rates, sharp running between the wickets and methodical rather than reckless shot making is the way forward. Whether Pakistan are ready to embrace modern ODI cricket or are content with their largely substandard approach should be apparent soon.

The burden is most certainly on the top-order; Hafeez, Azhar, Babar and Malik need to expand their games else the equation is going to become substantially tougher and soon improbable for the former world champions.