Points to ponder for Team Pakistan

It will need more than just ‘jazba and junoon’ for Pakistan to achieve success in the 2011 World Cup. It will require a unity of purpose from each of the Pakistani players and positive support from the entire nation. So what do I mean by the phrase “unity of purpose”?

It’s a combination of self-belief, courage, passion, skill and sacrifice in the face of a great challenge. Like hope and endurance, unity also remains latent inside of us, waiting to be rekindled by a spark. In today’s game against Kenya, Shahid Afridi should remind his team of the unlikely and inspiring lessons of unity from the years gone past.

For example, in 1992 after a disastrous start to the World Cup, most of the cricketing world had predicted Pakistan would be wiped out even before the semi-finals. Yet Imran Khan’s largely inexperienced side found their unity of purpose as they came back from the dead to beat England in an historic final in Melbourne. Crucially, the captain and the team did not allow fear of failure to paralyse them.

Another example is from when I was a boy and my father told me the famous story about AH Kardar’s ‘no hope’ side which ‘Fazal-ed’ and shocked England at the Oval in 1954 during Pakistan’s first-ever official Test tour. Again, despite the cynics and sceptics, Pakistan pulled another historic upset against the country which invented cricket. A more recent example of the power of unity is when Younus Khan’s 2009 team lifted the T20 World Cup at Lord’s against Sri Lanka.

All of Pakistan’s greatest victories have come when their backs have been against the wall. That is, when they play like ‘cornered tigers’. And this brings me to the build-up of the 2011 World Cup. No Pakistani team has ever faced the scale of hardships that Shahid Afridi’s team has. Since the disappointing 2007 World Cup, the players and fans have been on a rollercoaster ride — without any seatbelts. Bad law and order situation, the spot-fixing scandal and natural disasters have all occurred during this time. The Pakistan team is no longer able to play matches at home and with the security concerns still an issue, most nations would consider a sporting event in their own neighbourhood to be of secondary importance to their peace of minds. Not Pakistan.

That’s because cricket runs in the blood, swims in the soul and dances in the dreams of close to 175 million Pakistanis. Three-fifths of these cricket Junoonis are under the age of 25. Many of the younger players like Ahmed Shehzad, Asad Shafiq and Umar Akmal, represent the potential of Pakistani youth. They have grown up in a Pakistan that is radically different from the past — one that is tough and street-fighter-like — and they partake of that ethos.

Here are some points to ponder for the team and its fans: a) Not playing at home can be a blessing in disguise as it will shield Pakistan from the unrealistic expectations and noise of the media, fans, friends and families. b) They should memorise Iqbal’s couplet: “Baad-e-mukhalif say na ghabra, Aye uqaab, yeh tau chalti hai tairey oonchee uraan kay liye” and Ghalib’s “mushkilain mujh par pari itni kay aasan ho gain”. c) Pakistan’s unpredictably is its strong point since that makes it difficult for other teams to figure out our game plan. d) The best Pakistani cricket performance is usually akin to a great qawwali concert: Completely improvised and achieving a state of ‘fana’. e) The worst performance is like that of a punk band which plays out of tune, out of rhythm, loud and self destructive. My advice to the team would be to listen to lots of qawwali music and focus on the ball.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 23^rd, 2011.