PHOTO: AFP
Gone are the days when Pakistan-India encounters went down to the wire. Gone are the days when the two sides fought tooth and nail for a win. Gone are the days when two behemoths collided and the sparks brought the entire world to a standstill.
Pakistan lost on Sunday. Humans grow in the face of losses. They forget and they forgive. But fans of Pakistan cricket are destined to perennial discontent. Not because they have unjustified expectations of something extravagant whenever the team walks out onto the pitch, but because they expect.
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Expectations hurt. And fans of Pakistan cricket have come to realise that expecting this group of ‘elite athletes’ to even get the basics right can be painful business. Failure, like defeat, is forgivable; but a refusal to learn from that failure is not.
When you realise it's just not your day... 😞 pic.twitter.com/GSB0pmneaO
— ICC (@ICC) June 5, 2017
The people of this country love cricket. How can they not? They don’t have anything else to make them feel better about their lives, in a country where basic human necessities such water and food have become luxuries. People in Pakistan eat, breathe and sleep cricket — often it is the only thing they have to look forward to. Take that away from them and they lose more than just a sport.
Pakistan on Sunday took that away from them. Some might even say that they did not even play cricket against India in Birmingham, let alone good cricket. It was something else; a selfish show of incompetence maybe, or perhaps a demonstration of a divided whole.
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As always, there were still moments to cherish — Mohammad Amir’s first over to Rohit Sharma, 18-year-old Shadab Khan’s economical bowling, Shoaib Malik’s cameo — but they were all too little and too far in between. Yesterday, perhaps for the first time, it became painfully obvious that Pakistan are the worst side in this year’s tournament.
Superb power hitting in the final overs of the innings from Yuvraj Singh 💪 #INDvPAK #CT17 pic.twitter.com/qtk6tW23Am
— ICC (@ICC) June 4, 2017
The scary thing is, India did not play to their full potential; they dropped catches, they were sloppy in the field, they didn’t even bat that well for most of their innings, but they were still miles ahead of Pakistan.
Not only in terms of quality but in terms of planning too; they knew Pakistan played spinners better so they played four pacers — dropping one of the world’s finest bowlers in Ravichandran Ashwin. They knew they had the firepower down the order, so they took their time early on.
But it wasn't just Pakistan who had their woes in the field! 😱 #INDvPAK #CT17 pic.twitter.com/0iPOUea1BR
— ICC (@ICC) June 4, 2017
Kohli in awe of Yuvraj's performance against Pakistan
Meanwhile, in the Pakistan camp, Sarfraz Ahmed must have been pondering what excuses he could give the media for the inclusion of Wahab Riaz over Junaid Khan.
Wahab was chosen because he was more experienced. Nearly 200 million people in Pakistan know Wahab is not fit for purpose when the going gets tough. That 200 million does not include anyone from the Pakistan think tank.
With the bat in hand, it went from bad to worse. Malik was the only man who seemed to have a plan and an approach that was based on the need of the hour but what can one man do in the face of such madness?
After electing to bowl, it was a tough day for Pakistan which was left counting the cost of some mistakes in the field 😬 #INDvPAK #CT17 pic.twitter.com/odQ77VvR9V
— ICC (@ICC) June 4, 2017
Pakistan lost yesterday, and they have lost many times before. The nation has always forgiven, even if it has not forgotten, but that should not be the case this time around.
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It was not the defeat that was unforgivable, but the meek surrender that led to that defeat. It was not the gulf in class that was unforgivable, but the gulf in planning.
They are slowly taking cricket away from Pakistan, and by doing so they are depriving a troubled nation of more than just a game.
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