Asia Cup exit

Pakistan's latest failure in the Women's T20 Asia Cup should concern more than those following the women's game. Defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka in the semi-final, after Pakistan had reduced the opposition to 33 for four, was another indication of a cricket system struggling to turn talent into sustained performance. Sri Lanka took only 19 overs to chase 131. Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana had done almost everything she could, scoring 47 and taking four wickets, yet her side still could not snatch away a win.

Sri Lanka have now eliminated Pakistan in three successive Asia Cup semi-finals. Pakistan's women have shown flashes of ability, but too often their cricket remains dependent on individual performances rather than the collective discipline required to win important matches. A total of 130 was always going to leave little room for error, but losing four wickets while defending it after making such a promising start points to weaknesses in batting depth and fielding. More troublingly, the team continues to struggle to sustain pressure once the opposition begins to recover, suggesting shortcomings in game awareness and the ability to adapt when momentum shifts. With the men's team following an uncomfortable parallel in England, the PCB must sit down at the drawing board and take a hard look at where Pakistan cricket is headed.

The time has come for a serious review of Pakistan cricket across both the men's and women's teams. The purpose should not be to find the next person to blame. It should be to establish why a country with such a deep cricketing culture continues to struggle to produce teams capable of performing consistently at the highest level. That conversation is overdue.