Pakistan: The real reason for lost?
Well, the way they came certainly didn’t define the way they went out of the tournament. For the Pakistani team to give a fight like that to the Australian powerhouse after their controversial entrance into semi-finals, it was a moment worth capturing on television. This performance is bound to make history, even for the critics of Pakistan cricket.
After the brilliant start made by the Pakistani team, thanks to the top order; Salman Butt, Kamran Akmal and Umar Akmal, it was their turn to bowl. Now it wasn’t that they didn’t bowl well, they indeed did, apart for a couple of overs in the death stages of the match. But, what was the reason that stumped Pakistan after their superb performance?
To start with, the match looked like a moral: from the trip made earlier by Pakistan to Australia. There too, the Pakistani team was dominating in the beginning but in the end succumbed to defeat. The study showed a similar case here too. The lesson for the Pakistani team to consider and remember is that the match did not end until it really ended.
Michael Hussey’s onslaught was one reason that gave the Pakistani team a lesson to learn. His jaw dropping 60 runs from 24 balls led everyone to believe that he really had superhuman abilities. His captain in the post-match presentation called him a ‘freak’. Cameron White too gave a piece of his mind to the Pakistan squad, when he blazed a knock at a good time, stabilizing the Aussie scorecard to some extent.
Hussey and Mitchell Johnson made a partnership of 53 runs from the last 16 balls. A point before which, the Pakistani team must be delusional about having won the match. They indeed dominated most of the overs but not the important ones. There were a couple of reasons for that. One was the poor decision making that was made by the captain at a couple of instances. For example, bringing spinners at the wrong moments and setting the field placing; especially when they were allowing the Aussie’s for two’s when they could have been stopped for singles.
When talking about the fielding, the captain wasn’t the only one to be blamed. Fielders from the Pakistani team showed lethargy in the park once again. There were times that they weren’t able to run fast enough when they could have stopped the ball with their hands.
Another factor that wasn’t understandable is that the Pakistani team is often called as the arsenal house of fast bowlers. The question then is that why did the Pakistani team play with just one fast bowler. Umar Gul was injured but there were so many more that could replace him.
Untraditionally, the Pakistani team proved themselves with the bat in the match. Despite losing the toss and playing under pressure, they played brilliantly, completely owning their performance to the Australian bowlers. The Akmal brothers were the stars as they blasted the Aussie’s all over the ground. Later on, the other batsman chipped in too, to elevate the score to 191 runs for the loss of 6 wickets. Clarke himself admitted that he thought the Pakistani team batted well and got 15 to 20 runs more than he expected. The only flaw that ever came was their running. There were times when they could run hard and capture a double instead for a single.
Anyway, it was a match worth watching and both teams played well. Eventually you could say that though the Akmal brothers and White produced a fine innings, it was Hussey who was the man that came to Australia’s in the dying moments of the match. He was the one who brought them the glory of victory from deep inside the jaws of defeat.
Tags: