Pakistan and Australian cricket facing similar problems
Australia have dominated the world of cricket for years. However, their stranglehold at the top has now certainly ended and it is feared that the country might face a similar decline which has crippled the once great http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760
team. On the other hand, many consider that Pakistan cricket has already entered a phase of turmoil and is bound to go into further decline over the coming years.
The Australian team’s form has continued to topple down over the past year in every format of the game. Even though Australia still hold the number 1 spot on the ICC’s ODI rankings, it is no indication of the team’s consistent
decline. On the Test rankings, Australia has dropped down to the fourth spot after a poor run of form. They have lost 5 of their last 7 Test matches and have recently surrendered the Ashes at home soil for the first time in over 20 years.
Pakistan too has faced one disappointing result on the field after the other. They came close to beating England in a 5-match ODI series but lost the decider to lose 3-2. The same result was recorded in the ODI series against South
Africa in the UAE. These results mean that Pakistan has not won an ODI series since 2008. Their Test and T20 form has been below average as well. Pakistan has lost 6 of their last 7 T20 matches and hasn’t won a Test series since 2006.
A downfall in the superiority of both teams is attributed to one key factor: simultaneous departure of world class players. Pakistan lost the likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Inzamam-ul-Haq-c64383 in 2007.
While Australian greats Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Adam-Gilchrist-c918, Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer all retired around about the year 2007. This left a huge gap in both sides which has been difficult to fill.
Another attribute the two countries share at the moment is the lack of a potent bowling attack. For years, both http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 have continued to produce talented young bowlers and captains from both sides have rarely had
to deal with a mediocre bowling attack. Bowlers like Dennis Lillee, Jeff Thompson, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Imran Khan, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Saqlain-Mushtaq-c88743, Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram have destroyed batting lineups. Now, however, both teams are struggling to produce a bowling
line up which can earn 20 wickets in the course of an entire Test Match and there seems to be no young talent waiting in the pipeline.
Also, with the World Cup set to begin on the 19th of February 2011, both teams have been written off by most pundits. Some, on the other hand, believe it is too soon to rule out the two teams. Pakistan have not been
able to move past the group stages of the World Cup in its previous two attempts but since the tournament is being played in home like conditions, Pakistan can pose a serious threat in the competition.
Australia have won 3 consecutive World Cups in their previous three attempts and haven’t lost any match in the tournament under captain Ricky Ponting. Their record in the tournament will surely cast fear in the minds of the opposing
team.
Pakistan and Australian cricket is passing through a difficult phase at the moment. While both teams face on-field problems, Pakistan cricket has also been hampered by allegations of spot-fixing and disputes within the PCB. A World
Cup win might just be the right solution to the problems of these cricketing giants.
(Disclaimer: Some sections of this article reflect the opinion of the writer and do not represent Bettor.com’s views)
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