Timid Pakistan decide against going for it

LONDON: Pakistan’s faint hopes of qualifying for the World Cup semi-finals were still alive after Sarfaraz Ahmed won the toss and chose to bat against Bangladesh at Lord’s on Friday.But it was quite clear even before the toss took place that they had no intentions of taking a shot at a place in the last four.To have any chances of qualifying Pakistan needed to be daring.But instead they chose to play it safe, fielding an unchanged eleven in a bid to finish an otherwise disappointing World Cup campaign on a high note.Everybody knew that what Pakistan faced was as good as impossible. They needed to beat Bangladesh by a margin of 316 runs, something that has never happened in One-day International cricket let alone in a World Cup match.But they should have at least tried.Instead, it was obvious that their planning was to somehow put on a decent total and then defend it to end the World Cup on a winning note with a face-saving win against Bangladesh.They had the option of bringing in pinch-hitter Asif Ali, who could have provided with a quickfire start. But apparently after taking a look at the greenish Lord’s wicket, the Pakistanis decided against taking any chances.They retained the same eleven. That was not all.  Pakistan needed to bat like they were playing a T20 game to get to a Test match like score. Instead they started off as if Friday’s game was a Test match. They took just one run from the first nine balls. They were 18 after 35 balls. Fakhar Zaman, supposedly the biggest pinch-hitter in the line-up, struggled miserably against the spinners and was finally put out of his misery by medium pacer Mohammad Saifuddin. He fell trying to slice the ball only to get caught by Mehidy Hasan for just 13 from 31 balls.It was clear from how he batted during the innings that coach Mickey Arthur and captain Sarfaraz weren’t interested in taking a shot at a semi-final place. Once again, Pakistan exhibited a lack of courage and intent in their approach. Such strategies seldom reap rewards and it’s hardly surprising that Pakistan are on their way out of the World Cup.

from The News International - Sports https://ift.tt/2L0g0SL