Pakistan must look to the future
Andrew McGlashan reviews Pakistan performance in the tournament after their thrilling encounter against India in the final where they fell short by five runs
Andrew McGlashan in Johannesburg
24-Sep-2007
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In a tournament that has invented a host of new clichés, it's an old
one that fits this thrilling final the best; it's a shame there had to
be a loser. Fortunes ebbed and flowed throughout the 40 overs before
Misbah-ul-Haq, having taken Pakistan to the brink with a brave late
onslaught, tried to paddle the ball over short fine-leg but couldn't
beat Sreesanth.
Misbah might struggle to return home, yet he has been one of the
outstanding players following his surprise recall to the team. He finished with
218 runs, third behind Matthew Hayden and Gautam Gambhir in the
tournament standings. But he will remember this tournament for twice
having the chance to carry his team across the line in heart-stopping
encounters against India. In the group match he couldn't score one off
the last two balls and here he was a little too clever for his own good
after lofting the previous delivery straight for a six. He shouldn't be
castigated because without him, Pakistan wouldn't have gotten this close.
There was always the nagging feeling that since Pakistan had proved so
consistent during the tournament, something had to give. Although
they ultimately came within one blow of snatching victory, for large
parts of the innings it was a poor chase facing a target that
shouldn't have been beyond them. Previously calm and collected hunting
down runs, they couldn't find the balance between accumulation and
aggression during their first 15 overs.
The decision to promote Kamran Akmal to No. 3 was not only strange but an
unnecessary change to the order. He'd scored 44 runs in four
previous innings with very little chance to find his groove. A final
wasn't the place for an experiment. "If we lost a wicket in the first
six overs we were always going to use Kamran," Shoaib Malik said.
However, the real turning point was Imran Nazir's run out in the sixth
over. He blazed his way to 33 off 14 balls, but appeared to aggravate
his groin injury (which needed a runner in the semi-final) and
couldn't beat Robin Uthappa's throw from mid-off. The chase really
came off the rails when Irfan Pathan removed Malik and Shahid Afridi
in his second over, Afridi carving an expansive and ill-judged lofted
drive into the hands of mid-off.
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However, Malik said that reaching the final was a fine effort from his
young team. "It's a great achievement for Pakistan, when we started
this tournament we weren't considered one of the favourites but we
managed to make the final. When they [India] won the toss and batted we aimed
at restricting them to 160 so we were successful at our plan, but
unfortunately we lost too many early wickets which is why we fell
short. The Indian bowling was good and they restricted our top order,
especially RP Singh who swung the ball and got key wickets."
And he didn't think that Pakistan had succumbed to the tension of the
final: "We have played well throughout the tournament and even played
well today, it wasn't the pressure that was a factor we just lost
wickets at bad times."
However, many positives have come for a young Pakistan team which
should serve them well over the coming months. Umar Gul was again
outstanding, collecting 3 for 28 and removing the key scalps of Yuvraj
Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. It is unclear whether Shoaib Akhtar
has a future in the team, but in Gul, Mohammad Asif and Sohail Tanvir,
they have an attack capable of causing problems to most teams.
The fielding, too, has improved under Geoff Lawson, but his challenge
now is to maintain an upward curve and try and ensure the team finds
consistency in the long-term. "The guys have put huge efforts into
their practice and along with the training camps we had that is why we
are much fitter," Malik said.
Their next cricket is against South Africa, with a rapid turn around
into their Test series which starts in Karachi on October 1. Even
though Malik had lost the final, he showed he hadn't lost his sense of
humour. "It will be a bit difficult going straight into a Test from
Twenty20, but we will have a meeting and will tell the guys, please it
is Test cricket."
But on the horizon looms another gripping contest with India and if it
follows the pattern of their two meetings in this tournament, it will
be compelling viewing. Only time will tell, but despite their
last-gasp defeat Pakistan could look back on their two weeks in South
Africa as the first stepping stone to a brighter future.
Andrew McGlashan is a staff writer on Cricinfo