Pakistan vs India: Where did the green shirts go wrong?

Growing up in the 1990s, I saw a Pakistan team brimming with confidence whenever they took the field against India—no matter what the playing conditions or venue. One could anticipate at least a fightback with a superb bowling spell or a great display of batting even if the numbers did not seem favourable.

But the tables have turned now.

Now, I see a team that appears to have lost even before an encounter even begins. I see a team that is quite used to losing against their archrivals.

As a fan of Pakistan cricket for over 25 years, it gives me no hope when I hear captain Sarfraz Ahmed claim that the pressure would be on India and not Pakistan ahead of a high-voltage match. The statement is as hollow as the Pakistan batting.

On the other hand, India —first under Saurav Ganguly and then MS Dhoni—have become a winning unit. From a purely cricketing point of view, India has become such a formidable side that they go into any tournament as favourites (or at least one of the top teams).

It’s not just about their batting. India, in fact, have developed an extremely effective bowling line-up with excellent pacemen and world-class spinners. Once one of the sloppiest fielding sides around, India now have some of the finest on the ground, with the likes of Ravendra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, Shekhar Dhawan and others in the mix.

As I covered this India-Pakistan match in the office– as some colleagues sacrificed Sunday for the most anticipated Champions Trophy clash – at no point during the 48-over rain-hit match did the Pakistani side look like it could even compete with the brilliance of the experienced Indian squad.

At no moment did the men-in-green make you feel like a fightback was around the corner. Not for a single minute did the Pakistani team acquire the energy required in modern-day limited-overs cricket. And this has been the case in all the recent encounters between the two teams.

The match was also the first real test for newly-appointed captain Sarfraz Ahmed. And it seems he has failed. Some tactics employed by the young captain were quite perplexing, to say the least.

In the recent past, Sarfraz’s preferred option to start off the bowling has been Imad Wasim. And it has worked on few occasions too. However, all those matches were against teams lacking the confidence to play quality spin—unlike India.

India is generally considered the best batting unit against spin. Why would one start with Imad to bowl against some of the best spin players in the world? Also, why would you give a spinner the last over of the innings? Sarfraz's preference of Wahab Riaz over Junaid Khan was also baffling. Junaid’s record against India has been impressive while Wahab’s recent form hasn’t been that great.

Under Misbahul Haq and with the support of Younis Khan, Pakistan’s team of underdogs achieved incredible heights in the recent past. However, their performance in limited-overs cricket has been poor, to say the least.

Looking at the affairs of Pakistan cricket, one wonders: is there any light at the end of the tunnel?