Their batting template continues to attract attention and has failed in situations where it was expected to bear fruit.
Siddharth Monga
Mumtaz calls Babar’s delivery ‘weird and inexplicable’
Urooj Mumtaz on Babar’s lack of intent in bowling
In this space I will not succumb to the exceptionalism that Pakistan cricket is more prone to this sort of thing than any other, but they ended this disappointing campaign in tragicomic fashion. The middle order seemed hell-bent on defending the RizBar way of playing white-ball cricket, and in these circumstances it may have been. But in the end, even the RizBar way needed a bold hit from Shaheen Shah Afridi to ease the pressure. We remain clueless about the path Pakistan should take.
If the Pakistan cricket team had to improvise in a chicken-and-egg situation of whether RizBar was regressing because of a weak mid-order or whether the mid-order was mediocre because RizBar wouldn’t let them play in flat conditions, would Pakistan have had to qualify for the World Cup? To be fair, Babar Azam accepted a drop and deployed a more attacking left-handed opener, but still the results were poor.
In the last match, Pakistan could only manage a consolation win but they shrunk to embarrassment when Babar showed what he’s made of, his ability to hit one run per ball on a difficult court. But in the end, it wasn’t enough. It took Afridi’s six to ease the tension.
Afridi showed glimpses of his true form by taking a wicket in his first over and setting himself up for a threatening pace attack. This was a World Cup where Babar and Mohammed Rizwan could justify their performances, but against India, Rizwan crumbled under the pressure of the asking rate despite having chances to win the match.
A day before the match, Imad Wasim spoke about the mindset needed to play white-ball cricket at par with other good modern teams. He spoke about how Pakistan dominated T20 cricket before they became a regressive team. He spoke about the need to get rid of the fear of failure.
Asked if it was insecurity among decision-makers or a highly emotional reaction from fans that was fuelling the fears, Babar pointed out that it was probably a question of quality. He said selection had been consistent and, in fact, there had been very little change during his time as captain. In the 85 matches that Babar captained, 27 players, including himself and Rizwan, have batted at numbers three to seven. By comparison, in the 96 matches played so far in 2020, India have tried 32 players at numbers three to seven.
“I think we have been playing with the same eight-nine players for the last four years,” Babar said. “The players need not be scared in that respect. They are being supported and they are being given opportunities. But as players, they need to step up a bit more. The mindset should be how you want to play. Right now, you can’t hit every ball, you can’t get a six off every ball, you can’t even take a wicket off every ball. You need to assess the situation and see what is needed here.”
“Tell me how many games have been played here? [in the USA] Has there been any standout batting performance? We are struggling but we need to be proactive and do what is required here. We need partnerships, we need to bowl good, strong length balls. You can’t just come in with a set mindset and stick to it.
“I am not denying that we have to think outside the box. Every player has to think. It’s not that one player has to think. Cricket has become so fast that every player has to think. We have to move with the times. In modern cricket, you need game awareness. I know I have to bat deep here, I have to load up a bit. I know that no matter how hard I try, I can’t score 150 here. I try to build up my innings. I think more game awareness and common sense is required here.”
It sounds like an admission that in other, more standard T20 conditions, Pakistan will need to change with the times, and if this misstep leads to a course correction, this World Cup could still be a significant event for Pakistan cricket.
However, it will be frustrating for them not to have made it through the first round in conditions that suited their style of cricket. The USA’s defeat can be taken with some consideration given that they qualified and the trend in scoring throughout the match suggests that only the first five or six overs, a crucial part of the match, were difficult. Against India, however, the USA won the coin toss and made the most of the conditions, with the one batsman they fielded unable to thwart the chase or bat deep.
Also, the job security that Babar mentioned doesn’t seem to be working for the top and middle order, so maybe it’s time to wield the whip a bit.
Siddharth Monga is a senior writer at ESPNcricinfo.
