Analyzing Pakistan’s Cricket Team’s Defeat

It’s been total chaos for the Pakistan cricket team as they started their test matches for the year against Bangladesh. Since then Pakistan’s test rus is been a disaster. Bangladesh on the other hand made history by defeating Pakistan on their home turf where they won their first test series in Pakistan against Pakistan by 2-0. Pakistan is currently playing against England where they were defeated by 74 runs after a horrible batting collapse.

This is not the first time the Pakistan Cricket team has let their audience down. Except for the Pakistan Super League, which is a local league hyped by the nation, there is no sight of any good cricket by the Pakistan cricket team in recent years. Their game is subpar at best. 

There are a lot of reasons why the Pakistan cricket team is failing. Here is a review of their general playing disabilities.

The Inconsistency of the Batting Lineup

Pakistan has been defeated many times in recent years and one of the most critical attributes to these defeats is their inconsistency in batting. In test cricket where players have to play for a long time during the day, not only their physical capability but also a strong mental fortitude is required. 

During these matches, it seemed that the Pakistan cricket team’s batting lineup lacked technical proficiency, especially in challenging situations. Key players were unable to score big, the middle order often collapsed which resulted in pressure on the tail-enders. So far 2024 has been plagued by the lack of stability in the batting lineup.

The out-of-form Babar Azam has failed to deliver in the crucial moments, where he has to play an anchor innings, and the fall of one wicket is often followed by another resulting in a terrible collapse. They usually failed to build up huge totals which is crucial for the test match format and if they by any means did build up a good total, they were unable to chase simple totals in the second innings, resulting in horrific downfalls. 

Bowler’s Performance and Injuries

The Pakistan cricket team has always been proud of their competent bowling lineup, though in 2024 they were experiencing an immense shortage of quality bowling. A few key bowlers were facing injuries due to overplaying and not taking a break. Many of the key bowlers were sidelined due to intercession which is very common in Pakistan cricket team, which led to reliance on less experienced bowlers.

Even when the Bowling unit was intact, it failed to execute the game plan, which was to take early wickets and not let the opponent batters settle. They would mess up their line and length, which was then taken advantage of by the opposing batters. This resulted in additional pressure for the team and ultimately in a horrid loss. 

Poor Fielding

The Pakistan cricket team has always been criticized for its poor fielding. They would give away a lot of runs and drop easy catches. Over the years, many national and international coaches have tried to tackle this problem and improve the Pakistan cricket team’s fielding, but to no avail. It has always been a challenging task as it largely contributed to the loss of the match.

Some reasons were highlighted throughout the years. One of them includes that Pakistani cricketers were never trained in terms of fielding as compared to bowling and batting. The selection process also assesses the batting or the bowling ability of the player but never fielding. The players are often trained for fielding in training camps after their selection, but they lack the rigorous training required for the international level. 

Another reason for their miserable fielding is Pakistan’s gully cricket culture where they play cricket at a very young age in their streets with a tennis ball for many years. But when these youngsters start to play proper cricket with hardball, they are usually scared to catch it for fear of injury. It takes several years to get rid of this fear.

To be a good fielder you have to be physically fit. The key players of the Pakistan Cricket team often have a difficult time passing the fitness test, which is a key element in poor fielding and dropping of crucial catches.

Low-Quality Leadership

The Pakistan cricket team is currently struggling to find a good leader as a captain which is a dilemma on its own. Babar Azam has been a captain for a long time, but to be honest he was a laughingstock when it came to making decisions as a captain. His decisions in high-intensity games were often criticized by the commentators during the matches and by cricket legends after he had lost the match due to poor leadership qualities. 

Finally, Babar Azam was let go of his position after he was out of form for about a year, and after that Pakistan Cricket Board conducted experiment after experiment to find a new suitable captain, but to no avail. The replacements of Babar Azam were just as ineffective as Babar Azam Himself and were not able to turn the tide of losing into winning. 

The Pressure of Performance and Conditions

Being unable to perform puts immense pressure on a player’s mind. In a high-stakes game, a player is not only thinking about performing better but also that if he does not play well he will be replaced. This degrading situation where a player is insecure for his job puts an agonizing pain and the thought of winning the game is left behind. In this type of frantic mindset, players can not focus on the match and are only concerned about their jobs. 

The Pakistan cricket team is also criticized for not adapting quickly to the conditions of the pitch and overall match situations. They were often unable to recognize the pitch and just could not adjust to the conditions required for grasping the match. For example, if they are playing against a spin pitch, they would not be able to handle the pressure and lose a wicket by playing a rash shot or getting out by giving the edge. 

The same goes for the bowling. They would enter into the ground with six fast bowlers when they encounter a spin pitch, getting mocked by cricket enthusiasts all over the world.

Quality Opposition

The opposing teams were often well aware of the Pakistan cricket team’s weaknesses and were well prepared in advance to take advantage. They would capitalize on the shortcomings of the Pakistan cricket team and would quickly get the match into their grasp, from where it would be a piece of cake for them to win. 

Pakistan’s ability to outplay their opponents always came short in 2024 because all the teams came prepared as the International game is very modern and competitive. They never let the Pakistan cricket team have a chance against them and they capitalized on their weakness.

Conclusion

Pakistan cricket team needs to address its issues which consist of inconsistent batting, unreliable bowling, poor fielding, lack of competent leadership, physical and mental fitness, job security, preparations on opponent teams strength and weaknesses, etc. Pakistan cricket team was once a formidable force in test cricket, and it has to face all of these issues to reclaim its title. By tackling these challenges head-on Pakistan cricket team can restore its pride in cricketing and restore winning.