PAKISTAN’s convincing victory over Australia at Johannesburg on Tuesday, coming after a year of unfailingly bad cricket news, and in the middle of uncertain political times, has triggered a feel-good wave that has rippledacross the country.
When umpire Mark Benson signalled a wide ball to givePakistan the match, there was a sense that more than just a Twenty20 contest had been won.
It has been a sparkling turnaround for Pakistan, who started the tournament as underdogs, rated near the bottom.
There are unmistakable signs in the team now of resurgence and revival, and the negative influences on selection, attitude, and morale appear to be in the past.
The most striking aspect of the team’s performance was the contrast it made with Pakistani teams of the recent past. Gone was the malaise and resignation that had come to characterise our disastrous cricket campaigns over the last several months, starting with the shameful exit from the World Cup in West Indies and going back to last summer’s feckless series in England.
Far from being the team that had picked a reputation for underachievement, the outfit played to its potential on Tuesday. Every player, even those sitting in the dugout, looked a picture of confidence and self-belief.
It was a convincing victory set up by a spirited bowling performance and driven home by an inspired batting display that saw Pakistan — who were at one point tottering at 46 for 4 — cross the finish line with 6 wickets and 5 balls to spare.
Talent, boldness, and audacity are what had once made Pakistan a great cricketing nation. We are beginning to see some of that again. We are seeing it in Sohail Tanvir, the latest Pakistani pace sensation, who has walked off a training camp into the glare of a global audience and rattled the top batsmen in the game. We are seeing it in Shoaib Malik, an energetic and intelligent captain who is flexing his leadership skills with ambition and verve. And we are seeing it in Misbah-ul-Haq, a Test and ODI discard who carved his way back through excellence in the domestic season and is now indulging an enormous backlift and an impeccable eye in toying with the greatest bowlers in the world.
Observers and analysts around the globe are oohing and aahing at this new version of cricket offering constant action and excitement. There are already predictions that it will signal the death knell of 50-over ODI games. Purists are reserving judgment but economics will eventually seduce everyone into the fold.
Increasingly, the Twenty20 format, with its rapid-fire intensity and instant thrills, is looking like Pakistan’s natural game.
From having not even an outsider’s chance, the team now sits within two matches of the championship title. This is the kind of team we used to know and love. Welcome back.
PAKISTAN’s convincing victory over Australia at Johannesburg on Tuesday, coming after a year of unfailingly bad cricket news, and in the middle of uncertain political times, has triggered a feel-good wave that has rippledacross the country.
