“Whether we have the best individual players or whatever does not matter, you have to have the best team.” These words by Joachim Loew, the proud German football team coach, emphatically states above everything the significance of teamwork — the art of players combining together to take up the hardest of challenges. It is little wonder then that Philipp Lahm and his battle-hardened troops excelled in Brazil to make history at the World Cup.

Germany did not boast iconic stars such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar or Wayne Rooney in their ranks but, thankfully, they had the team that in the end proved the most formidable of the lot.

Germany’s golden generation strikes gold at last

Teamwork is the foremost element of the recipe for success, not just in football but every team sport. In cricket, too, teamwork is the key. Besides providing enough chance to each and every player to showcase his talent, the game blends the players into a dynamic bunch of performers who focus their entire energies on one goal: team’s victory. With such an approach towards the game, triumph seldom eludes them. Even average players in a well-coordinated outfit raise their game and blend wonderfully to achieve great things for their country. Imran Khan’s tigers grabbing the 1992 Waterford trophy from the jaws of defeat is an ideal example.

Fast forward to 2014. Pakistan’s players today, unfortunately, lack the required level of teamwork which could propel them to the top and that is one of the principal reasons we have wilted at several major contests in recent times.

That is not to say that our players are wholly responsible for these flops. No international cricket on home turf since 2009, inconsistent team selection coupled with largely incompetent and egotistical team managements have only made matters worse for Pakistan and its players.

To cap it all, the legal wranglings between Najam Sethi and Zaka Ashraf for the job of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) hot seat for more than a year now have had a negative impact on the national team’s morale.

Amid this bleak scenario, members of our national squad somehow need to remain positive and embrace teamwork for the best possible results.

Germany’s rise to football glory, as Loew spelled out, was planned immaculately by their national federation way back in 2004, and the result is stupendous.

Agreed that football and cricket are poles apart as sports and require different mental and physical tactics to overcome the opponents. But the fact remains that the crucial element of teamwork stands prominently common among both. Taking a lesson from the German football squad, Pakistan cricket can certainly come out of its averagely-faring phase and flourish into a world-class squad if our players and team management embrace teamwork.

Waqar Younis (reinstalled as head coach), Grant Flower (batting coach), Mushtaq Ahmed (spin bowling coach) and Grant Luden (fielding coach) along with Moin Khan (team manager-cum-chief selector) are going to start their first assignment in Sri Lanka next month. These officials combining as a support staff team is only going to motivate the players to gel productively under captain Misbah-ul-Haq. And if our players form a well-knit unit as a team in which each and every member is looking to put the team’s interests above everything, I have no doubt in my mind that Pakistan will have the better of the Islanders.

Hopefully, head coach Waqar has overcome the bitter memories of the past when he had to leave in an unceremonious manner as coach in 2011. As for Moin, there has been a lot of debate over his dual position as well but both the former Pakistan cricket stalwarts will be expected to rise above personal matters to mould the current national outfit into a fighting unit.

Flower’s task to improve many of our blundering batsmen will certainly be a challenging one and he will be under constant spotlight. How he and Luden adjust themselves in the Pakistan cricket set-up will be interesting.

As regards the players, Misbah’s contribution as their leader is massively significant. For one, he needs to be more aggressive on the field and, perhaps, a bit more animated. In fact, our skipper can take a leaf out of Hashim Amla’s book. In his very first Test as South African captain in the ongoing series against Sri Lanka, Amla made a very sporting declaration on the fourth day in Galle — throwing the save-yourself-first tactic out of the window and leaving the hosts with a gettable 370-run chase. Though well set for victory at 110-1 at the end of the fourth day, Angelo Mathews’ men crumbled under pressure on the last day to hand Amla and his men a richly-deserved victory.

Yes, Misbah doesn’t have a Dale Steyn or a Morne Morkel in his bowling armoury, but the most important point to note here is that the aggressive approach adopted by Amla (having no experience of Test captaincy) shows his self-belief and confidence in his team’s abilities which Misbah needs to emulate. And not to forget we too have some munition in Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Mohammad Talha and Junaid Khan to test the Sri Lankans’ resilience on their turf.

Sri Lankans are fallible as the Galle Test showed, and with meticulous planning and execution Misbah and company can return triumphantly from the tour. All they need is genuine teamwork.

Pakistan cricket history is replete with examples of our men toppling comparatively stronger opponents, but only when we performed as a team. It should be no different this time in Sri Lanka.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2014