Greenshirts fare little better in the ODIs down under
The Pakistani cricketer’s miserable Australian tour ended on a particularly bitter but fitting note in the 5th ODI at Adelaide, with their demoralised bowling bludgeoned all round the ground in a record first wicket Australian partnership of 284 runs, and the tourists giving the impression of being helpless and passive spectators. Throughout the Tests and ODIs, only one side was playing steady, aggressive cricket and fighting back in tight situations, while the other was marked by its poor selection, absence of grit, defensive tactics, player infighting, injuries, consistently inconsistent batting, wayward bowling which created records but unfortunately for the rival batsmen, fumbles and goof ups in fielding, butterfingers catching, not to forget a rather touching homesickness.
Australian batsmen scored five hundreds, Pakistanis just one in five matches. Only Hasan Ali captured five wickets in a match from either side, but in Adelaide he generously gifted 100 runs. No-balls were frequent, and when a catch was held, it sometimes turned to be off an illegal delivery. Australian bowling was distinguished throughout by its sustained accuracy, especially by pacer Josh Hazlewood, backed up by spectacular catching and committed fielding that saved many boundaries. The in-form David Warner, dropped on the first ball in an act of suicide by Captain Azhar Ali, went on to hammer 179 at Adelaide. In Sydney, the greenshirt’s sloppy fielding reached its nadir, with four dropped catches and comical misfields and overthrows.
Pakistan cricket and the national game of hockey are truly in a deep and desperate mess. The Pakistan Hockey Federation and the Pakistan Cricket Board are unfortunately, sinecures, cushy jobs, generally given to the undeserving who are in favour with the Chief Patron of both, the Prime Minister. The clueless PCB bosses have nothing to show but spectacular failures, but they cling stubbornly to their jobs. Only the Prime Minister can dare call for their resignations, but he is otherwise engaged these days. And so the frustrated cricket fans must expect Pakistan cricket to languish and decline indefinitely.