The Taking of Caribbean  

Writing history

“Both Misbah and Younis touched their career landmarks with this series. There is a vacuum now that needs to be filled.”

The world as we know it is full of people who are willingly committed to repeating the best of their history. There are, however, a very few who are bent on writing one down for the rest of the generations to aspire, and repeat. To categorise the young Pakistani cricket side with their recent win over the West Indies as the latter will not be wrong.

The Shaheens clinched a historic 2-1 victory in the 3 test match series against the much competitive West Indies at their home ground, a long held dream for Pakistan that awaited its fulfillment. The young mix of players led by the experienced Misbah-ul-Haq achieved what Hanif Mohammad couldn’t achieve, what Javed Miandad couldn’t, and what even the legendary Imran Khan couldn’t achieve for Pakistan.

Pakistan defeated the West Indies; otherwise known as the Black Typhoon, in the third and final test of the three match series by 101 runs with only six balls remaining in the game. A fine century by RL Chase fell short of saving the day for West Indies. The majestic Yasir Shah, once again, played a significant role in Pakistan’s victory by grabbing 8 wickets in total, 3 in the first innings followed by a 5 wicket whole in the second, taking Pakistan through to the finish line. The other youngsters also chipped in, and made their contributions to the greater picture.

Test matches, usually synonymous to a boring version of the game, the 3^rd test between Pakistan and WI proved to be an aberration as it approached a nail biting finish with the last West Indian wicket falling with only six balls remaining putting the victory in green team’s bag.

Pakistan, in its previous 6 visits to the West Indies, remained unable to return home victorious, although the teams visiting the Caribbean then comprised of the finest players that Pakistan and the game of cricket have produced over time. The historic victory secured by Misbah’s squad in the Caribbean will remain a landmark in Pakistani cricket.

The Departing Dynamic Duo

With the spectacular closure of the Pak-WI test match series, the game of cricket bids farewell to two of its most talented, and skillful batsmen; Misbah-ul-Haq, and Younis Khan. Both the players had announced their retirement from cricket prior to the Pak-WI test series.

Having made remarkable contribution to the game of cricket in general, and to Pakistan’s cricket in particular, the dynamic duo leaves the cricketing arena with their heads held high, as they have led an amateur Pakistani side to first ever victory in the Caribbean against the home team.

Danyal Rasool, an analyst of the game, and a contributor at Cricinfo terms the departure of the two as:

“Dominica bid farewell to two legends of the game in a most fitting manner, giving Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq the most heart-stopping send-off possible. History beckoned time and again, torturing and teasing them. It made them wait, it made them wonder, it made them despair. But, with six balls left in the game, the series, and their careers, came perhaps its most satisfying moment.”

“The historic victory secured by Misbah’s squad in the Caribbean will remain a landmark in Pakistani cricket.”

Both Misbah and Younis touched their career landmarks with this series.

Younis Khan became the first Pakistani batsman to cross the 10,000 runs mark in test version of the game in a total of 118 matches played.

Misbah-ul-Haq, on the other hand, acquired the honor of captaining the Pakistan cricket team in the most number of test matches, 56 to be precise, securing victory in 26 matches. With the win in Caribbean, Misbah stands out in list of captains as the first to prevail. He was also named as the Spirit of Cricket by ICC for the year 2016.

The dynamic duo, between them, has scored a total of 15,321 runs in total 193 appearances.

The game of cricket will move on, but this duo will certainly be missed for their valuable contribution.

So is the puzzle set right?

The otherwise struggling Pakistan team desperate to search out the right combination for itself now seems to be stabilising, and at ease with winning since the puzzle, apparently, is now set right by the selection committee.

A strong bowling line up is now complimented with a sound batting structure making the team capable of emerging as a winning combination against any competition. As compared to the past combinations of the team which were more inclined towards hosting a strong bowling line up, and hence facing a lack of balance, the gaps in creating the perfect balance now finally appear to be bridged, and the results are also obvious.

However, with the departure of the two pillars i.e. Misbah and Younis, analysts of the game are fearful that Pakistan’s situation can mirror that of Sri Lanka when its master blaster duo Kumar Sangakara, and Mahela Jayawardena bade farewell to the game 2 years back.

“I was really sad when Kumar Sangakara and Mahela Jayawardena left the Sri Lankan team together. Look at them now, they are in such a disarray”, former leg-spinner Abdul Qadir stated while talking to local media sources. “Likewise, both Misbah and Younis leaving together could cause problems for Pakistan’s test team”, he went on.

Identifying, nurturing and developing talents like Younis and Misbah require years of commitment from both, the PCB and the cricketing aspirants.

Re-Igniting the diminishing passion!

The recent developments in Pakistan cricket ranging from the success of PSL, to the recent victory at Caribbean have re-ignited the otherwise diminishing passion for the game, and have set the track for Pakistan team.

What is necessary here is to keep the passion for the game alive, encourage the deserving talent to step up, nurture the talent pipeline through trainings and domestic exposure, and to fill in the vacuums created by departure of the likes of Misbah and Younis.