Shoaib Mohammad: Despite Jamshed perserverance, Pakistan claim first win

Shoaib Mohammad 14:38 02/03/2015
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  • Wahab Riaz (l) was in imperious form against Zimbabwe.

    Pakistan positives have been few and far between so far in this World Cup so the hard fought 20-run victory against Zimbabwe was a welcome change for players and fans alike.

    The picture looked bleak for the team going into what became an all-important match against Zimbabwe. It became more about reaffirming the prestige of Pakistani cricket thus the victory – though not exactly emphatic – will do a world of good for the confidence of the players.

    Victory over Zimbabwe should add some steel to the side and allow the Pakistan players to believe that they can turn the tide and qualify for the knockout stage, despite it almost seeming like a lost cause.

    Before the match, I outlined that the Zimbabwe contest was more important than upcoming matches against UAE, South Africa and Ireland because Pakistan’s World Cup future was so dependent on the result. Now Pakistan have given themselves some breathing space, the pressure has surely decreased.

    Back to the match itself and Younis Khan was rightly dropped but justice was not served to wicketkeeper Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was again unfairly limited to the sidelines. Pakistanis and commentators alike have spoken in favour of Sarfaraz’s inclusion and surely it is time for team management to listen.  

    Pakistan finally put their foot down by opting to bat first after winning the toss, a decision which sent the right message unlike when they bowled first on a flat pitch against the West Indies and conceded 310 runs.

    It was the first time at this World Cup that Pakistan had things under control and were able to set the tone of the match. However, the openers once again stood exposed against the new ball and both Ahmed Shahzad and Nasir Jamshed got out with just four runs on the board.

    The persistence with Jamshed was baffling for me as the management gave him another go despite being out of touch for what feels like an eternity. Yet again he failed with the bat and Pakistan fans were once more left to rue the decision. It is time we get rid of him for good.

    With the scoreboard showing four for two, skipper Misbah-u- Haq and Haris Sohail were forced by the situation to go into survival mode.

    The duo had to stand tall against the new ball to make sure their frail middle-order was not exposed as Pakistan went with an extra pacer in Rahat Ali, leaving them only six specialist batsmen and Afridi as their all-rounder. It meant that Pakistan’s innings never got going and when Haris got out after scoring 27 off 44, they were 58 for three in 20.1 overs – scoring at less than three runs per over.

    Umar Akmal provided much needed momentum in the middle overs but in the space of three balls both Umar – who made a 44-ball 33 – and birthday boy Shahid Afridi (nought) perished to Sean Williams. Sohaib Maqsood played a 21-run cameo but could not make a big score as Misbah ran out of partners and Pakistan sat six down for 155 runs. Zimbabwe were rightly ecstatic with their effort, seemingly on course to bowl out Pakistan for a score below 200.

    Misbah slowly shepherd the strike, but all his good work was undone when he picked out a fielder in the deep on 73, an effort that consumed 121 balls.

    People may still criticise Misbah but the situation demanded such a knock. If we compare Pakistan with other top teams, there is not such an abundance of dependable batsmen in their ranks. The only man you can rely upon is Misbah and thus I think he did his job really well.

    The much-needed flurry was provided by an unlikely source in Wahab Riaz as he smashed an unbeaten 56 off 46 deliveries, an innings studded with six boundaries, to leave Pakistan finishing on 235 for seven in their 50 overs.

    Real impetus was provided by Wahab because he managed to unsettle the rhythm of Zimbabwe and within those 30 to 35 runs managed to swing momentum in Pakistan’s favour. In addition, Pakistan also played their full quota of overs for the first time at this World Cup – another positive from the match.

    Mohammad Irfan then really came to the fore as he seized on the chance of attacking a weaker side. He looked a totally different animal as he did not have the same fear of leaking runs that was there when Virat Kohli or Chris Gayle stood in front of him.

    Irfan really terrified the opposition’s top-order and got the reward for his attacking approach with two wickets up front. He set the platform for other bowlers to build more pressure and then Wahab made his day even more memorable – both bowlers finishing with four wickets.

    It is good that Pakistan have finally won but there are certainly areas that better teams like South Africa can exploit easily, thus the think tank needs to be going to work. Pakistan now need to build on this victory and make sure that they do not celebrate for too long – the bigger tests are yet to come.

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