Analysing Pakistan's performance in Asia Cup 2018

After watching the Pakistan team throughout the Asia Cup, one can conclude without a doubt that the team has been found clueless on several occasions. Showing us glimpse of hope in the Champions Trophy 2017, the men in green are back to being predictably poor. Often associated with the tag of being unpredictable, the team unsurprisingly lacked the firepower to beat team India.

Failure to put runs on the board

Having won the toss and electing to bat first in both the games, the top order failed to provide any impetus on both the occasions. Leaving the middle and lower middle order to control the damage. Considering the lack of acumen to perform in crucial games, a page out of the books of Mohammed Yousuf, Younis Khan, and Inzamam-ul-Haq would be a good reference point for the present team.

The batting style from the past legends paved the way for strike rotation with occasional boundary without going hard at the ball. The craft and the grind with a touch of elegance was a key to the success of Green Shirts batting in the past. The top order in Anwar had a similar impact in the 90’s and the early 2000’s.

The present team is missing both the elegance and the soft hands of the past legends. The current batsmen appear to push heavily at the ball. There seems to be 2-way approach – push hard or block.

Inability to play long innings

Further, the inability to play long innings is a setback moving forward. The stand between Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq against Afghanistan was a classic example of "well begun is half done," both scoring 50 plus and getting out after consuming 30% extra deliveries than runs scored.

In modern day cricket, it’s imperative to play long innings and simultaneously strike at a rate of 85 plus; a lesson both could pick from Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli. The only member in the group who appears to read the game and situation is Shoaib Malik; undoubtedly doing his best to salvage some pride for the country.

Poor fielding

The former world cup winning team has always had issues with the quality of fielders. The team seems nowhere close to the best. Contrary to the Indian side, the fielders in the inner circle or the boundary riders don’t look adroit. The smooth single's in the inner circle; two's on the boundary line and the dropped catches, all appeared similar to a group of youngsters playing competitive cricket for the first time.

Bowling

The hundreds from Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma will lead to much soul-searching for the Pakistan team; their bowlers lacked discipline similar to their batsmen. Mohammed Amir, Hasan Ali and the company performed without any intent. No variations, no smart field positioning and bowling 1 or 2 hit-me deliveries every over. Of course, the bowlers were always running short of the target following the dismal display of batsmanship and fielding.

Seemingly, the Pakistan team is not looking competent for the future, the coach Mickey Arthur says “They are suffering a confidence crisis at the moment.” Well, at present, the Pakistan team appears to have resigned of putting up a fight.