As expected, Misbahul Haq and his charges failed to break their World Cup jinx against India in Adelaide on Sunday. It was written on the wall from the very beginning but still many were hoping for a miracle. But miracles seldom happen. As usual, there was no proper planning and so many mistakes were made. Pakistan lacked genuine openers and a wicketkeeper. None of the Pakistan batsmen looked confident. They remained confused and under pressure through out their innings and ultimately let their team lose the high-octane opener against India by 76 runs. It was a poor showing from Pakistan, who not only kept their tag of poor chasers intact, but also caved in against a mediocre attack of MS Dhoni’s men. The contest against India emphatically underlined the team’s shortcomings - exposing the batting’s brittleness and the limitations of leadership harshly and more prominently. It was not just the defeat, but rather the manner in which it came about that infuriated all and sundry. The task of claiming victory proved beyond Pakistan for the sixth time out of six in this most intense of World Cup fixtures.
The Indian bowlers backed-up a landmark century by Virat Kohli as the defending champions continued their World Cup domination of Pakistan. Kohli hit 107, the first century by an Indian in World Cup matches against their archrivals, to lift his team to an imposing 300 for seven after they elected to bat on an even-paced pitch in their opener. Saeed Anwar is the only player to have had a century in an India-Pakistan World Cup match. His knock of 101 came at Centurion in 2003. However his ton went in vain as Pakistan lost the match by six wickets. Kohli showed why he is one of the most feared batsmen in modern cricket as he survived two dropped catches to notch up his 22nd one-day international century in his 151st match at this level. Kohli thrives on pressure and rises to the big occasions. A much younger version of him made a century in India’s opening game of the last World Cup. The Test captain version of him made twin centuries in his first game as leader on this very ground. He gets the loudest roars - louder than even Dhoni - when Indian player names are announced on the giant screen, and also the longest, wildest cheers when he walks out to bat.
Opener Shikhar Dhawan made 73 and fellow left-hander Suresh Raina smashed 74 off 56 balls in front of a sell-out crowd of over 47,000 in a Pool B game that was beamed to an estimated 2.5 billion viewers across the world. Raina and Dhoni were expected to pile up the runs in the closing overs, but exemplary death bowling from Sohail Khan and Wahab Riaz meant India did not get past 300. And it was not that difficult target to acheive.
Mohammad Shami picked up four wickets and Umesh Yadav and Mohit Sharma two each as Pakistan were shot out for 224 with three overs to spare as they suffered their sixth consecutive World Cup defeat by India dating back to 1992. Skipper Misbahul Haq played a lone hand with a valiant 76 off 84 balls that ensured Pakistan did not surpass their heaviest World Cup defeat, a 112-run reverse against England in Cape Town in 2003. Pakistan’s chase of 301 was too jittery, and captain Misbah was left in the familiar position of keeping his head while all around him were losing theirs.
Six times out of six now, the side winning the toss in an India-Pakistan World Cup match has decided to bat. Pakistan had never managed to win a single match against India in previous five World Cups, and they kept that record intact yesterday. The only player to feature in each of those five Indian wins did not feature in the match on Sunday. Sachin Tendulkar relished taking on Pakistan particularly in the World Cup as evident from the three man of the match awards in those five games. The first time India and Pakistan met in a World Cup match was in 1992 when they beat their bitter rivals by 43 runs in Sydney. In 1996 World Cup, India beat Pakistan by 39 runs in Bangalore, while three years later, they again got the better off their rivals with a 47-run win in Manchester. Maintaining their stranglehold, India under captain Sourav Ganguly beat their neighbours by six wickets in the 2003 World Cup in Centurion. In 2011, the 1983 champions hosted the quadrennial event and the hosts defeated Pakistan by 29 runs in Mohali.
Captain Misbah and coach Waqar Younis elected to leave out an opening batsman in Nasir Jamshed to allow the inclusion of an extra spinner, the bouncy Yasir Shah. To accommodate this, Younus Khan was moved up from his pet middle order spot to open the batting, while the temporary stumper Umar Akmal donned the gloves. Umar and Younus are fine players, but they were unable to make the move work. Comparing the two sides, the difference was in approach. India’s intention was very positive, whereas Pakistan had no intent, nothing at all. There was no effort from the Pakistan batsmen to disrupt the Indian bowlers’ rhythm. Dhoni marshalled his men skilfully, cajoling strong spells out of his bowlers on a surface that slowed a little as the match wore on. Anyhow, it is not really worth spending too much time on the whys and wherefores of Pakistan's defeat. Unless it is to ponder how the 11 might be better balanced against the West Indies on Saturday. *
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