India make it 6-0 vs Pakistan in World Cups: Pakistan fail to stem the inexorable pull of defeat

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men clinched a 76-run victory over Pakistan in their ICC World Cup 2015 encounter at the Adelaide Oval. India have maintained their unbeaten record against Pakistan in World Cups, making this their sixth victory against the arch-rivals. Nishad Pai Vaidya writes about the monkey on Pakistan’s back.

History can be unforgiving on sportsmen! Although one always maintains that what happens on the day ultimately matters, the psychological battles with history can have a huge bearing on what transpires on the field of play. Ask Pakistan about their jinx against India in World Cups. Misbah-ul-Haq’s men were beaten by 76 runs in the recent encounter at the ICC World Cup 2015, making it six wins for India against their arch-rivals in the big event. Plus, there are four defeats in the ICC World T20s. This has become a monkey on Pakistan’s back! Full Scorecard: Pakistan vs India

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Pakistan perhaps felt the pressure more than a month before the game. Back in January, there were numerous comments from their current and former players. Some of the current players expressed their eagerness to change history. The former players advised them to stay calm and not take the pressure. With all the talk beginning from then, the pressure only built up and Pakistan perhaps collapsed under it on the big day. Though they had started talking about this as an opportunity, it was clear that they were under more pressure when compared to their Indian team. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: SCHEDULE & MATCH DETAILS

Pakistan went on to make some errors that eventually backfired. Sarfraz Ahmed has been one of their best players over the last year. With Mohammad Hafeez out, one would have expected them to pick him to open the batting and keep wickets. Instead, they asked Umar Akmal to don the gloves, who is not a regular wicketkeeper. Younis Khan was made to open the batting, for only the third time in his 15-year-long international career. This was done in order to play five bowlers, out of which only Sohail Khan was effective. Yasir Shah was played and he was too expensive. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: POINTS TABLE

But, Pakistan mustn’t allow the loss to dampen their spirits for there is a long way to go in this tournament. They would of course take inspiration from the 1992 World Cup winning side, which had in fact lost to India early in the tournament and went on the lift the trophy. Imran Khan’s “cornered tigers” scripted a miracle in the face of adversity. Then in 1999, Pakistan had lost to India in the Super Sixes, a game that was played in the midst of diplomatic tensions. However, they had managed to qualify for the final. Misbah has the responsibility of guiding his team towards a possible miracle.

Having said that, Pakistan have that monkey on their back for at least another four years, unless the sides meet again in the knock-out stage. At some point, they will manage a victory in a World Cup against India and end the losing streak. MS Dhoni also feels the same and he did not get carried away by his team’s victory. The Indian skipper was pragmatic as he said that it will happen at some point and that India’s winning streak will not go on forever. Though Dhoni often says he does not believe in statistics, he did cite the numbers to make a very sensible point. While India could be proud of their winning streak against their neighbours in World Cups, they should also not forget the fact that head-to-head, Pakistan lead them in ODIs.

(Nishad Pai Vaidya is a Correspondent with CricketCountry and anchor for the site’s YouTube Channel. His Twitter handle is @nishad_45)