Published: Mar 20, 2011, 09:32 AM (IST)
Edited: Mar 14, 2014, 06:07 PM (IST)
By Jamie Alter
Pakistan make it so crazily worthwhile for their patriotic fans to follow them when they are in the kind of mood they were in on Saturday against Australia. On such days, they hustle when they bowl, they taunt when they field, and they try to bully with the bat even when the chips are down. On such days, they’re impossible to keep away. On such days, they’re right in the opposition’s faces, politeness be damned. On such days, they threaten to throw it all away before better sense prevails. On such days, a venue as far removed from home resembles the days of Sharjah when the fans cheered Pakistan’s every move.
The last time Australia had lost a World Cup match was way back on May 23, 1999. Their opponents? Pakistan. In this World Cup, Australia have huffed and puffed but haven’t been able to really blow anyone away. On Saturday, carried single-handedly by Brett Lee, they came close to defending 176 but weren’t able to outdo the Pakistani spirit.
Leading with the ball was Umar Gul who, as Michael Holding recently predicted, was just about to turn it on after performing consistently all tournament. Shahid Afridi has been Pakistan’s spearhead and leading wicket-taker, but it has been Gul who has pounded in every match, over after over, bowling fast and straight. Against Zimbabwe, under overcast skies, he turned it on and the Man-of-the-Match award was a shoo-in.
In different circumstances on Saturday, Gul was no less threatening against a better side. He offered little room, hit the right areas, and reaped the rewards. His first scalp was the biggest of them all, and the ball that bowled Australia’s Most Valuable Player, Shane Watson, was a peach. It pitched on a lovely length, jagged back sharply, and clipped middle and off. Throughout his opening spell, Gul kept at it, pitching in the right areas, digging it in just short of a length and working up good pace. Crucially, he made the batsmen play.
With Steve Smith and Jason Krejza starting to annoy with a last-ditch stand, Afridi wasn’t about to take his foot off the gas and tossed the ball to his go-to bowler. Almost immediately, Gul produced a lovely in-swinging yorker to castle Krejza. Lee tried to hit Gul over the top, but the mistimed slog landed in Misbah-ul-Haq’s hands at mid-off. Again Gul had provided relief; his two spells read 5-1-16-1 and 2.4-0-14-2.
Pakistan’s spinners also got it right. Mohammad Hafeez was particularly impressive in bottling up one end and bowled out his 10 overs for only 26, picking up the wicket of Ricky Ponting. Under weighty skies, with Australia’s batsmen in a tangle over spin and seam, Abdur Rehman gained appreciable drift and turn, ending with one for 34 from his quota.
Afridi wasn’t at his best, but yet again tied up one ends and marked his name in the wickets column. Abdul Razzaq wasn’t called on until the 35th over, but when he did all he needed to do was pitch is straight and on a length, and was rewarded with two for eight from four overs. Ultimately, Pakistan gathered impetus and didn’t look back.
Australia weren’t helped by some rash shots, but than can be countered with the fact that Pakistan applied the pressure and the batsmen found themselves needing to break free. Australia’s problem might have arisen from a need to change their mind-set – and the subsequent failure to do so.
They needed to switch from a get-out-of-jail approach to a get down-and-dirty-to-reach-a-competitive-total tactic. Instead, Michael Clarke heaved across the line and Michael Hussey chipped to midwicket. A more embedded method could have got them to 210, a total which could have proved tricky later in the day.
Chasing 177 shouldn’t have been too tricky even at the Premadasa, but what is a Pakistan win without a bit of a slip-up? True to their nature, the top order stumbled and then, just when it appeared stability had been restored, Pakistan allowed Lee to snap up two wickets in two balls.
But for the second game running, young Asad Shafiq stood up to be counted. Shafiq managed some good knocks during the tour of England last year but slipped again after that, returning with an unbeaten 78 against Zimbabwe earlier this week. He now knows that he cannot take his place for granted but Saturday’s knock, seen in that light, will settle Shafiq’s nerves.
And then there was Umar Akmal. Cocky, ballsy, immensely talented Umar Akmal, who earlier in the day gave Brad Haddin a piece of his mind. In the overall picture, it was his bat which did all the talking, and Akmal emerged the man to put Pakistan back on course. Walking in at 98 for four, he stuck around to complete the win. Sitting with his pads on, Akmal had looked on as a low target suddenly acquired a new dimension with Lee turning in a splendid display. He wasn’t going to buckle so easily.
Lee was nonchalantly crashed for four, Mitchell Johnson tapped for boundaries and Krejza dumped for six over long-on. Then Akmal settled to preoccupy himself with finding singles, creating gaps and running hard. He steered and nudged and when the chance came, belted the odd boundary. It’s early days yet but Pakistan could conceive a middle order with Akmal and Shafiq as the pivots.
Player for player, this Pakistan team has the skill and experience to challenge any opposition. The batting seems, on paper at least, to be a fine blend of experience and youth: the explosiveness of Afridi and Razzaq complemented by the class of Younis Khan and the grit of Misbah-ul-Haq.
The brothers Akmal and Shafiq add a dash of pizazz. Pakistan have yet to unearth a stable opening act, but the others have been able to smooth that over. The bowing is, arguably, even more varied with Gul and Razzaq being helped along by the promise of Wahab Riaz and Afridi supported by Rehman and Hafeez.
Victory will have lifted their morale, but Pakistan need to ensure the momentum is maintained through the rest of the competition, in knock-out matches which will require their batsmen to pace their innings and bat longer, and for their bowlers to sustain their intensity.
Their next challenge appears a tricky one, most likely against a team they haven’t played since September 2009, on a track that promises plenty of turn. It’s a daunting task, but for inspiration Pakistan need to look no further than Saturday’s match. On days like Saturday, they’re simply irresistible.
(Jamie Alter is a freelance cricket writer, having worked at ESPNcricinfo and All Sports Magazine. His first book, The History of World Cup Cricket, is out now. His twitter feed is @jamie_alter)
