World Cup 2019: It’s Not All Over for Pakistan

By
Arijah Siddiqui
|



                                                 Trophy of ICC Cricket World Cup 2019

World Cup is more of an emotion than an event. Energy, sentiments, discussions, and suppositions are dependably going all out amid it. Fans and followers constantly fell profound about their favorite cricket teams and the trophy, thus, they are sincerely invested in the feelings. Be that as it may, now and then, it's smarter to help yourself out by not getting emotionally driven in the game.

Truly, at long last following a period of four years, it's now the ideal opportunity for Pakistan to rehash history and take motivation from twenty-seven years back. 

With each second passing, my nervousness was getting high. I was energetically believing that the night would pass and I would be able to see my top favorites playing their tournament opener against West Indies.

                 Pakistani fans outside Trent Bridge, Nottingham before the start of Pak vs WI match.

The sun rose and I could see the sunny spells in the sky. It was crest noon when the match began. At long last, the holdup ended. The first thing that I saw on television was that West Indies have won the toss and they have chosen to bowl first.

I heard Sarfaraz speaking pre-match about the fact that it was so essential to survive the first couple of overs so as to keep up the stream and rhythm of the batting line. The initial two overs were effectively played without a wicket loss.

 Left: Fakhar Zaman, Right: Imam-ul-Haq, ready to enter the field.  Photo: AFP

Fakhar and Imam, all geared up, were entering the field. Pakistani fans in the crowd were chanting "Dil Dil Pakistan and Pakistan Zindabad, Pakistan Zindabad".

Somewhere inside, I thought we would win. Fasting, I prayed.

The match began.

I thought to get up and iron my clothes for an Iftar get together at my friend's place. I turned on the iron and heard my sisters yelling:

"Bas beta, Imam gya."

Pakistani opener Imam-ul-Haq after losing his wicket against West Indies in the opener match of ICC CWC19. Photo: AFP
 

I anticipated that Fakhar and Babar would assemble a strong base for the middle order to proceed with the striking flow.

But Alas!

Yet, too bad, Pakistan lost Fakhar at 35 runs, Haris Sohail at 45 runs, and after that it went all down like a domino: 62/4, 75/5, 77/6, 78/7, 81/8, 83/9, Almighty blesses Wahab Riaz for hitting two sixes-105/10.

 Wahab Riaz got bowled after scoring 18 runs off 11 balls with one four and two sixes. Photo: AFP

Where Pakistan lost TEN wickets at the score of 105 in 21.4 overs, most Pakistani fans lost HOPE.

Everybody lost expectations and Pakistan lost the match.

But it’s still not all over for Pakistan

Playing the World Cup for over 40 years, we have not constantly won. There have been times when we lost in the group stages, we lost in the semi-finals, and we were thumped out, under the supervision of legend cricket stars. However, then there was the year 1992 when our team at long last broke the losing streak and not just won the World Cup under the captaincy of Imran Khan, yet in addition, won the hearts of Pakistanis all around the world.

Pakistan won the World Cup under the captaincy of Imran Khan in the year 1992. 

It's been three days and I can still observe individuals illogically trying to characterize Pakistan's thrashing with some sort of pessimistic synthesis, but it's not how it has been done in the history. This isn't the place where the hypothetical rationale exists, it’s about fortunes and lucks.

Misfortunes and fortunes occur with everyone and everywhere, so for what reason do we think our cricket team as an alien?

We have been catching the wind of Miandad's last ball sixer, Imran XI losing their first match of the 1992 World Cup against West Indies, yet then lifting the trophy in the final of the same event; these genuine occasion cricket stories are being traveled down the ages and still aren't wiped out and never will be.

Six off the last ball to win a match against your bitter rival. Javed Miandad hits the match-winning sixer against India in the final of Sharjah Cup 1986.
 

These are the moments of our cricket history which have kept this feeling and devotion in me invigorated. It's been 27 years, yet at the same time, nobody can forget the haunting over of Wasim Akram in the last with the ideal reverse swing, the minute prompting Imran Khan lifting up the trophy for us.

It's now an opportunity for Pakistan to rehash history and take motivation from twenty-seven years back.

Regardless of losing twelve continuous ODI matches, it's yet not all over for Pakistan. Expectations and confidence can be restored. Legends of the past may be unparalleled, but our players do have the ability to take their legacy more steps higher.

Pakistan cricket team leaving the ground after losing their opener match. Photo: AFP

Why overlook the fact that we lost our first match in ICC Champions Trophy 2017 too, yet at the same time we won since we believed or maybe most of you did not. It was more or less the same team. When they can win for us once, they can win for us twice, thrice, and that's just the beginning.

I can imagine our Sarfaraz holding the trophy high in the sky, much the same as he did in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017.

Pakistan lifts the winning trophy after beating India in the final of ICC Champions Trophy 2017. Photo: AFP

We cannot accuse or criticize the team alone. For what reason would some player purposely drop down the opportunity of turning into a hero? You know, you perform in the World Cup and you become a legend, a star, to be remembered for ages. The success, which is albeit once in a blue moon in a mega event for us, accompanies endless popularity and love from the nation.

We, as Pakistanis, rather than scouring salt over the burnt, ought to put in our faith and pray for our team's prosperity. It's them who can do right by us again and we will be narrating their success accounts to our kids and grandkids as if they get the chance to lift the trophy.

Pakistani skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed.

Our captain right now will be going through a profound emotional process of realizing, reasoning, and strategizing on the grounds that he is the one being emotionally and verbally attacked the most. Right now, Sarfaraz has a heap of millions of feelings on his back. He'll be lying down with his eyes wide open with the haunting thought of losing another game.

Rather than blaming the cricket team and particularly the skipper, we should look more into the off-screen management of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the administration framework behind our cricket, the subject who claims the game. I have been watching domestic tournaments for the last three years and I assure you of the absence of appropriate foundations, infrastructures, and approaches in the game. How could a nation’s national cricket team progress if its domestic infrastructure is unorganized?

Pakistan cricket team leaving the ground after losing their opener match of the tournament against West Indies. Photo: AFP
 

There are good and bad times. Each great accompanies an awful and the other way around, each mishap gets re-established to a fortune at the ideal time destined for success. Our team should take motivation from the historical revivals which we have faced. It's not the first event that we are playing on foreign shores, it has always been like this, more of non-Asian pitches.

We have a clear page in the present to rewrite the history on. It's the same Muhammad Amir who took 3 wickets in the Pak vs WI opener match that I am talking about above, who bulldozed India in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 and he will accomplish more.

Players celebrated as Muhammad Amir (middle) took a wicket against India in the final of ICC Champions trophy 2017. Photo: AFP
 

It's the same Fakhar Zaman, who was sufficiently blessed to get a not out at a no-ball by India's Bumrah with his score of 3 after reviewing the third umpire and then he annihilated the rival's bowling line-up with a mirror-cracking maiden ODI hundred and win for Pakistan. This demonstrates that it just pauses for a minute to reverse the situation around.

Pakistani opener Fakhar Zaman after scoring his maiden mirror cracking ODI hundred against India in Champions Trophy 2017 final. Photo: AFP
 

We, as Pakistanis, need to accept and re-establish our faith in the team. I am extremely vexed yet at the same time but still, I need to live for the day when we celebrate as our elders did in 1992. It's our opportunity to rise and shine.

There are being progressively basic and negative musings on our cricket team yet how about we lift our heads up and look for prosperity and peace without dread and logical amalgamation. We should restrict ourselves to mix fear and logic. We should motivate our team and feel confident enough.

Pakistani fans cheering up for their team at Trent Bridge, Nottingham during the opener match.

All my well wishes are with Pakistan's National Cricket Team. I wish them to bravely play their normal game and keep themselves full of faith and hopes. As they have also been labeled as "unpredictable", I am eagerly waiting for July 14th, to hear,

"And what a delivery. Pakistan has finally become the World Champions after 27 years"