Just when the fans were beginning to disarray after a no contest between Pakistan and India in the first match of champions trophy, the men in green were spurred into a historic resurgence which astonished every cricket fan. The hurt camp mustered all the positive energy and ended up winning three games on the trot to book a berth in the finals. That was some comeback that will be remembered for years to come. It was nothing short of a miracle to see an exciting bunch of players turning the tables so quickly. The belief in Sarfraz XI grew exponentially with every game and they were simply roaring in the final.
Pakistan was put to bat first in the all-important final of the Champions Trophy (CT). Here they were against their archrivals in a fervent jam-packed stadium with a rather partisan Indian crowd. It was contrary to the successful template that Pakistan executed in the knockout games where they limited South Africa, Sri Lanka, and England to below par scores and chased down modest totals with ease, probably barring the Sri Lanka nail-biter.
It wasn’t a breezy start by any means in the final with Azhar and the flamboyant Fakhar Zaman being tentative, trying to rotate the strike dealing in scampered singles, but then few odd boundaries by Azhar helped construct a strong foundation. Fakhar began to find his feet as the innings progressed. Fortune favoured the brave and Bumrah’s no ball gave the audacious Fakhar his one life. He then went on to fashion his maiden hundred, putting Pakistan in the driving seat. Fakhar was the find of the tournament for Pakistan, a revelation in CT, the former Navy personnel played with his heart on his sleeve providing the much-needed impetus at the top of the order. Pakistan has unearthed a match winner who takes the game head on and is surely going to be invaluable for Pakistan in years to come.
We saw the gripping cricket that fans anticipate from a Pakistan-India clash. More importantly, the jinx got broken against India. The competitiveness has been missing in Indo-Pak matches off late, but this thumping win will surely bring back the exhilarating contests in clashed ahead.
This resilience shown by Pakistan was unprecedented. The team was down and out after being annihilated by India in the first match, but then Pakistan played out of their skin to overpower top sides. A half-fit Amir was simply sensational to get the ball talking on the flattest of decks and caused a havoc in the Indian dressing room. He bowled some rippers in his hostile spell that took the life out of Indian solid batting line-up.
Hassan Ali, the golden bowl winner was sharp with his bowling in the middle overs, darting those rippers, troubling many batsmen. The best dismissal, in my opinion, was of Wayne Parnell against South Africa where the off stump went cartwheeling with a jaffa. The reverse swing magic earned Hassan 13 wickets.
After an amazing run in Champions Trophy, a lesson must be learned by the management, selection committee, and all stakeholders. They must not hesitate in introducing new players who are toiling hard in the domestic circuit. Having faith in youngsters can win you tournaments. Henceforth, persisting with players who haven’t performed up to the mark and given too many chances to come through must not be the way forward.
This tournament win certainly marks the beginning of a new era for Pakistan’s cricket. A dynamic bunch of players, spearheaded by a confident captain, backed by a coherent coaching staff turned the tables in Pakistan’s favour.They can dream bigger now and work with this unit for World Cup which is in two years’ time.
Pakistani fans are over the moon with this victory that will be remembered for a long time, a cricket-starved nation needed this for multitude reasons. Pakistan brought life to this tournament and the unpredictably of our team was enthralling to witness for any ardent cricket fan.