It almost seemed that Pakistan were going to drop another dolly of an opportunity when in the final hour they struggled to eclipse Australia. The win will be a welcome respite for a lot of Pakistani fans but more so, it serves to substantiate the theory that Pakistan is a goldmine of talent that can achieve anything provided they: believe and sort out their internal conflicts.
In 1992, Imran Khan didn’t use magic sprays, creative boot camps or long training hours to get his team to the throne. It was all about motivation leading to belief and charisma that led to a single and undisputed point of leadership. In 2009, when Pakistan won the Twenty20, it was the same thing. Younis Khan had managed to rally his troops with the slogan that “lets do this for our shattered country”. Everything else became secondary. The green machines united with a immovable desire to bring some happiness to their fellow country men. The result was sweet victory.
And belief can only come when a team of 11 is not fractured into segments with their own pseudo-leaders. Every debacle you think of: whether it be the 2003 world cup, 2007 world cup, recent losses to Australia etc. can be traced back to weak leadership or factions that diminished the team’s ability to gel and operate like clockwork. The fact we’ve incessantly changed captains in the past decade indicates that the leadership’s always been a point of contention and controversy. When experienced players take over, they either don’t perform or work like dictators causing pain to the rest of the lot. And when the youth comes to take the hot seat of captaincy, the experienced set alight drops of flammable doubts.
I’m not going to say Salman Butt is the answer to our woes. Its too early to tell. Yes, he’s done a splendid job and Pakistan can only hope that he can build a sturdy team around himself and command respect despite his junior status. But the fact of the matter is, everyone on the team has to play for the game and not for themselves -regardless of who the captain is.
With the likes of gems like Aamer, Asif and Gul , our bowling department is regaining the potency it used to boast in the good old ages of the W pair. Moreover, budding batting stars like Umer Akmal show promise if they are continued to be polished. Everyone however has to think of himself as the part of the whole rather than the whole itself. This means avoiding complacency and addiction to status is key here. e.g. Aamer is a splendid bowler with pace, movement and finesse comparable to the great Wasim and Akhtar. However, if he takes the Akhtar route in an attempt to prove himself to be bigger than the game, he will surely suffer the same fate.
A Jinx is nothing but a state of mind. If one can overpower the fear of loss, talent will do the talking. We broke a similar jinx when we stopped a losing streak of ODIs to South Africa earlier in the decade, now we’ve done it against the juggernaut that is Australia. The next jinx I want Pakistan to aim to break is that they have against India in a 50 over World cup. The stage is set; they only have to get rid of the cobwebs in their head.
