No team is as consistent in inconsistency as Pakistan and it was proved once again in Bangladesh when the hosts whitewashed Pakistan in the three-match ODI series and also won the only Twenty20 International at home last week.
It was Bangladesh’s first one-day series win against Pakistan in 29 years.
The most worrying aspect of the Bangladesh debacle is Pakistan’s slip to ninth position in the ICC ODI team rankings. They now sit just above Zimbabwe.
Pakistan, who had entered the Bangladesh series on 95 points and seventh position, now stand on the ninth place with 87 points.
West Indies with 88 and Bangladesh (87) are placed seventh and eighth, respectively.
Australia are at the top of the ODI rankings following their World Cup victory with 129 rating points. India remain in the second spot with 117 points, while World Cup runners-up New Zealand on third with 116 points.
In the ICC 2017 Champions Trophy, the top seven ranked teams and hosts England will compete and the cut-off date for qualification is September 30, 2015.
Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza is confident that his team will improve its ranking to make sure they remain in contention for direct entry into the next World Cup as well.
The confident Bangladesh skipper said that his team would prepare properly for the World T20 next year.
Before the deadline, Pakistan have eight ODIs to improve their ranking. First they will play three ODIs against Zimbabwe at home and then the national team will tour Sri Lanka where they will play five ODIs.
Pakistan are no longer the force they used to be in the late eighties and early nineties. The story of Pakistan losing because of batting failure has been repeated time and time again, but this was the first time when they were let down by the bowling attack against an ordinary batting line.
Pakistan bowling failed to get Bangladesh all out in any match of the ODI series. They managed to take only 11 wickets after conceding 820 runs, averaging 74 runs per wicket.
It was a poor show from a bunch of talented but unorganised players who didn’t have any game plan to face the opponents.
The domestic cricket needs to be overhauled so that talent is identified at an early stage and groomed properly.
It’s due to sub-standard teams in the domestic cricket that the talent in Pakistan does not get polished.
After the humiliating defeat in Bangladesh, Pakistan team was widely criticised and former players and critics asked the PCB chairman to change the management immediately.
PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan has said that changes are likely in Pakistan squad after the shameful defeat.
He admitted that Pakistan cricket team didn’t only lose, "we lost badly against Bangladesh." He pointed out flaws in the whole system including organisation, coaching and fitness that eventually led to defeat.
Pakistan’s batsmen score 20, 30 runs easily but when they are set and can play big innings throw their wickets with stupid shots.
The players who score record numbers of runs and take wickets regularly in domestic cricket fail to deliver the goods when chances are provided to them at the international level.