Old weaknesses

I would like to congratulate England on, once again, becoming the T20 champions of the world and also the Pakistan team, for reaching the finals against all odds. However, we must learn from our mistakes and come back stronger. While we managed to reach the finals, our progression was largely down to the Netherland’s surprise victory against South Africa. We must realize that our batting has consistently struggled over the last year or so, failing more often than not. We failed to set a respectable total against any team except the Netherlands.

It has always been our great bowling attack that has helped us snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. I am not sure if it is the batting order or poor selection, but something has to change if we are ever to assemble a line-up that can score 200 runs against good teams. Another area that needs more focus and fine-tuning is fielding. Be it field placement or taking clean catches, our performance in this area is not on par with the top teams in the world. Overall, good bowling, with a side of luck and prayers, is not a recipe for consistency. We must improve our batting and fielding to become true champions.

Raja Shafaatullah

Islamabad