<\/p>\n
KARACHI: Just a month ago, Pakistan were riding high as the world\u2019s top-ranked ODI team and one of the favourites to win the World Cup in India.<\/p>\n
But a crushing 228-run defeat to arch-rivals India and a narrow two-wicket loss to Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup have cast a shadow over their prospects.<\/p>\n
This unpredictability is a constant feature for Pakistan, who frequently swing between highs and lows.<\/p>\n
Adding to their challenges, the team suffered a major blow with the loss of key fast bowler Naseem Shah, who was ruled out of the World Cup with a shoulder injury.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, team director Mickey Arthur remains optimistic.<\/p>\n
\u201cLosing a player of Naseem\u2019s calibre is a massive setback,\u201d Arthur told AFP<\/em>. \u201cBut we have a mix of experienced and young bowlers who are more than capable of stepping up to the challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n To fill the void, Pakistan have recalled experienced pacer Hasan Ali, who has regained fitness after finger surgery last month.<\/p>\n Arthur, Pakistan\u2019s head coach at the 2019 World Cup when they failed to make the semi-finals, is confident the team can bounce back from recent disappointments.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a very capable team that can turn things around. Remember that we were ranked number one before the Asia Cup, and we\u2019ve only lost two games,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThis team has the potential to go all the way.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The challenges facing the team reflect the broader issues plaguing Pakistan, including a struggling economy, rampant inflation, and political turmoil, with cricket legend Imran Khan, who led Pakistan to their only World Cup victory in 1992, currently behind bars.<\/p>\n The Pakistan Cricket Board has also seen instability, with three different chiefs in the last 10 months and current leader Zaka Ashraf uncertain about his position.<\/p>\n On the field, Babar Azam faces the dual challenge of lifting the team\u2019s performance and improving his own much-criticised captaincy.<\/p>\n Despite being the top-ranked ODI batter, Babar had a lacklustre Asia Cup, scoring just 207 runs in four matches \u2014 151 of those came against Nepal.<\/p>\n However, Babar remains confident that the team can overcome its issues.<\/p>\n \u201cOur preparation for the World Cup is on track despite our Asia Cup setbacks,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n In addition to concerns about spinners Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz not taking enough wickets, opener Fakhar Zaman \u2014 a specialist in white-ball cricket \u2014 has been struggling with form.<\/p>\n Fakhar, the only Pakistan batter to score a double century in an ODI, managed just 65 runs in four Asia Cup matches and was on the brink of being dropped.<\/p>\n The middle-order, comprising wicket-keeper\/batter Moham\u00admad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, and Saud Shakeel, needs to fire on all cylinders if Pakistan hope to qualify for the semi-finals, a stage they last reached in 2011.<\/p>\n Despite these challenges, Pakistan remains a formidable and unpredictable team, capable of upsetting expectations, particularly on slow and turning pitches in India, conditions similar to those they are accustomed to at home.<\/p>\n Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2023<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" KARACHI: Just a month ago, Pakistan were riding high as the world\u2019s top-ranked ODI team and one of the favourites to win the World Cup in India. But a crushing 228-run defeat to arch-rivals India and a narrow two-wicket loss to Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup have cast a shadow over their prospects. This […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/large\/2023\/09\/651601d972c8c.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-news"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t