Azhar got it right when it mattered

Hats off to India for playing professionally and raising their game to beat arch rivals Pakistan convincingly at Old Trafford. It was int...

Hats off to India for playing professionally and raising their game to beat arch rivals Pakistan convincingly at Old Trafford. It was intuitive stuff from Azharuddin that was galvanised into positive strategy on Tuesday.Azhar did everything right when it mattered most. He won an important toss and bravely opted to bat first when conditions looked good for bowling. He backed his decision with a timely half century, and later, stood out from the rest of the field with inspired catching and brilliant leadership.It was obvious from the start that Indians meant business. Their decision to bat showed character, and threw the challenge to the much-fancied Pakistan bowling attack. Sachin Tendulkar was convincing against the speed of Shoaib Akhtar and the guile of Wasim Akram.

His opening partnership with Ramesh, who was drafted into the side because of an injury to Ganguly, must have calmed the nerves of the batsmen watching from the dressing room. More importantly, it assured his mates that the decision to batfirst was the right one. On the Pakistan side, the couple of changes made on the morning of this crucial match made did not merit selection. The shaky Shahid Afridi was preferred over a compact looking Wajahatullah Wasti, and the out-of-form Salim Malik was included. These changes made the entire process of selecting the team seem painfully thoughtless.

To make matters worse, the captain came out with an astonishing remark during the interview after the toss, claiming the tie to be a practice session for future important games that the team is likely to feature in during the World Cup. This absurd remark must have worked like a tonic for the Indians, whose body language was visibly positive, and for once, their cricket seemed to be making a statement.

The last few days have not been special for the Pakistan team. Their loss to Bangladesh confirmed their lack of technique and strategy in chasing targets. The defeat at the hands of South Africa inexplicably made the captain lose his composure, when he camedown heavily on his best and fastest Shoaib Akhtar. He made it no secret that he blamed Shoaib for South Africa8217;s impressive victory.

The Indians were only too happy to prey on both these negative shades that had crept into the Pakistan team. Shoaib, who was clearly looking to curtail the run flow instead of taking wickets, adopted a defensive approach. This meant the Indians did not have to fend off the pace of the demon fast bowler. Pakistan, however, clawed back into the Indian batting when the support bowlers, Azhar Mahmood and Abdur Razzaq picked up wickets to slow down the run rate. However, they came up against an in-form Rahul Dravid and a crafty Azhar, both of whom notched up fifties to see India reach a fighting total of 227.

The Indian fast bowlers then got rid of the Pakistan top order. Saeed, Ijaz and Inzamam got going but none of them played the long innings that is essential from the batsmen if a run chase is to be successful.

Moin offered a flicker of hope by playing some exciting shotsin the middle overs. However, he could not and cannot be expected to win a match for the team every time.

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Technically speaking, Moin, Azhar Mahmood and Wasim can only provide impetus through improvisation in one-day cricket, and that too in short bursts. It is highly unlikely that these all-rounders will do a long repairing job and build up an entire inning. The Pakistanis could not take the tremendous pressure that was exerted by the Indian bowlers, especially Venkatesh Prasad, who bowled like a champion. The Indian fans of course had a wonderful day as the Pakistan line-up folded up meekly, thus giving their team an outside chance to sneak through to the semi-finals.