Beyond the boundary - Too Hot To Handle (29 May 1999)

29 May 1999

Beyond the boundary - Too Hot To Handle

Shakil Kasem

For the second day in a row, events relating to Group B followed the same mundane pattern. Talk of upset results remained just that, confined to the pubs and TV screens. Pakistan snuffed out the Kiwi challenge even before it could be mounted.

The Kiwis have been quite a disappointment so far, particularly as I had rated them fairly high in my pre-tournament projections. Another of the arm-chair critic's kiss of death you might say. Except for their win over a lackadaisical Australian side, Stephen Fleming and his men have shown no indication really to certify them to be front-runners anymore.

Pakistan in the meanwhile continued on their remorseless run to the top of the leader-board. South Africa may be high profile favourites, but Pakistan look a more dangerous side. The difference is elementary, my dear Watson. The South Africans have fairly average and mediocre players whose skills and commitment have been programmed to maximise their each and every move on a cricket field. The Pakistanis on the other hand, are streets ahead, man to man, as far as the sheer class and natural ability of the individuals are concerned. Under Wasim Akram, for the first time ever, Pakistan has been able to harness all the necessary ingredients to come up with a winning formula. The South African desire is kept under wraps, and at most, it could be considered to be seething below the surface. The Pakistanis show their hunger quite openly and make no qualms of the fact that they are out for the kill. On the field they petrify.

Against New Zealand, the Pakistan batting, after the initial and by now customary hiccup, put up 269 runs almost as a matter of course. It is an achievement bordering on the remarkable, that a nineteen year old Abdul Razzaq could bat at number three, putting on a most crucial partnership for the second match in a row. It is perhaps commonplace for the team to see him bowl an equally vital spell with the ball. This is the sort of advantages that Pakistan, with its almost embarrassing luxury of a surfeit of quality all rounders, can take at any time of the match. It is doubtful if any other side can match such an extra dimension that can be brought into play whenever required.

Pakistan carries a very heavy-duty armoury, both in terms of its batting and bowling. The sheer depth in both these areas have ensured that Pakistan are always able to post a total of 250 plus, which, in turn, can be defended through no great effort by the most balanced and lethal bowling attack in the business. In Shoaib Akhtar Pakistan has a bowler who can rock the batting side in the very first over itself. Sheer pace is always a frightening proposition. Allan Donald comes on as first or second change, without perhaps the same degree of intimidation for the batsman. Akhtar with a new hard ball, coming at a batsman at meteoric pace, does put the batting side under immediate pressure. It is all part of the plan that after the shake-up has been completed, the wiles and guiles of the old master Wasim Akram should mastermind the sequence of body blows.

The Pakistani ploys have served them well so far. They go into the Super Six with maximum points, barring the unexpected at Northampton. It would be cruel after all these days of near-perfect cricket if they were to miss out on the big stage thereafter. On present form that is highly unlikely. But Pakistan are their own enemies at times. How well they can come to terms with such a sustained level of aggressiveness has to be the moot question. At least for now, the odds are certainly in their favour.

Source :: The Daily Star