Pakistan’s Champions Trophy final defeat of India showed that success in sport can emerge from a less managed environment with perseverance and craftRip up the ECB blueprint. Ditch the talent‑pathway, bin the nannying selection policies, puncture the sealed blue Lycra juggernaut. Pakistan are ICC Champions Trophy champions, a victory not just for Sarfraz Ahmed’s wonderfully balanced and skilful team, but also for the idea that success in sport can emerge from a less managed environment, from talent, perseverance and the sheer nerve and craft to seize the moment in front of you.If Imran Khan’s world champions were cornered tigers this Pakistan team are more a bunch of Manhattan alley cats, an agreeably feisty mix of strays, old hands and kittenish brio,...
Pakistan’s surge was complete in the Champions Trophy final, with Fakhar Zaman and Sarfraz Ahmed vital to their victoryFakhar Zaman neatly summed up the glorious chaos from which Pakistan seems to draw its cricketing strength, having begun the Champions Trophy as an uncapped drinks carrier and ended it with a maiden one-day international hundred in just his fourth appearance, an average of 63 and a shiny winner’s medal. There was chaos along the way in the left‑hander’s 114 from 106 balls too, not least the edge behind on three off a no-ball, the four leg-byes that pinged off his helmet in the following over and some wacky running that included the mix-up that left Azhar Ali run out. But the...
India thrashed Pakistan in the Champions Trophy group stages but the pace attack of Junaid, Hasan and Amir can deliver a much-needed tight finishNo matter where they meet, a cricket match between India and Pakistan brings parts of the globe to a standstill. It does not have to be a final but that is the treat in prospect this Sunday.While the partisans may wish for a one-sided victory at the Oval, the rest of us pine for a match that will be the vivid reminder of the 2017 Champions Trophy in years to come. No such contest has taken place so far. Related: India and Pakistan promise Champions Trophy final of contrasts fit for the age | Barney Ronay Related:...
There will be a temptation to paint England’s semi-final defeat by Pakistan as a failure but that would be unfair on many levelsOh, England. Plus ça change, plus c’est the same bleeding thing all over again. Engines revving, back seat loaded with buccaneering white-ball heroes, the England and Wales Cricket Board’s grand, musical Champions Trophy carnival float stalled decisively in Cardiff, undone by some familiar foes. For all the talk of adrenal new eras and white-hot modernity it was the old uncertainty batting first against nagging bowling on a grippy pitch that derailed England’s campaign against a Pakistan team who produced a wonderful all‑round performance in victory by eight wickets.In one sense we have been here before, most notably four...
Pakistan’s lack of batsmen who clear the ropes regularly means Sophia Gardens is likely to be more suited to their ‘old England’ style in Wednesday’s semi-finalSo it is England against Asia for the Champions trophy. Against expectation Pakistan and Bangladesh are semi-finalists – there is no surprise India have qualified. This should ensure all sides have vociferous support in Cardiff on Wednesday and at Edgbaston on Thursday. Even better, they say the sun is going to make an appearance as well. A fitting climax to the tournament is in prospect.Pakistan may not have taken on the role of cornered tigers, a description Imran Khan as captain coined so effectively in the 1992 World Cup in Australasia but Sarfraz Ahmed’s motley...