When the Marathas realised that the south of the Yamuna was captured by Abdali, they dug their heels in near Panipat to deny him access to Afghanistan.

Slowly, Abdali encircled the Maratha army and cut off their supply line.

The Afghans continued to get the supplies they needed due to their agreements with a few north Indian kingdoms. Therefore, their need to open up the route towards Afghanistan was not that urgent.

But it was a desperate situation for the Maratha army who were expecting reinforcements from the south of the Narmada instead of the neighbouring states.

Lesson: It is important to do 'what if' contingency analysis planning for various scenarios. This upfront analysis may trigger a new partnership or alignment which could benefit the company.

Sometimes, one has to provide new concessions to gain the required support and solidify one's position. Both wars and businesses can benefit from a deep multi-step scenario analysis.