A tale of two Pakistans

Looking at the first official ICC Test Championship table, it initially seems mistaken to see Pakistan ranked a lowly 8th. Until recently, Pakistan were widely regarded as the No. 3 side in the world, after the Aussies and the South Africans.

No. 8 appears an anomalous position for the team that likes to proclaim itself the most talented in the world. Although surprising at first, Pakistan’s dismal rating is in fact perfectly justified.

Pakistan has drawn or lost five of its past six series, and it will drop at least one more point for failing to win in England. The team that is traditionally called enigmatic, unpredictable and talented now earns a new adjective: bad. And, in addition to that, slightly overrated.

A contest involving Pakistan used to be a marquee series, but with awful form away from home, that is no longer justified. Now Pakistan even struggles to win at home on familiar pitches.

Unlike Australia, which is close to a transitional phase but is masking it well, Pakistan is also experiencing a kind of transitional period but is doing so painfully. The brilliant Wasim and Waqar are apparently winding down, and although exciting prospects invariably abound, Pakistan thus far have no fast bowlers who have proved themselves capable of succeeding the famed duo.

On the batting front, Ijaz Ahmed seems permanently gone, though one never can be entirely sure; and the formidable Inzamam and classy Anwar are 31 and 32 years old respectively. Yousuf Youhana, Younis Khan and Faisal Iqbal are the exciting faces of the future, but aren’t yet ready to carry Pakistan’s notoriously brittle batting.

To the casual cricket follower, Pakistan appears in a perpetual state of turmoil, enduring sundry controversies, but despite the odd suspicious upset Pakistan’s cricket has generally remained impressive. Lately, that turmoil has been reflected on the field with an unusually poor string of results from one of cricket’s most powerful and fascinating teams.

What other team has a wicketkeeper with a website accusing former and current team-mates of match-fixing?

The feeling remains that Pakistan are a world-class side, but there’s little evidence to support it. Let’s use an easy example. As the two fastest bowlers in the world, Brett Lee and Shoaib Akhtar are often compared. They are perceived as sharing the same status on the world stage, but the differences in achievement between the two is vast. In 7 Tests, Lee has proven himself a dynamic bowler with 42 wickets at 16.07. Shoaib, viewed as being on the same level, has 46 in 16 matches at 36.45. He has the reputation, without the performance to support it.

As with several of the Pakistanis, Shoaib has forged his formidable reputation in one-day cricket without being able to translate spectacular limited-overs feats into the Test arena. The same is true of emerging all-rounders Abdur Razzaq and Azhar Mahmood. While most would agree they have the potential to become outstanding players, and are already superb cricketers at the flashier but less meaningful form of the game, they are yet to conclusively prove themselves at the highest level.

Mahmood made a significant stride towards lasting credibility as Pakistan’s best bowler in the first Test against England, but is probably not yet able to hold his place as either a batsman or bowler alone. The same could be said for Razzaq. The line between excelling in both fields and not being good enough to cement your place in either is a fine one. Even Saqlain Mushtaq, rightfully recognised as a brilliant off-spinner, probably has not returned the Test results his skill deserves, while remaining arguably the best one-day bowler in the world.

England, player for player, are not a discernibly better side than Pakistan. But as the Pakistanis are renowned for overlooking to their detriment, cricket is a team sport, and England have proven themselves far ahead in that department recently. Where they have let themselves down in the past, it seems as though England are finally playing to their fullest potential, with committed if unimaginative batting and a successful new ball pairing. Unity -- a talent one suspects Pakistan have still to cultivate -- seems to have had a positive affect.

Pakistan have rarely played to their potential, an oft-bemoaned point. They continue, though, to claim to be the “most talented side in the world.” Essentially, this translates to: “We’re better than you, but aren’t good enough to prove it,” and actually depends on your definition of talent.

What about the talent to work hard? The talent to concentrate? The talent to extract the most from your talent? They are just as much gifts as the ability to play many shots or bowl fast.

The first Test loss to England was not a surprise. Pakistan had the appearance of a team still warming up and unprepared for a smoothly-operating England outfit, something which is not entirely the fault of the team given its limited preparation. The failure to make use of the seaming pitch and the loss of wickets to continued edges behind the wicket provided a confident England with all the opportunity they needed to record an innings victory.

There is no reason to believe Waqar Younis won’t make a suitable captain, even if Pakistan were to lose the series 2-0. But, as he would know, it’s unlikely he’ll be given time to prove it before the reins are handed to someone else in the impatient search for instant gratification.

As much as Pakistan are struggling right now, it would be foolish to think they will remain towards the bottom of the Test Championship for a sustained length of time. Once the inexperienced players establish themselves under steady leadership, it’s easy to envision Pakistan returning to its previous form and clichéd descriptions: enigmatic, unpredictable, talented…

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