Big talk, no show: How Pakistan faced an embarrassing reality check

Champions Trophy 2025: Pakistan lost to India by six wickets on Sunday are on the cusp of being knocked out of the competition. Pakistan's fate isn't in their own hands after back-to-back losses in the competition.

In Short

• Pakistan slumped to a six-wicket defeat to India in Dubai
• Pakistan's ploy to bank on pacers backfired once again
• Pakistan are on the verge of an early exit from Champions Trophy

For Pakistan, Sunday was nothing short of a nightmare—both under daylight and floodlights. At the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, India's bowlers dominated them in the first innings, and later, Virat Kohli dismantled their bowling attack with ease. Just five days after the Champions Trophy, Pakistan now face the embarrassment of an early exit from the tournament despite being the hosts.

Apart from the first half-hour, when Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq stitched together a 41-run stand, Pakistan never looked in control against India. Although Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel built a 104-run partnership, it ultimately hurt their momentum, dragging the run rate down from nearly five in the 10th over to around 3.8 at one stage.

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For most of the match, Pakistan was on the back foot, and in the end, they surrendered rather meekly. Their elimination could become official depending on the result of the New Zealand vs. Bangladesh match on February 24 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

‘90s BOWLERS’ FAIL IN DUBAI

Looking at the numbers, Haris Rauf delivered the most expensive spell of the Champions Trophy so far, conceding 83 runs in his 10 overs (10-0-83-2) against New Zealand, and bowled with an economy rate of 7.42 against India. Shaheen Afridi fared no better, leaking 68 runs against the Kiwis without taking a wicket and recording a costly economy rate of 9.25 against India. Apart from his brilliant delivery to dismiss Rohit Sharma, Shaheen was largely erratic.

Before the clash against India, bowling coach Aaqib Javed was overly optimistic about Pakistan’s chances. While India’s match against Bangladesh made it clear that spin would play a crucial role in Dubai, Javed insisted that Pakistan’s pace trio—Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf—was strong enough to trouble India, even in conditions that didn’t particularly favour fast bowling.

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Javed went a step further, drawing comparisons between the trio and Pakistan’s legendary 90s pacers, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, when the team boasted one of the most formidable pace attacks in world cricket. He also claimed that India lacked an advantage in Dubai, as Pakistani cricketers were more familiar with the conditions, having played there frequently in the PSL and other domestic leagues.

“I mean look, I have heard lots of options and discussions going on. Other teams have too many spinners and we have lesser spin options. The teams play their game on their own strength. We have like a specialist three, I would say one of the best pace bowling options in today's game with Shaheen, Naseem, and Haris. It reminds me of the 90’s. So, I think reaching that level still they have time, but they have all the ability to repeat those sorts of performances,” Javed said in the pre-match press conference.

As for Pakistan’s spin attack, no surprises there—Abrar Ahmed was their most successful bowler. He dismissed Shubman Gill with a beauty and finished with impressive figures of 10-0-28-1. Meanwhile, for India, Kuldeep Yadav completely outfoxed the Pakistani batters, returning figures of 9-0-40-3. In the end, spin reigned supreme.

RIZWAN REFUSES TO CONCEDE BLUNDER

When Pakistan picked only Abrar in their bowling attack, they were criticised for including only spinner in their squad. Shadab Khan, Sufiyan Muqeem and Usama Mir were the other options. Mohammad Rizwan, in the post-match press conference, said that Pakistan picked one specialist spinner just how India did in the form of Kuldeep.

“We didn’t make a mistake by selecting only one spinner. If you look at the Indian team, they also have only one specialist spinner. (Ravindra) Jadeja and Axar (Patel) are all-rounders, just like our own Salman Ali Agha and Khushdil Shah,” Rizwan said.

But can Khushdil and Salman truly be compared to Jadeja and Axar? Jadeja boasts a staggering 604 wickets in international cricket, while Khushdil has yet to reach double figures. Axar, with 195 scalps for India, is far ahead of Salman, who has only 35.

Yes, Pakistan did opt for one specialist spinner like India, but the difference is stark—Jadeja and Axar are proven wicket-takers of the highest calibre, while Salman and Khushdil are merely capable of delivering a few dot balls here and there.

This is precisely where Pakistan needed an additional spinner to support Abrar. Instead, they opted to bring back Khushdil Shah and Faheem Ashraf—players without proven track records in international cricket.

It goes without saying that Pakistan are all but out of the Champions Trophy. They can only hope for now that they stay alive in the competition when they return to Pakistan to play their final league game against Bangladesh on February 27 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.