Malik firm to carry form into remaining games

Shoaib Malik, the architect of Pakistan’s superb win over India on Saturday, remains confident that his match-winning knock was not a one-off spectacle and hopes to carry his form through to the next crucial matches of the Champions Trophy.

“When a team puts up a 300-plus total, the opposition is always under pressure even with aggressive starts,” said Malik during a chat with the media. “It was tough chasing under lights and the fact that we put up 300, it also added to the psychological pressure.”

I was quite content with my performance. It was difficult at the start and I had to adopt a defensive approach to my batting because stability was what the team needed. I blocked and blocked since the team had lost quick wickets that added to the pressure on me,” explained the all-rounder. “However, there came a point where I could play my natural game and could afford to attack. The resulting century was a joyous occasion for me, Pakistan’s win against India putting it into a different context. I’m very happy we won and I want to carry my form [second century on the tour so far] into the remaining matches.”

Meanwhile, Indian captain MS Dhoni was candid about his team’s shortcomings in the crucial game. “Pakistan bowlers exploited the conditions well, they had fielders in the right places and batted knowing fully well what was required,” said Dhoni. “We failed at that, lost too many wickets, gave away too many runs, bowled too short and a safe line and there were chances we could’ve created but we weren’t consistent with out line. In conditions like these, you have to change and adjust accordingly. We had to be smart but we weren’t and in the end, we could’ve done a lot better in the match.”

“At one point I thought we were short on three bowlers. It was an off day for Harbhajan and I didn’t know who to turn to, who to bowl, where to bowl and what field to place. The shots went into the gaps and it became really tough in the middle.”

While the Indian captain felt the heat, Younis, with the fractured right-hand finger, was happy with his side’s performance and looked forward to the match against Australia.

“I’m glad we made our own way to the semi-finals instead of relying on other teams. I’m also happy since I decided to play this match despite the injury as I would’ve definitely missed being out in the middle if I had opted to sit out. Even if we had lost, my risk would’ve been worth taking and people would’ve agreed that I tried instead of hiding. I’m glad with what we achieved and how the players responded in all three departments of the game and it was a great feeling to beat the top-ranked ODI team in the world by 50-plus runs.”

© Faras Ghani 2009.
Published in DAWN newspaper, Sep 29, 2009