New Delhi: Sunday’s victory for India in the ICC Champions Trophy match extended its dominance over Pakistan in One Day International cricket since 2010, with India winning 13 out of 18 encounters in the last 15 years. However, the much-talked about rivalry seems to have lost its edge, even fizzled out. Not just Pakistan’s inconsistent form but also the infrequent encounters between the two cricketing nations can be faulted for this.
India registered a 6-wicket win over Pakistan in an almost one-sided clash in Dubai on Sunday. Virat Kohli’s unbeaten 100 helped India achieve the target of 242 runs set by Pakistani batters. While India has sealed a spot in the semifinals, Pakistan’s Champions Trophy hopes were crushed when New Zealand defeated Bangladesh on Monday, February 24.
The neighbouring country’s sub-par performance in the two Champions Trophy matches—a 60-run defeat at the hands of New Zealand and the loss to India—has invited sharp criticism from fans and former Pakistan cricketers and fans.
Shoaib Akhtar, former Pakistani fast bowler, didn’t hold back. In a video on X, he slammed the Pakistan cricket team management and called it “brainless and clueless”.
Cricket analyst Tanvi Takane, pointed out that Pakistan’s struggles in the middle overs and its inability to build partnerships were central to the batting collapse.
“Mohammad Rizwan, despite scoring 46 runs off 77 balls, found it difficult to rotate the strike effectively, which slowed down Pakistan’s momentum in the middle overs and placed unnecessary pressure on the lower order,” Takane explained.
According to her, Pakistan’s batters need to improve their strike rotation and accelerate their innings, especially in the middle overs. “A more aggressive batting approach and sharper bowling execution will be the key to improving performances in upcoming matches,” she added.
The tight finishes, charged atmosphere in the stadiums are now a distant memory. “As things stand now, this rivalry exists only in name,” said R Kaushik, an independent cricket writer with more than three decades of experience.
“India has come a long way as an ODI team while Pakistan is still caught in a time warp, conservative and playing a brand of cricket that might have been more suited to, perhaps, the 1990s.”
Pakistan, currently, has become a shadow of what was once a formidable team in the late 1980s and early 1990s, holding an edge over India.
The rivalry, marked by high intensity and thrilling encounters, saw Pakistan consistently getting the better of India. One of the most notable instances was the 1987 Test and ODI series in India, where Pakistan not only dominated with their bowling but also displayed excellent batting.
India was defeated 1-0 in Tests and 5-1 in the ODI series.
Team India struggled, unable to handle the likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram and Javed Miandad, who were in their prime.
Pakistan’s victories in those years solidified its reputation as a cricketing powerhouse in South Asia, with India often at the receiving end of crushing defeats.
However, starting from the late 90s and early 2000s, Indian cricket underwent a transformation. One of the most defining moments came in 2003 during the ICC World Cup, when India defeated Pakistan in a group-stage match, setting the stage for a new era.
The late 2000s saw a shift in momentum, with India consistently outperforming Pakistan in ICC tournaments, culminating in India’s World Cup win in 2007 and 2011. The period saw the Indian team establish itself as a global cricketing force, leaving Pakistan struggling in comparison.
As of today, Pakistan cricket is in a period of decline.
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Struggle with the white ball
Aside from their 2017 Champions Trophy win, Pakistan has struggled to achieve success in white-ball cricket since the 2009 T20 World Cup victory. The country is revamping its home pitches to prioritise pace over spin in red-ball cricket.
Pakistan has also failed to reach the semi-final in the last three ODI World Cups. One reason, according to Kaushik, is that there was no international cricket in Pakistan for six years after the attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in 2009.
“Another could be the short-sightedness of the administrators,” he said.
Since the win at the 2017 Champions Trophy final against India at The Oval, Pakistan has suffered six straight defeats against India. In the seven T20 internationals the two nations played in that period, India won five and Pakistan two.
“India has always been better off against Pakistan in both the 50-over and the T20 World Cups,” said Kaushik, who has co-authored the autobiographies of cricketing legends GR Vishwanath and VVS Laxman. He explained how India-Pakistan matches always generated excitement and interest because the sides were evenly matched and replete with superstars.
“Now, the hype is largely artificial because this is no longer a battle between equals,” he added.
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Ashes vs India-Pakistan—greatest rivalry?
The debate over which is the greatest rivalry—the Ashes tournament or the India-Pakistan encounters—has always sparked intense discussion.
The Ashes, contested between England and Australia, has been a symbol of fierce competition and tradition between the two since 1882. With both teams playing five Test matches every two years, it remains a regularly contested and historically rich rivalry.
In contrast, India and Pakistan have not faced each other in a Test match since December 2007, meeting only in global and continental limited-overs tournaments.
The irregularity and fewer interactions between the two sides have also reduced the buzz around their matches.
A quick look at the statistics shows India and Pakistan have faced each other just seven times in ICC events since 2007. The most iconic matches, like the 2011 World Cup semi final which India won, and the 2007 T20 World Cup final, are long behind us.
In fact, the last bilateral series between the two teams was in 2012. They have not played a full series since.
While both rivalries are iconic, the India-Pakistan contest is undeniably the most emotionally charged. However, the Ashes might still have an edge due to its consistent and balanced nature, with regular encounters and a more stable competitive framework.
But, Kaushik spoke of one “positive fallout” of the one-sidedness of the India-Pakistan rivalry. “Fans have become more understanding,” he said.
“There is anger and disappointment when their favourite team loses, but there is no visible expression of that anger in the form of houses being stoned or effigies being burned, which is a welcome development,” Kaushik explained.
He however, pointed out how the friendships and relations between the players of both the teams were stronger and more meaningful in the past because they played against each other more often.
“Now, there is hardly any personal relationship, which is a bit of a shame,” he added.
(Edited by Sudha V)
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