CHENNAI: Pakistan team director Mickey Arthur warned against a “witch-hunt” after their World Cup dream suffered a likely fatal blow on Friday.
Pakistan slipped to a one-wicket loss at the hands of South Africa, their fourth defeat in six games in India.
They will have to win their remaining three matches and hope other results go their way if they are to sneak into the semifinals.
“They’re going to be blaming everybody, don’t worry. It’s just the way of the world,” said Arthur.
“It’s really unfair to start a witch-hunt, certainly on (captain) Babar Azam, on ‘Inzi’ (chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq), on our coaches, on the management team.
“What I do know is the boys have tried and the effort of the coaching staff, the effort of the players has been first-class. If they would see the amount of effort that the players and staff put in, they would be amazed.”
Pakistan, who were ranked as the world’s top ODI team last month, won their first two games of the tournament.
However, they then slumped to defeats against arch-rivals India, Australia and Afghanistan before going down to the Proteas on Friday.
They made 270 with Saud Shakeel (52) and Babar Azam (50) in the runs before reducing South Africa from 206-4 to 250-8.
However, tailenders Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi, who had earlier taken 4-60, saw the Proteas home and to the top of the 10-nation table.
Aiden Markram had set the platform for victory with a fighting 91.
Before Friday’s match the Pakistan Cricket Board had released a statement stressing it had allowed Azam and Inzamam all powers to select the World Cup squad.
Arthur admitted Pakistan were below par in the tournament.
“Look I think at a World Cup you’ve got to be playing your best game at the right time,” said Arthur who took over earlier this year.
“Our form had sort of drifted off a little bit. And there’s various reasons. We talk about it every day as to what it could have been. But our form kind of drifted off. And again, we haven’t put the perfect games together.
“We’ve batted well, we haven’t bowled well. I do think our fielding standards have been average. So, there’s a lot of work that we need to put in and get to the standards required to win a World Cup.”
Arthur admitted Pakistan were short of a challenging total on Friday.
“I thought 300 was the par score but our bowlers had given us a real chance there and they’ve given it everything. It’s a really disappointed dressing room and our players, I know, we can be proud of tonight.”
Arthur said Pakistan showed off a fighting spirit against South Africa that was lacking in their shock eight-wicket defeat to Afghanistan last Monday.
“Tonight was a totally different feeling in that dressing room to the Afghanistan game,” said Arthur.
“In the Afghanistan game, we were average in all departments. Tonight, we were okay with the bat, I thought we were very good with the ball.
“And tonight, I’m really proud of those players because they fought right to the bitter end.”
Arthur warns against Pakistan ‘witch-hunt’ after World Cup flop
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Arthur warns against Pakistan ‘witch-hunt’ after World Cup flop
- Pakistan slipped to a one-wicket loss at the hands of South Africa, their fourth defeat in six games in India
- They will have to win remaining three matches, hope other results go their way if they are to go to semifinals
Al-Fateh grab second win on the trot, Al-Taawoun keep up pressure in title race
- Al-Fateh win 2 consecutive games for the first time this season and move to 11 points
- Al-Taawoun grab late winner against last-placed Al-Najma to stay within 4 points of Al-Nassr
RIYADH: Matchday 12 of the Saudi Pro League got underway on Monday with Al-Khaleej hosting Al-Fateh in the first of the evening’s three fixtures.
Despite producing a strong display in a 3-2 loss to Al-Hilal last week, Al-Khaleej lost 1-0 to Al-Fateh, with Matias Vargas scoring the decisive goal.
Al-Fateh’s strategy was clear: Moroccan midfielder Sofiane Bendebka would be flanked by Mourad Batna and Vargas in a fluid attacking set-up, allowing him to drift between a second-striker role and deeper midfield positions.
The free-flowing forwards enabled Al-Fateh to take control of the final third, with Batna cutting in from the right flank proving to be a dangerous asset in Al-Fateh’s arsenal.
That combination paid dividends in the 41st minute, when Batna delivered a diagonal ball across the pitch to find Vargas, who calmly chipped the ball over Anthony Moris to open the scoring.
It marked the Argentinian’s fourth goal in three matches, with his recent form directly contributing six points — more than half of Al-Fateh’s total this season.
Al-Khaleej were unable to replicate the same intensity shown against Al-Hilal, despite the introduction of club top scorer Joshua King after the break and Pedro Rebocho’s marauding role down the left.
Their clearest opportunity came in the 68th minute, when Rebocho squared the ball to Giorgos Masouras only for his effort to hit the post.
Al-Fateh then adopted a more cautious approach, looking to exploit Al-Khaleej on the counter. They nearly doubled their lead in the 88th minute when Vargas teed up Bendebka, but the midfielder’s powerful backheel crashed against the woodwork.
The defeat marks a slowdown for Al-Khaleej after an encouraging start to the campaign, with this being their third consecutive loss, now leaving them on just 14 points from 11 matches.
Elsewhere, Al-Hazem travelled to the capital to face Al-Riyadh, securing a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from Nawaf Al-Habashi and Omar Al-Somah.
The Syrian striker netted his 157th Saudi Pro League goal, extending his lead over Abderazzak Hamedallah at the top of the all-time scoring charts and helping Al-Hazem move further clear of the relegation zone.
In Qassim, third-placed Al-Taawoun edged bottom side Al-Najma in a tightly contested encounter. A late strike from Roger Martinez in the 85th minute sealed a 1-0 win, Al-Taawoun’s ninth of the season, keeping them firmly in the title race.
Pericles Chamusca’s side have exceeded expectations with their stellar start to the season. The Wolves move into second with 28 points, two ahead of Al-Hilal in third and two behind league leaders Al-Nassr, with both sides still holding a game in hand.
It marks the best start to a Saudi Pro League season in Al-Taawoun’s history, a run that continues to surprise in a league filled with established stars.
Matchday 12 on Tuesday starts with Al-Ahli vs. Al-Fayha, followed by Al-Ettifaq vs. Al-Nassr and Al-Okhdood vs. Damac later in the evening.
