Former Pakistan cricket director Mickey Arthur admitted that the high-octane ODI World Cup encounter against India in Ahmedabad was one of the most challenging moments during his tenure with the Pakistan team, as he led the team through a hostile environment.
The clash between India and Pakistan is one of the most exciting games in all of sports. The situation is frequently portrayed as a mouthwatering battle on and off the field between two nations over the years.
The Men in Blue were supported by a crowd that numbered close to 1,25,000 in the Narendra Modi Stadium, the largest stadium in the world, where the Pakistan players might have felt the pressure in the game with a lot of stakes in Ahmedabad.
During a discussion with Wisden, Mickey Arthur spoke about his experience with the India-Pakistan match and how he planned to keep it simple between bat and ball. However, given the hostile audience in Narendra Modi Stadium, he admitted that it was difficult for the Pakistan cricket team to handle such pressure and lack of support.
“One of the toughest games in the World Cup would have been against India in Ahmedabad. How did you prepare the team for what would be a hostile reception and intimidating atmosphere, especially when the majority of the team wouldn’t have experienced anything like it previously?”
“It was very interesting, and the one thing that was forgotten with all the rhetoric was that our whole team had never played in India before, so every venue they went to was a new experience,” Mickey Arthur said.
Pakistan suffered a humiliating batting collapse on the biggest stage of the game losing eight wickets in the game for just 36 runs. The clash between India and Pakistan attracted a lot of media attention over the years.
However, given that Pakistan provided no resistance to its opponents in any respect, they fell short of expectations against India in the ODI World Cup.
Team India continued their winning streak in ODI World Cups, defeating Pakistan by seven wickets in Ahmedabad. It was India’s eighth consecutive victory in ODI World Cup games, as well as their fifth straight triumph over Pakistan in the 50-over format.
The Men in Green failed to progress ahead of the league stage after managing just four wins in nine games. After the World Cup, Babar Azam stepped down as the captain in all three formats while Mickey Arthur was replaced by Mohammad Hafeez as the team director.
Pakistan would be looking to turn things around in the 2024 T20 World Cup under the leadership of Shaheen Afridi.
