Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur has said that his team did not play as well as they are capable of against India in the Asia Cup group match, saying they succumbed under pressure.
After being asked to bowl first, India restricted Pakistan to 162 before chasing it down with eight wickets and 126 balls to spare. The two arch-rivals will meet again on Sunday in the Super 4 stage of the tournament.
“From Pakistan’s perspective, it was disappointing,” Arthur told The Telegraph in an interview. “We didn’t play as well as we are capable of doing. If we play our A-game, we are a very good team. Credit to India’s new-ball bowlers for putting us under so much pressure. The more the pressure, the worse it became.”
Arthur said that he read his team the riot act after the defeat, saying it was needed. “I don’t do it often, for then, the impact gets lost,” he said. “Too much of anything isn’t good. However, it was needed this time, as plans had been abandoned and panic set in.”
The Pakistan coach said he was glad his team got a wake-up call early in the tournament, in the first of possibly three matches against India in the Asia Cup, adding that they will look to make amends on Sunday. The 50-year-old also admitted that he was unable to sleep after Wednesday’s defeat.
“I kept questioning myself, kept asking if I and the rest of the support staff had conveyed the message we needed to in the right manner,” he said. “I introspect and expect the players too to do so and learn from their shortcomings.”
Arthur also asked the cricket world to not judge Pakistan on the basis of one match, saying they are a good team. “The next time we are under pressure, I’d like to see more than one hand going up to do the job,” he said.
Asked if he would trade any of Pakistan’s left-arm pacers for one of India’s batsmen, Arthur laughed and said, “Most definitely... Give me anybody... Give me KL Rahul, who wasn’t played by India in the first two matches of this Asia Cup. I could take a Manish Pandey too.”