Imran said the terrible fielding had cost Pak dear. He was commenting on the great chance thrown away by Pakistan.
260 was the target set by Aus and India overcame it. Similarly, with sound, sensible batting, Pak could have overcome it. But unfortunately, Pak choked and wilted under a WC SF pressure !
No team which dropped Sachin four times deserved to win. Sachin became the Man of the Match, top scoring with 85 and paving the way for an Indian victory !
"No team deserves to win the way Pakistan fielded," Imran said. "You cannot drop a player like Sachin four times. And don't forget the ground fielding,"
All the 22 players out there in the middle felt the pressure, said Imran.
"This was the ultimate pressure game. The Indian batting felt the pressure, except for (Virender) Sehwag, and at the end Suresh Raina. Apart from that, everybody felt the pressure.
"Pakistan bowlers, except the two -- Wahab Riaz, Saeed Ajmal and, I think, Mohammad Hafeez too, felt the pressure.
The others, especially Umar Gul (wilted under pressure)," Imran said.
Pak faltered under immense pressure and the problem was more psychological than physiological. Despite a good start by Kamran and Hafeez, Pak could not make a match out of it, due to high pressure. High pressure makes players choke, like SA, and Pak did just that.
"The batting, after that brilliant start, just could not handle the pressure. With the fall of each wicket, Pakistan began to crumble, and halfway through, we knew the game was over."
Highlighting the importance of fielding in such high pressure situations, Imran said, "If you are anyway bad and under pressure, you will wilt completely."
Wasim Akram, former Pak skipper, felt Pak stood 70% chance to overcome India's 260. "After seeing the score, I was giving 70 per cent chances to Pakistan. It was all psychological but we know Pakistan's track record. They struggle to chase. And they were suddenly losing wickets and the ball was stopping. Younis Khan was not making runs and, as our main batsman, he did not score well in this World Cup."
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