Pakistan cricket’s losing era

 

Pakistan cricket’s lost era: From The Oval high to Asia Cup heartbreak — how a proud cricketing nation lost its edge

Asher Butt

One remembers that London night in 2017 like a fevered dream: Fakhar Zaman’s belting century, Mohammad Amir’s return to venom, and Pakistan lifting the ICC Champions Trophy after a glorious demolition of India. For a while it felt as though Pakistan cricket had rediscovered its mojo. Fast forward eight years and the dream is, sadly, more mirage than reality.

The Asia Cup 2025, which concluded in Dubai with India lifting the title on September 28, felt less like a tournament and more like a diagnosis. Pakistan strolled to 107-1 in the final and, in the space of 44 balls and 39 runs, handed the match to India. The collapse — nine wickets for 39 runs — was a clinical display of everything that has gone wrong in Pakistan cricket: panic when calm was required, poor shot choice under pressure, and a persistent inability to manage spin on subcontinental wickets.

 

A promising start, a tragic ending

Sahibzada Farhan’s bravery and Fakhar Zaman’s strokeplay had given fans hope. But once Varun Chakravarthy removed both set players, the middle order unravelled. Kuldeep Yadav, Chakravarthy and Axar Patel wove a web Pakistan could not escape; Tilak Varma’s composed 69* embodied the calm Pakistan lacked. Earlier, Pakistan’s Super Four performance — barely defending 135 after being 49-5 — showed the cracks were there long before the final.

This wasn’t a sudden collapse so much as a familiar refrain. The team’s approach in the middle overs and its shot selection in the face of quality spin have been recurring problems. The Asia Cup merely recorded it in high definition for all to see.

 

The long catalogue of almosts and not-quites

Look back at the past tournaments and a pattern emerges: Pakistan can light up a tournament against the vulnerable and misfire spectacularly against the prepared. How many times have we seen late-over drama snatched from Pakistan’s hands? Wade’s blitz in the 2021 T20 semi; Sri Lanka’s escapes in 2022; entire bowling attacks leaking 300+ in the 2023 World Cup — the list is long.

More alarming: Pakistan now struggles with teams it once treated with disdain. Bangladesh’s Test win in Rawalpindi (August 2024) wasn’t merely a one-off; it was a wake-up call. Afghanistan, Ireland and other smaller sides have become dangerous because Pakistan’s margin for error has shrunk.

 

The psychological malaise

Cricket is a game of technique — and temperament. Pakistan’s technical issues are obvious: poor shot selection against turning balls, inconsistent execution in the death overs. But the psychological factor is equal, if not greater. There is an ingrained fragility: when the pressure builds, panic replaces plan, and a lack of leadership clarity becomes lethal. Dropping experienced anchors in pursuit of aggression (the Babar Azam debate being a case in point) can work — if you have a capable middle order to absorb shocks. Pakistan often doesn’t.

 

Systemic rot — coaching, domestic cricket and planning

You cannot pin this entirely on players. Domestic cricket has not evolved in ways that prepare cricketers for the demands of elite international cricket. Coaching appointments are often reactive; tactical planning remains shallow. There is rarely a sustained strategy for player development: Pakistan is rich in raw talent but often poor in refinement and mental conditioning.

Contrast this with the models that work. Bangladesh invested patiently in coaching structures and player support. Afghanistan focused relentlessly on skill development and exposure. Ireland professionalised systems and scheduling. Progress didn’t happen by chance — it was the result of sustained institutional commitment.

 

The commercial and emotional price

The consequences are real. Sponsors want teams that win consistently on big stages. Broadcasters demand competitive drama, not the same pattern of hopeful starts and heartbreaking finishes. Fans — once indefatigable — are growing weary of the same cycle. The Pakistan Super League’s viewership and commercial appeal depend on a national side that inspires, not frustrates.

 

So what now?

Short answer: overhaul. Long answer: a phased, radical rebuild.

• Revamp domestic cricket to heighten competitiveness and replicate international pressures.
• Hire coaches and support staff with demonstrable success against elite opponents, including sports psychologists.
• Adopt long-term selection and development policies rather than knee-jerk reactions to single losses.
• Emphasise tactical education — reading game situations, manipulating fields, using variations effectively under pressure.
• Commit to fitness and workload management to ensure front-line bowlers perform when it matters.

Pakistan is not without talent. The turning point will come only when administrators match ambition with accountability and systems replace improvisation.

 

Final thought

The 2017 night in London gave Pakistan a memory to cherish; the decade that followed has offered too few memories of that calibre. The Asia Cup 2025 final was not merely another loss — it was the clearest evidence yet that Pakistan cricket faces structural, tactical and psychological work of a scale that cannot be deferred. Fans should not lose hope — Pakistan cricket has bounced back before — but hope without reform risks becoming mere nostalgia.

Until leaders in the boardroom and the dressing room commit to change, Pakistan will remain capable of moments of genius but will fail to sustain them when the world’s best show up with their A-game. The time for cosmetic adjustments has passed. The time for fundamental reform is now.