3 major worries for Pakistan after big defeat to India in World Cup 2023

India continued their dominance against Pakistan in World Cups as they annihilated their arch-rivals in the 12th match of the competition. It was a demoralising defeat for the 1992 champions as India outplayed them in every aspect of the game.

Right from the toss, nothing went in favour of Pakistan. After a good opening stand between Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq, it was Mohammed Siraj who provided the first breakthrough. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan steadied the ship with a solid partnership.

However, the re-introduction of Siraj saw the departure of Babar and that triggered a collapse. From a dominant position of 155/2, Pakistan were rolled over for just 191.

Jasprit Bumrah bowled a couple of magic deliveries to dismiss the settled Rizwan before cleaning up Shadab Khan. Pakistan had to take early wickets to make a match of it but were literally blown away by a blistering knock from Rohit Sharma.

He made his intentions clear from ball one and didn't spare any of the bowlers. He blazed his way to 86 off 63 deliveries which included 6 fours and as many sixes. Shubman Gill was dismissed early but not before displaying clear intent and smashing four boundaries.

While Rohit did miss out on a century when he was dismissed, India was within touching distance of the target. A boundary down the ground from Shreyas Iyer took him to a half-century and also finished the match for the Men in Blue.

Let us now look at three major worries for Pakistan after a disappointing defeat against India:

#1 Lack of intent from the Pakistan batters

While modern-day ODI cricket has changed drastically with more intent being shown in the powerplay, Pakistan has stuck to the old template of starting solidly without taking many risks and then trying to cut loose in the death overs.

The likes of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam went into their shell in the middle overs as the Indian spinners stuck to their line and length and put the pressure back on Pakistan. They should have taken on the spinners a bit more which would have unsettled their rhythm.

While it's just the initial stages of the tournament and Pakistan still have six more games to go, they will have to show more intent in order to win games against top-class opposition.

#2 The out-of-form bowlers

The Pakistani bowlers have leaked runs at an alarming rate during this World Cup. Shaheen Afridi has struggled to find his line with the new ball and has been picked for runs quite easily.

The absence of Naseem Shah is hurting them badly as Shaheen and Naseem complemented each other well with the new ball. While Hasan Ali has stepped in to take wickets so far in the tournament, his economy rate has been high.

Haris Rauf has been expensive as well while the spinners Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz haven't found much purchase. Shadab has struggled for a while and the entire bowling line-up doesn't seem to be performing up to the mark.

#3 Lack of match-winning players

None of the Pakistani batters have adopted the modern template of going hard in the powerplay. We have seen several top-class teams employ the approach and succeed.

While Pakistan did win the match against Sri Lanka chasing a massive score, the ploy hasn't worked against a stronger team like India.

Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been prolific run scorers for Pakistan but their intent has been questioned on several occasions.

Barring Abdullah Shafique who has shown clear intent right from the outset, there aren't many others who have stepped up to the occasion.