Fans rip into Pakistan players, question lack of intent

New Delhi, June 17 (IANS) Winning and losing is a part of sport and cricket is no different. But the manner in which Pakistan lost to India at Old Trafford on Sunday has left the fans dejected. Those supporting Sarfaraz Ahmed and boys feel that there was no intent from the players and while some fans have taken to Twitter to post photos of the likes of Shoaib Malik and Wahab Riaz partying till late into the night on the eve of the game, others have criticised the captain.

One fan took to Twitter and posted a photo of Malik with wife Sania Mirza, Riaz and Imad Wasim at a caf? and said that they were partying till 2a.m. on Sunday morning before their match against arch-rivals India. Another fan posted a photo of Riaz digging into desserts.

Another fan took to YouTube and posted a video where he kept harping on the lack of intent from the Green Brigade, apart from pacer Mohammad Amir. In fact, he also spoke about how Pakistan captain Sarfaraz was captured yawning during the game and that showed his disinterest.

He also harped on how the Pakistan skipper decided to ignore the suggestion from Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan. The 1992 World Cup-winning skipper had tweeted that Pakistan should bat first if they win the toss. But Sarfaraz decided to have a bowl.

PM Imran Khan had tweeted: "Today, given the intensity of the match, both teams will come under great mental pressure and the power of the mind will decide the outcome of the match. In Sarfaraz we are fortunate to have a bold captain & today he will have to be at his daring best. In order to have a winning offensive strategy Sarfaraz must go in with specialist batsmen and bowlers because "Raillu Kattas" rarely perform under pressure -- especially the intense kind that will be generated today. Unless pitch is damp, Sarfaraz must win the toss & bat."

The fan also praised India skipper Virat Kohli and deputy Rohit Sharma for rising to the challenge and playing brilliantly in Manchester on Sunday.

Speaking after the game, Sarfaraz did say that Pakistan have their task cut-out in the remaining games. "We won a good toss but unfortunately we didn't bowl in the right areas, Credit goes to Rohit, he played really well. Our plan was to pitch it up but we didn't hit the right areas. We won a good toss but we just didn't capitalize and conceded too many runs. It is definitely getting tougher and tougher but we have four matches and hopefully we'll win all four of them," he admitted.