Nobody knows which side Pakistan channels – and that is a part of the charm and adds to the thrill of facing it. The ‘cornered tiger’ in 1992 blazed a trail to the ODI crown surviving similar fluctuations in form.
At this World Cup, the outlook has been on the brighter side. For a greater part, at least. Its spin-heavy bowling attack is tailor-made for Sri Lankan conditions, and an uptick in form leading up to the tournament bode well.
The loss to India was insipid but Pakistan bounced back with confidence, brushing aside Namibia in a must-win game under pressure. It did not turn away from the tough calls either, of excluding Shaheen Afridi or promoting other batters ahead of Babar Azam when the situation demanded it.
Report | Pakistan vs New Zealand Super Eight clash abandoned due to rain
“I don’t think games are won or lost psychologically. I think they’re won through skill. So, I don’t believe anyone’s got a psychological edge. What’s happened in the past, is in the past; we’re looking forward to starting the Super Eight well,” Pakistan coach Mike Hesson had said a day before the game against New Zealand.
This clarity has made Pakistan look like a team purged of its reputation – not a victim to dramatic changes of form or turn of fortune. Not mercurial. But the more things change, the more they stay the same. With Pakistan, nothing is straightforward.
On Saturday, as it geared up for its Super Eight opener at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, the weather teased its way into the picture, opening up avenues to send Pakistan, and the other teams around it, spiraling down a path of late plot twists.
Rain had been anticipated on the match eve, even to the extent of washing out the entire contest. But after the forecasted clouds went dry till five in the evening, Pakistan might have started hoping.
| Photo Credit:
AP
At this World Cup, Pakistan’s outlook has been on the brighter side. For a greater part, at least.
| Photo Credit:
AP
Then, roughly an hour from the game, the players’ warm ups were cut short to put the covers in place, in anticipation of rain. Not a drop fell. Using the delay, the match officials got them peeled off and proceeded with the toss. Precisely three minutes after the coin flip favoured Salman Agha and he opted to bat, rain arrived for the first time on the day.
As is customary on Sri Lankan grounds, every blade of grass was put under covers once the downpour started. It was never heavy, just a drizzle but persistent enough to pull the plug on the game.
With the result, emerged the possibility of permutations that could boost qualification hopes in one camp and quash them in another later in the Super Eight.
With just a point from this match, it departs the confines of Colombo, where it has been stationed since the start of the World Cup, and heads for Kandy, another city with heavy rain forecasts over this week. Moreover, just like New Zealand and England, Pakistan is yet to play at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. Saturday’s game was the ideal chance to use familiarity with the ground and get a head start.
With more rain on the cards, and its players unaccustomed to the conditions, Pakistan could inevitably end up playing to its reputation – susceptible to dramatic changes of form and twists of fortune. Still mercurial, still the same, if not by skill, then by fate.
Published on Feb 21, 2026
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