Six reactions to Pakistan's win today

Well, that was exhilarating, wasn't it? Here are some quick reactions to a historic day and shellacking. 

That felt good

I don't just mean in the way that wins feel good, or even big wins against India -- remember them? -- feel good. There was just something very psychologically satisfying about that result and how comprehensive it was. I think if I were to pinpoint why, it would be about the very public nature of the assertion that we actually matter as a cricketing nation.

It's kind of amazing how much disrespect Pakistan -- not the political nation, but as a historic force in this dumb sport played by like ten countries in a serious way -- gets today. Zooming out from the specifics of a cancelled tour here and scheduling quirks there, it's honestly kind of insane how easy it is for the rest of the world to shit on us. Everyone knows about the Big 3 structure and the scheduling/financial imbalances in world cricket, but it's still jarring to see at times. 

I mean, we have the highest win ratio in tests among all Asian countries, still to this day, and even better than historically dominant teams like the West Indies. We've won enough major white ball trophies (92, 09, 17) that we can't be dismissed like South Africa can. We've contributed world super-duper-stars and major tactical and technical innovations to the game. And it all adds up to...being treated like Zimbabwe? 

Please understand me: ideally speaking, Zimbabwe and India/Australia/England would be treated exactly the same way, as franchises in a league are. But if we ARE going to have such a strictly hierarchical governance of the sport, our achievements merit a higher spot atop the hierarchy is my point.

I dunno, the last couple of months have really brought home how much of a mismatch there is between our history and our status. I'm still not over how appalling a thing the ECB did. Today was a really nice f-you to the cricketing establishment, a sort of reminder: hey man, we are still relevant. I know you've tried your level best to bury us, but we're still here. 

Don't let up

Have to beat New Zealand now. Win that, and we top the group and avoid England in the semi. Remember, there is a tournament to be won. Nass was 100% right: don't treat this like it was your final. It's the first game, not the last. 

A Prediction

The two teams you saw today will be in the final. The conditions are just too much for the non-Asian teams not named England. 

A hypothesis

I think if Misbah and Waqar are in that dressing room, we find a way to lose that game. Is that unfair? Probably. I'm just telling you my feeling. 

Don't get me wrong, I still think Ramiz was asinine for the way he got rid of those guys. And I'm very skeptical of his reign in general. But I have to say, not seeing those two in the dugout just gave me an instant boost. They just bring this pall of gloom and play-not-to-lose that is so debilitating in big tournaments. I'm sure I wasn't the only one in a green jersey who felt that way. 

The Hafeez-Malik conundrum

It is the year 2083. Global temperatures are 7 degrees higher than pre-industrial levels. Human beings are hopping around the last blocks of ice like those polar bears you see on Planet Earth. President Barron Trump Jr has just launched nuclear strikes against the Democratic And Totally Voluntary Union of China and Taiwan. 

Meanwhile, Hafeez and Malik are in the middle order, keeping out younger players.

Honestly, I could kind of see the logic of playing them both today. It's a big game, both have lots of experience playing India in white ball and tournament cricket, and maybe you bank on the history factor when the mental side is 95% of the game. 

But now that we're almost "ahead" in the tournament, please, for the love of god, drop one of them and bring in Haider. I'm not the world's biggest Haider fan, but I know we have a higher ceiling with him in the side than one of those 40-year olds in the Andre Russell role. If Hafeez is going to (be allowed to) bowl, then I guess that means Malik has to go.  

Kohli is good at this

This had social media going, obviously. Kohli is someone who knows exactly when the cameras are on him and what message he wants to send. 

I'm not crying, you're crying.

Kohli. Babar. Rizwan. THE BEST! pic.twitter.com/YwJtMHYlK8

— Shiraz Hassan (@ShirazHassan) October 24, 2021

He was also very gracious in his post-match comments. In general, he's pretty respectful and charming when it comes to Pakistan, both during the match and after, which is especially noticeable given how abrasive he is when it comes to, say, Australia or England. 

In these crazy times, when basically everything about India-Pakistan is SO toxic, I'm really glad we have someone like Kohli -- clearly deeply aware of his place and important in the game and in society -- in his position. It is very, very easy to imagine someone with a different disposition (Gambhir/Sehwag/Harbajhan/literally 99% of people on social media) making things way worse than they already are.