4 reasons why the India-Pakistan rivalry has been one-sided in World Cup history
The most anticipated India-Pakistan rivalry was on show during the World Cup 2019 but proved to be a damp affair as India romped home with an 89-run victory in a lop-sided affair.
With this massive win, India held on to their unbeaten run against Pakistan in World Cup encounters while Pakistan were left lamenting on their shortcomings yet again. The gulf between these two great cricketing nation is continuously getting wider and wider and the competition is no way near what is expected.
Sadly, the reality is that cricket needs better than these boring one-sided outcomes between these two Asian powerhouses. It is also unfortunate to note that while the hype surrounding the India-Pakistan clashes never dies down, the one-sided contests only kill the excitement a fair bit.
With Pakistan yet to figure out a winning algorithm against India, here are four reasons why India is continuously getting better of Pakistan in the World Cup encounters.
#4 Fitness Level and fielding efforts
The Indian Cricket team is one of the fittest teams in the world. The amount of emphasis Virat Kohli puts on fitness level is immense that rubs off on his teammates. He leads by example to the other Indian players and ensures that each player gives his 100% on the field.
Most of the Indian players can outrun their Pakistani compatriots, they are a better fielding unit and their intensity level, on most occasions does not fizzle out, irrespective of the result of the match.
If there is one thing Indian skipper puts most emphasis on, then it is intent. And all the process of maintaining that intent begins from maintaining the fitness level.
The occasion of big games can get into the nerves of even the best of players due to which they may not be able to give their best. However, more often than not, Indian players don't let the spark get out of their game.
Examples of Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan missing run-out chances, the veterans in the Pakistan team misfielding in the inner ring cost Pakistan some extra runs. On the other hand, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli have thrown themselves around and stopped some vital runs.
If Pakistan are to improve their game, then the first step will be the ensure that they improve their fielding efforts.
Also read – World cup all time records