menu arrow-down reddit snapchat twitter facebook comments email printer search bell top-nav reddit-fill snapchat-fill twitter-fill facebook-fill share whatsapp-fill bookmark
ENG
  • Select Languages
  • हिंदी | Hindi
Search
CT 2025 19 Feb 25 to 09 Mar 25
  • Scoreboard
  • News
  • Photos
  • Videos
  • Fixtures
  • Points Table
  • teams
  • players
  • Venues
  • Results
  • Stats
Sports Home ICC Champions Trophy 2025 News Came To The Game With A Losers Mindset Pakistan Citizens Blast Mohammad Rizwan And Co After India Thrashing

"Came To The Game With A Loser's Mindset": Pakistan Citizens Blast Mohammad Rizwan And Co. After India Thrashing

Advertisement
Ad

Fans that didn't look away watched India outclass Pakistan with a convincing six-wicket victory, chasing down 242 with 45 balls to spare and pushing the hosts to the verge of elimination after just two matches.

  • Agence France-Presse
  • Updated: February 24, 2025 06:59 pm IST
Read Time: 3 min
"Came To The Game With A Loser's Mindset": Pakistan Citizens Blast Mohammad Rizwan And Co. After India Thrashing
Fans watching the India vs Pakistan match in Dubai© AFP

In cricket-crazed Pakistan's biggest city, cafe owner Moiz Umer said customers asked him Sunday to change the TV channel to "avoid the humiliation" of witnessing their Champions Trophy defeat to arch-rivals India. "For large parts of the Indian innings, a good number of people turned their backs to the match -- facing their friends instead of the screen, such was the disappointment," said the 45-year-old in the city of Karachi. Fans that didn't look away watched India outclass Pakistan with a convincing six-wicket victory, chasing down 242 with 45 balls to spare and pushing the hosts to the verge of elimination after just two matches.


Pakistan is staging a major international tournament for the first time in nearly three decades but India refused to visit -- citing security concerns and political tensions -- meaning the teams faced each other in Dubai.

The return of international play has been a huge source of national pride but Pakistan fans at home suffered the double heartbreak on Sunday of watching their team falter from a distance.

Advertising
Advertising

"It was such a big match and we went down with a whimper," said 42-year-old Zain Mursaleen, among around a hundred spectators with a deflated mood who had gathered to watch the match in Karachi.

"We love to see good cricket and Pakistan failed to produce that -- again."

The eight-team tournament only began on Wednesday. But Pakistan also lost their opening game, meaning their fate hangs on the outcome of a match between New Zealand and Bangladesh in Rawalpindi on Monday.

In the garrison city adjacent to the capital Islamabad, the atmosphere was sombre from the outset before India's star batsman Virat Kohli struck an unbeaten 100.

"They came to the game with a loser's mindset and never attempted to attack," said 53-year-old chef Rasheed Saleem.

"I doubt they even realise how disheartening it is for fans to see them go down like this," he added.

Advertisement

Saad Murtaza, a 29-year-old software engineer, said he began watching with "low expectations" but was still left disappointed.

"I thought they might surprise us, as it was more than just a game. Unfortunately, they failed to do so," he said.

Advertisement

"They lack both the intent and the skills. I wasted my entire day watching this pathetic display of a game."

'Not a rivalry anymore'

Advertisement

The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars since being carved out of the subcontinent's partition in 1947, fomenting a feud that often plays out on the field.

Cricket is by far the most popular sport in both countries, which have a combined population of more than 1.6 billion -- making matches some of the most-viewed sporting events in the world.

Deteriorating ties have meant Pakistan and India have not played a bilateral cricket series for over a decade -- facing each other only in tournament matches staged in third countries.

Despite the bitter diplomatic rhetoric, numerous Pakistan fans have told AFP they would have relished the chance to host India's team and their spectators.

But some commentators on Sunday were declaring the rivalry now over after a dire run of Pakistani performances.

"One is forced to conclude that this is not a rivalry anymore as India has dominated Pakistan, especially in the one day internationals," cricket journalist and former Pakistan Cricket Board spokesman Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi told AFP.

The English-language Dawn newspaper had a more pessimistic prognosis, suggesting Pakistan's issues are more wide-reaching.

"The loss has once again put the spotlight on the massive gulf of quality between Pakistan and other teams in terms of technique, game awareness, fitness and pressure handling," wrote sports correspondent Mir Shabbar Ali.

Back in Karachi, Umer the cafe owner offered a more blunt post-match analysis.

"Supporting the Pakistan cricket team has always been a turbulent affair," he said.

"While they have been consistently poor of late, there is always hope that they will surprise everyone -- they did this time too, but with how bad they were."

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Topics mentioned in this article
India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma Mohammad Rizwan Babar Azam ICC Champions Trophy 2025 Cricket
Advertisement
Get the Latest Cricket Updates, Check IPL 2025 News, Schedule, Points Table and Results at NDTV Sports. Like Us On Facebook Or Follow Us On Twitter For More Sports Updates. You Can Also Download The NDTV Cricket App For Android Or iOS.
Show full article
Trending Links
  • Paralympics 2024
  • Jay Shah
  • Virat Kohli
  • Paralympics Medal Tally
  • India's Schedule Paralympics 2024
  • Rohit Sharma
Follow us on:
facebook
twitter
Cricket
  • Live Scores
  • Series
  • Fixtures
  • Results
  • News
  • Photos
  • Videos
  • Features
  • Teams
  • Players
  • Venues
  • ICC Ranking
Football
  • ISL 2022-23
  • EPL 2022-23
  • News
  • Features
  • Photos
  • Fixtures
  • Results
  • Videos
  • Teams
  • Players
  • Matchcentre
More Sports
Formula 1 Tennis Hockey Badminton Golf Nba Kabaddi Shooting Swimming Table Tennis
  • Advertise
  • About Us
  • Feedback
  • Disclaimer
  • Investor
  • Complaint Redressal
  • Careers
  • Contact Us
This website follows the DNPA Code of Ethics © Copyright NDTV Convergence Limited 2025. All rights reserved.
Select Language
  • Languages
  • हिंदी | Hindi
Search
  • Featured Links
    • England vs India
    • ENG vs IND Test Schedule
    • Stats
  • Featured Sports
    • Cricket
    • Football
    • Formula 1
    • Tennis
    • Hockey
    • Golf
    • Badminton
  • More Sports
    • Kabaddi
    • NBA
    • Boxing
    • Athletics
    • Chess
    • Swimming
    • Shooting
    • Wrestling
    • Table tennis
    • Othersports
  • More from NDTV
    • NDTV
    • Business
    • Hindi
    • Movies
    • Cricket
    • Health
    • Food
    • Tech
    • Auto
    • Apps
    • Trains
    • Art
arrow-rgt arrow-next arrow-up refresh close link cog star book zap cricket football tennis formula-1 badminton hockey golf boxing ndtv-n check left-arrow right-arrow