T20 World Cup 2021: 3 reasons why Team India's loss to Pakistan is a blessing in disguise

Team India came up with an inept effort as Pakistan crushed them by 10 wickets in Dubai in a T20 World Cup 2021 clash on Sunday. Sent into bat after losing the toss, Team India crumbled to 31 for 3 as Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav fell cheaply against some excellent bowling from Pakistan.

The batting side recovered to post 151 for 7, courtesy of Virat Kohli’s 57 and Rishabh Pant’s 39. However, while defending the total, Team India’s bowlers could not make any impression on Pakistan’s rampant openers.

Mohammad Rizwan (79 not out off 55) and skipper Babar Azam (68 not out off 52) were completely at ease as Pakistan chased down the target of 152 in 17.5 overs. Following the win, T20 World Cup 2021 Pakistan squad also broke the jinx of never having defeated India in World Cups.

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T20 World Cup 2021: Why Team India’s loss to Pakistan may not be such a bad thing

It cannot be denied that Team India’s performance against Pakistan was hugely disappointing. However, we look at three reasons why the defeat may have come at the right time for Virat Kohli’s men.

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#1 A stern reality check at the very start

Team India during the T20 World Cup 2021 match against Pakistan. Pic: Getty Images

There has been a pattern to Team India’s performances in ICC events in recent times. They usually begin with a bang and end with a whimper. This was the case during the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017, the World Cup in 2019 and the World Test Championship (WTC) as well.

While it is always good to have the momentum going at the start of any big event, in Team India’s case, their weaknesses have been exposed in crunch games in the past. That is why, while the defeat against Pakistan would hurt, it would also give Team India’s think-tank the opportunity to assess areas of concern.

When a team is on a winning streak, the deficiencies often get dwarfed. In Team India’s case though, their frailties are right out in the open, both for them and their opponents. Kohli, MS Dhoni and Ravi Shastri now need to work on fixing the leaks. While the defeat to Pakistan exposed T20 World Cup 2021 India squad’s weak middle order and their lack of all-round options, their bowlers looked lost much before the match ended.

In spite of Sunday’s setback, Kohli and co. remain one of the favorites to win the crown. In an ironic sense, they are now in a better position since they know the areas they need to work on.

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#2 Needless hype over India’s unbeaten streak will end

Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam interact with Virat Kohli. Pic: Getty Images

Die-hard Team India fans would be shattered that the country’s unbeaten streak against Pakistan in the World Cup has come to an end. It truly was a tremendous run as, before Sunday, India had never lost to their arch-rivals in a World Cup clash, be it in 50-overs or T20s. This winning streak began way back in 1992, when Team India trounced Pakistan in Sydney.

The reality though is that no side is invincible and, someday, Team India were going to lose in the World Cup. It is not as if Pakistan hadn’t troubled India in ICC events. In fact, they gave their arch-rivals an absolute hammering in the 2017 Champions Trophy final. But yes, their unbeaten run against Pakistan in the World Cup bordered on the miraculous, which coaxed Harbhajan Singh into stating that Pakistan should hand India a walkover as "they have no chance of winning".

The marvelous winning streak had been creating unnecessary pressure on Team India every time they played Pakistan in the World Cup. It was as if they just couldn’t lose at any cost. It also led to silly campaigns like "Mauka Mauka", mocking Pakistan’s record against Team India in ICC’s showpiece events.

Incredibly, Team India managed to record to hold on to the winning momentum for so long, despite the exaggerated hype from all corners. But like Dinesh Karthik aptly summed it up - “it’s a huge monkey off the back for India”.

See who is currently at the top of the T20 World Cup 2021 Points Table here.

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#3 It cannot get any worse for Team India

Shaheen Afridi celebrates the wicket of Rohit Sharma. Pic: Getty Images

There weren’t any positives for Team India from the thrashing they received at the hands of Pakistan on Sunday. But that in itself is India’s biggest takeaway from the game. Everything that could possibly go wrong for Kohli and co against Pakistan in Dubai did go wrong.

They lost the toss and had to bat first under conditions where there was early swing. Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, who were expected to get the team off to a flying start, perished before Team India fans could settle into their seats.

Rohit got a near-unplayable ball from Shaheen Afridi while the delivery to KL Rahul too would have troubled most top-class batters. Suryakumar Yadav’s barren run continued. And, although skipper Kohli and Rishabh Pant did a rescue act, Team India were always playing catch up for the rest of the game.

When the Indians came on to bowl Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami looked off-boil. By the time Jasprit Bumrah was introduced, the Pakistan openers had got their eye in and looked in no trouble against him. While there was no mystery in Varun Chakravarthy’s bowling, Ravindra Jadeja also had no impact.

The match was all but over much before dew could even play its part in making life difficult for the fielding side. It could not have gotten any worse. But there can only one way for Team India from here - upwards.