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It is not very often that an India-Pakistan match kicks off with one team being overwhelming favourites, certainly not to the extent that India are going into the second test at the Eden Gardens.
Formwise, both teams stood a few notches below their peak potential, but the Indians seemed to have more miles left in the tank than the Pakistanis. More than form, it is the injuries and absentees that are pushing Pakistan on the backfoot.
Almost the entire bowling line up is injured or doubtful - Gul is out for sure, and Akhtar and Sami are fighting against time to make it to the squad. The hole left by Akhtar's absence, or even if he plays on a half-empty cyclinder, wont be easy to fill, given that he was possibly the only bowler to trouble the Indian batsmen in the first Test, and a turbo-charged, all-destroying Akhtar burst like the one that wrecked the Indian batting in Kolkata nearly a decade back seemed to be just around the corner. There seems to be no one within immediate reach who can fill this void.
This leaves a lot for their batsmen to make up. The Pakistani batsmen will need to bat better and more collectively than they have in the entire tournament, or indeed, in the last five months. The onus will lie not only on Yousuf and Younis Khan to lead the pack, but also on the rest of the support cast to support the two lead actors, and more importantly, step into their shoes should they get out cheap.
The Pakistanis, however, might get some help from some unexpected quarters. The Indian batting line up did what was necessary to win the Test, but not too much more than that. While most of the Indian batsmen are coming off the back of a rich vein of form in England, in ODI's, in T20 games and in domestic cricket, an unexplained, unexpected collapse or streak of underperformance is not beyond them. It might be a good idea for the Pakistani bowlers to first ensure that they do not bowl badly, before trying to outdo the limited resources made available to them and bowling out of their skins.
All said, it is going to be an uphill climb for Pakistan, but things may not be as steep as they seem now.
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