Pakistan is out of the ICC Champions Trophy after New Zealand after won against Bangladesh on Monday. This wining means India and New Zealand go to the semi-finals, and Pakistan, that is the host, and now it is out of the tournament.
Many fans are blaming Pakistan’s old-style batting for their poor performance. In modern cricket, teams score quickly from the start. But Pakistan still follows the old method of playing slowly in the first 35 overs and trying to hit big runs at the end. This strategy worked in the past not in current scenario, but other teams have changed their approach. Pakistan has not changed that why they out from tournament.
Pakistan’s Batting Problem
Source: NDTV
Kamran Ghulam, Abdullah Shafique, and Babar Azam, Pakistan’s top three batters, are all having difficulty scoring runs quickly. Shafique’s strike rate is 71.01, Kamran’s is 86.79, and Babar’s is 76.93 since 2024. A good strike rate in one-day cricket nowadays is greater than 90, but Pakistan’s top order has been too slow, which is the main cause of the fallout.
Another big problem is the number of dot balls (balls with no runs). Since 2025, Pakistan has played an average of 145 dot balls per match. In the Champions Trophy, they had 161 dot balls against New Zealand and 147 against India. Only Bangladesh and Afghanistan have more dot balls, but they have played fewer matches.
Lack of Boundaries
If a team plays many dot balls, they need to hit boundaries (fours and sixes) to balance it out. Pakistan has also struggled with this. In 2025, their boundary percentage is only 46.96%, which is slightly better than Bangladesh (40.08%). In comparison, India has played around 125 dot balls per innings but has the best boundary percentage of 55.1%. This shows that while Pakistan gets stuck with dot balls, they also fail to hit enough boundaries to compensate.
Slow Start Against India
Pakistan needed a good powerplay in their match against India, especially after a poor start, against New Zealand. But they played 61 dot balls in the first 15 overs. India’s bowling was good, but Pakistan’s batting was too slow as expectation. After losing two wickets, their batsmen played even more carefully instead of attacking. This put more pressure on the middle order, which has been weak since the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Mohammad Rizwan, the captain of Pakistan, acknowledged the team’s errors. “The pitch was too slow for us, so we aimed to score between 270 and 280,” he remarked. However, we took too long and had a pretty bad choice of shots. We lost because our middle-order batsmen were not able to handle the pressure.
Rizwan also said to India, saying, “They were braver than us. They put in more effort, and that’s why they won. We have lack of energy in our fielding and made mistakes.”
Time for Change
Pakistan’s early exit from the Champions Trophy is a warning. Their batting style is old, and they must change it before the 2027 World Cup. The team should start playing more aggressively, avoid too many dot balls (balls with no runs), and hit more boundaries. If they don’t adjust to modern cricket, they will keep struggling against strong teams.
How Other Teams Are Changing
Other teams have adjusted to the new way of playing ODI cricket. India, Australia, and England have developed aggressive batting approaches as we already see . Their top-order batsmen focus on scoring fast, reducing the pressure on the middle order. Even teams like South Africa and Sri Lanka are working on their strike rates to stay competitive but when we talk about Pakistan we didn’t see same thing. However Pakistan, is still playing with an old mindset.
In India’s last five ODI matches before the Champions Trophy, their top three batsmen played very fast, with a strike rate of more than 95. Their plan was simple – score quickly in the first 15 overs so that the middle-order batsmen can play without tension. This fast-playing style helped them win important matches. Australia also plays in the same way, making sure to use the powerplay overs properly.
Pakistan’s Future Strategy
If Pakistan wants to improve, they must make serious changes in their skills. First, they should need to play attacking cricket, especially in the first 15 overs. Batsmen should be encouraged to take calculated risks instead of just defending the team. The team also needs to improve their ability and skills to make the strike rate high, ensuring they don’t play too many dot balls (balls with no runs) because it is the biggest reason to fall.
Source: News 18
Another key area is team selection. Young players who can play fast and adapt to modern cricket should be given more chances. Experienced players like Babar Azam must also change their approach to fit the modern game. Strike rotation and power-hitting should be a priority in training sessions.
Finally, fielding and fitness must improve. Other teams show more energy in the field, while Pakistan often looks slow and tired. Better fitness levels will help players react faster, avoid mistakes, and perform better under pressure.
Pakistan’s early exit from the Champions Trophy is sad for fans, but the team should learn from it. They must change how they bat, take quick singles, and play more attacking cricket. If they don’t improve, they will keep falling behind strong teams with their mistakes. The 2027 World Cup is not too far, so Pakistan should start working from now to make a better team for the future.
Also, read about, the Champions Trophy Advantage Is Fair or Unfair for India
