Sami Chaudhry's column: Babar Azam's justification for not having momentum, but maybe it was not for momentum

Defeat is a fact, but when it is combined with defeat and humiliation, it becomes a 'bitter' reality. These bitter realities usually come to Pakistan on such foreign trips.

If Pakistan had suffered the same defeat at the hands of Morgan's XI who had been flying the Sri Lankan parrots for a week earlier, it could be said that the number one team beat the team in the middle of the table but since this regret is a second XI The aspect of humiliation becomes more prominent in it.

In the closing ceremony, Babar Azam put all the credit in the hands of England and could only justify his shortcomings by saying, "We have not been able to gain momentum." The question is, "Why can't we get momentum?"

There is no doubt that luck was not with Pakistan here. The challenges of living in a successive biosecure bubble can sometimes be overwhelming and for a cricketer in a long calendar life is the only thing that can be found somewhere between two bubbles.

However, the Pakistani squad could not get it and as soon as the PSL board was rolled up, they had to board another plane and go to another bubble. Some practice sessions in the derby also fell short of the season and the team was not fully prepared until they arrived in Cardiff.

Then there was the fact that Babar also lost the toss and had to bat first in difficult conditions.

But even in all this misfortune, the team could have competed much better. It is not possible that the team that played the best cricket in South African conditions two months ago became a wet cat in relatively less challenging conditions.

A few days ago, when a South Asian team was suffering from the same conditions, Owen Morgan's team is the world champion. In comparison, the team that Pakistan faced was not a team with a lot of talented players. Until two days before the start of the match, all these players did not even meet each other.

Despite this, Stokes' team outperformed Babar Azam's XI. The advantage of home conditions is in place, but it is certain that Saqib Mahmood's first spell was the great use of the new ball on the wickets.

On seaming wickets, both the batsman and the bowler have only a certain line and length from which they can attack or defend. These are the balls that come from outside the off-stump that create suspicion in the heart of a veteran batsman that he should be "killed or released".

Saqib Mahmood used this line very accurately, forcing every batsman to come to the ball line and play offensive strokes. But some of the balls in this line were so measured that even well-known batsmen like Babar Azam got dizzy.

It's probably not about momentum, it's about the line that often confuses Asian teams. The fact remains that Pakistan has been the team that beats all odds in the next match after such a shame.