Pakistan’s victory in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy was nothing short of a miracle. The team was ranked 8th in ICC’s ODI rankings going into the tournament and they had the worst start to their campaign, suffering a humiliating loss at the hands of arch rivals India in the opening game.
That loss meant changes were needed in the playing XI. Coach Mickey Arthur and captain Sarfaraz Ahmed did exactly that. In walked opener Fakhar Zaman and paceman Junaid Khan. The duo had an immediate impact on Pakistan’s fortunes as they won matches against South Africa (DLS Method) and Sri Lanka to qualify for the semi-final.
In the semi-final they beat a strong England side and then ended up defeating India in the final to avenge their loss and take home the trophy for the first time. Zaman scored a brilliant hundred in the final to set up the victory.
Speaking about the triumphant campaign, former Pakistan captain and then chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq revealed what he thought was the turning point in the tournament for Pakistan.
“Sometimes one innings can take you down or bring you up. In the Champions Trophy Fakhar Zaman played an innings of just 37 runs (actually 31) against South Africa, but the aggression with which he batted in that match completely changed the morale of the team.
{{/usCountry}}“Sometimes one innings can take you down or bring you up. In the Champions Trophy Fakhar Zaman played an innings of just 37 runs (actually 31) against South Africa, but the aggression with which he batted in that match completely changed the morale of the team.
{{/usCountry}}“It just made everyone realise that they too can attack the opposition. The team never looked back from there as they went on to defeat Sri Lanka and then everyone came back to form and we went all the way,” Inzamam said on his youtube channel.
Pakistan surprised everyone by beating India in the final. Inzamam further said that when he spoke to Sarfaraz after the team’s loss to the Indians in the first match even then they had not though Pakistan would eventuaally win the title.
He said their only hope was to try and win the next two matches to at least reach the semi-finals.Inzamam said that if juniors in the team play well, it tends to boost the morale of the senior players.