IND vs PAK, World Cup 2023: Mickey Arthur blames BCCI for lack of 'Dil Dil Pakistan'

It was a grey afternoon for Pakistan at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad as they succumbed to a heavy defeat against India in the ICC World Cup 2023.

And after the match, the Pakistan director Mickey Arthur has resorted into blaming BCCI for not making it easier for their players. Courtesy of the lack of fans, or sometimes even, as he said, lack of 'Dil Dil Pakistan'.

In an unexpected revelation, Mickey Arthur confessed that his squad played timidly and failed to keep up the required run-rate under the pressure of the highly partisan crowd of over 100,000.

The gathering, largely assembled by the Indian cricket board, had the atmosphere of a private competition rather than an international event. He hinted at the fact that Pakistan's fans had yet to receive visas for the World Cup, although he was careful not to elaborate any further.

When quizzed about the possible impact of a partisan crowd on the players' mentality, he didn't shirk from confessing that it indeed felt unlike an ICC event and more like a domestic series arranged by the BCCI.

He also noted that the popular Pakistani anthem 'Dil Dil Pakistan' was only sparsely heard.

"It didn't seem like an ICC event to be brutally honest. It seemed like a bilateral series; it seemed like a BCCI event. I didn't hear 'Dil Dil Pakistan' coming through the microphones too often tonight," Arthur said.

Few foreign journalists pounced on his words and tried to induce few more comments from Arthur, but refrained from doing so to avoid sanction.

"Look I don't think I can't comment on that just yet. I don't want to get fined," he added, understanding that he has clearly over-stepped the line.

It was an abysmal performance from the Pakistani players after such a promising start They capitulated like a house of guards and crumble in front of the Indian fans. Maybe they couldnt handle the roar and succumbed to that.

But it was never easy for those Pakistani players as well in front of all those Indian fans. There were more than 100,000 voices cheering India! India! and it must have felt like a cauldron for many of those Pakistani youngsters who are facing this kind of hostile atmosphere for the first time in their career.

Mickey Arthur also says his team failed to play their usual fearless cricket and couldn't capitalize to their start.

"We were a little bit timid tonight with our overall performance. I would have liked us to really take the game on just a little bit more. It's a massive occasion, as we know, but I think we just went into our shells a little bit," Arthur added.

Pun being asked whether the pressure of seven nil took a toll on those Pakistani players. But Arthur shrugged those things off and said that it was just a normal approach from them, and there was no such previous record pressure on their players.

"Tonight, we were off our performance and as I've said before, that was the disappointing aspect for me. We were off it but the record doesn't come into the equation," Arthur concluded.