Were India 'done in' by Pakistan?

Were Pakistan really earnest in trying to win Wednesdays match against Australia despite their captain Younus Khans now seemingly hypocritical assurance to the media on the eve of the match that there would be no conspiracy against IndiaI think not In my book Younuss assurance seems of a piece with the brazenly twofaced utterances of his countrys politicians Having already qualified for the semifinal stage of the Champions Trophy Pakistan were in a position to throw their match and by allowing Australia to win ensure the demise of India their arch enemies at cricket and other spheresTrue Pakistan middleorder batsman MisbahulHaqAs events panned out in a match in which Pakistans performance was strange to say the least Australia won the heartstopping match by two wickets off the last ball of the match Their win was good enough to ensure that they and not India qualified for the last four stage of the tournamentHad Pakistan lost since India thrashed the West Indies by seven wickets in a onesided affair the fourth place in the semifinals would have been decided on net rate and India could have conceivably squeezed through ahead of holders Australia even though the latter were ahead of India on net run rate before both matches commencedBatting first after being put in to bat Pakistan played in a manner that defied comprehension their accomplished batsmen who had put the Indian and West Indian bowlers to the sword giving the distinct impression that they cared little for the outcomeIncredible dismissal But the incredible manner of dismissal of Misbah ul Haq hit wicket to a Shane Watson delivery made knowledgeable fans and journalists in the press box do a doubletakeIn the words of Kevin McCallum of The Star newspaper Around the stadium hackles raised on the backs of the hacks in the press box suspicions formed and conspiracy theories ponderedIt takes some doing to take three steps back on to your own stumps to a ball that poses you no threat whatsoever It almost seemed as though Misbah ul Haq was more afraid of missing his stumps with his right foot than hitting them We must assume that it was totally innocent that he did not know where his stumps were but damn it looked iffyHaving seen the dismissal and its replay on television times without number I can attest that I have seldom seen a more generous gifting away of ones wicket Misbah who blossomed as an international player only at the age of 28 is reputed the world over for his batting prowess Said to be holder of an MBA degree Misbah is also remembered for offering a simple catch to S Sreesanth that enabled India to defeat Pakistan by five runs in the final of the Twenty20 cricket tournament in Johannesburg 07 Could this have been his way of making amends for team and countryIn the words of The Star For a large part of the match Pakistan looked like they cared little for the outcome u2013 the hit wicket dismissal the focal point of thatThen the obtuse nature of Pakistan shone through u2013 in an instant their bowling was incisive their fielding lifted up several notches and Australias cruise home turned into a frantic scamper for the lineWe cannot know which Pakistan will turn up against New Zealand at the Wanderers on Saturday that is the horror and beauty of them hit wickets suspicions and allThrowing of matches has been the bane of sport for as long as one can remember It seems to me that Pakistans shenanigans in this instance constitute an eminently fit case for investigation by the ICC custodian of the fair name of the game