Imran Khan was uncharacteristically absent yesterday (12MAY) as it became clear that his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI) had failed to make the huge gains he had promised his followers.
Khan, who is still in hospital after a serious fall at a rally last week, broke his silence some 17 hours after Nawaz Sharif claimed victory. "I congratulate the entire nation for taking part in such a massive democratic process," he said in a video message. "We are moving forward on the path of democracy."
But he said his party would formally complain about vote-rigging, which some of his followers have blamed for robbing them of the sweeping victory they thought was inevitable.
Nevertheless, the 30 seats the PTI is projected to get is a remarkable breakthrough for a party that has only ever won one seat in parliament before.
Khan has also been credited with politicising many of Pakistan's vast number of young people and encouraging them to vote in an electrifying election with one of the highest turnouts in Pakistan's history.
He also looked set to form a government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and become leader of the opposition in parliament after beating the ousted Pakistan People's party into third place.
However, expectations had been higher among supporters, particularly after news channels hyped the chances of winning enough seats to hold the balance of power in a hung parliament.
Compounding the disappointment at this failure was the news that he had not got elected in Lahore, capital of Punjab province and one of the handful of seats he contested around the country.
The victorious PML-N candidate, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, said his opponent had confused his fame as a former sports star with electability. "The people might admire him and worship him as a cricket hero, but when they go into the polling booth they are thinking about practical issues like which party will deliver jobs," he said.
