Though I agree that in a commandoVScommando situation the knifer will always lose to the pistoler, the pistol is really useless against gunners and soldiers.
The long ranged pistol = too slow, gunner\soldier will already slaughter you with their short ranged weapons
The short ranged pistol = not enough dammage. You empty an entire clip at a soldier and he looks at you like a 18 year old looks at a 2 year old trying to hit him. Gunners are not even tickled by two clips of the short ranged pistol, it just stands no chance.
Now you might say that knifer just get thrown off by blasting strike, or doesn't do enough damage to gunner with his 150-210 hp, but it does up to 79 damage per stab last time I checked, so that's a full healthed gunner with max shield in 3 stabs, trust me from expirience when I say lots of gunners die before they kill you and those who do run away with leg-it simply give you a chance to escape. I'm talking from both ends of the gunnerVSknifer equation, trust me when I say its a pretty even match.
SoldierVSknifer, I never had a problem, lots A) Don't notice until its too late, B) Focus on someone else and die or C) get surprised, try and shoot you but its already too late. Most of them DO kill you, but that's just cause commandos, knifers or not, are not meant for close ranged encounters.