PCB sends key T20 players on Vacation with pay
Pakistan has announced it’s team for the Dubai T20 series against England.
Shoaib Malik (capt), Imran Farhat, Imran Nazir, Khalid Latif, Shahid Afridi, Fawad Alam, Umar Akmal, Abdul Razzaq, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Yasir Arafat, Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Talha, Wahab Riaz, Umar Gul.
Reserves: Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Aamer Sajjad, Mohammad Aamer.
Dubai Authorities have refused to make an exception to their laws and allow Asif into their country, However it has been learned from a confidential source that he can still be granted permission to play in Dubai if he illegally captures a pair of Falcons and gift them to Shiekh Ibne Shiekh of Dubai only then the Sheikh might reconsider lifting the bar, but if he brings two young boys for illegal Camel racing then not only he will get immunity but will also get access to Shiekh Ibne Shiekh’s private drug cabinet. But sources claim that Asif pushed his luck by wanting an access to Sheikh’s haram and the negotiations failed.
Kamran Akmal has been given a vacation with pay so he won’t be playing this series.
However PCB top management was not so kind to Shahid Afridi who desperately wanted this vacation, he even committed ball tampering for it and almost lost all of his front teeth, but his action didn’t amused the board officials who want to make an example of him, so they refused to send him on paid vacation and decided to further punish him by making him play under Shoaib Malik.
Coach Intikhab Alam and Manager Abdul Raqeeb are also given paid vacation however sources claim that their paid vacation may turn into a permanent vacation in the next few days. Ejaz Ahmed will be the new coach for this tour.
Khalid Latif and Fawad Alam have been retained for this tour because the condition of performing does not apply to players from Karachi. Oh my bad my conscience just reminded me that Fawad has been selected just for his fielding.
Imran Farhat won a lottery because his father in law got rid off Kamran Akmal and made room for his SOB oops, I mean SIL. Can somebody inform Ilyas & co that the kid who opened for Pakistan in T20 WC Shahzaib Hassan will also be in Dubai during this series playing for Pakistan A.
Another player who has been given a vacation with pay is Rana Naveed. Why? I really don’t know the answer. May be he has a “warri watta” with Abdul Razzaq one comes back from the vacation and the other one goes, but I was just wondering wouldn’t it be nice to play match fit players rather than big names who haven’t played any cricket in last three months. But then again everybody should get a paid vacation once in a while.
Yasir Arafat has been recalled from a long paid vacation, finally somebody noticed that he is still on the payroll and has been on vacation for so long so better make the MF do some work.
Rao and Aamer wanted to visit Dubai for shopping so their names have been included as reserves even though Aamer is injured but just to silence the critics and to make the 17 year old happy he is going as a reserve.
Pakistan eleven is scheduled to play a T20 match against Pakistan A team. I am more interested in this match rather than the series against England. The A team includes the top domestic players from this season and I am 100% sure they would be dying to give the senior team some serious whipping.
Wasim you beauty this is a fine post! I was still thinking about what had happened what is this selection, what the hell is this squad all about but you got it right.
Watching GEO Tv’s Cricket ka muqadma yesterday I was only thinking things are going to get worse not improve and there are signs coming out now.
Here’s my take on selection:
Agree with:
Imran Nazir
Imran Farhat (has a very good T20 record)
Umar Akmal
Shahid Afridi
Shoaib Malik
Fawad Alam (has a very good batting record which is inflated by not outs, good bowling record as well)
Abdul Razzaq
Sarfraz Ahmed (poor record but this may be because of batting low down but v. good SR)
Umar Gul
Saeed Ajmal
Mohammad Aamer
Mohammad Talha (good domestic record)
Disagree with:
Yasir Arafat (poor T20I stats and not so good domestic stats surprisingly)
Khalid Latif (poor record)
Wahab Riaz (poor record)
Rao Iftikhar Anjum (poor record)
Aamer Sajjad (poor record)
I’m not sure why we need 17 players for only 3 matches - in my eyes there are 5 players above who should not be in the T20 team. I would have liked to have seen Kamran Akmal, Rana, Tanvir (if fit) in the squad and Misbah who has a very good record in the format.
http://www.cricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/447412.html
What a joke.
Thanks Reverse.
123
Imran Farhat has a good T20 record with Badshahs not the international team.
Khalid Lateef and Fawad do no espouse confidence in me, Both of them are not aggressive enough for this format.
Razzaq hasn’t played cricket since the lankan series who knows if he is fit or not.
Aamer is injured. So why he is in the reserves.
The board is being unfair with Tanvir.
Aamer Sajjad is in excellent form, in fact not only him but I wanted a few other from the A team.
Wasim
Farhat
Initially I was also against his selection but he has very good stats. In 14 matches he has 451 runs at an average of 34.69 and SR of 158.80 with a HS of 115. He’s only played 1 T20I so I think he should be given a chance.
Latif - Agree with you as in my above post.
Fawad Alam
I think he is underestimated maybe it is because he is small in height but once again his stats are very good. In domestic cricket, he has played 36 matches, 580 runs @ 38.66 with a SR of 127.75. In his bowling he has 60.4 overs, 433 runs, 29 wickets at an average of 14.93 and an econ rate of 7.13.
At International level, he has played 16 matches, 97 runs @ 24.25 and a SR of 136.61. His bowling is 15 overs, 95 runs, 8 wickets @ 11.87 with an econ rate of 6.33.
We all know Razzaq is a very good player for this format and if fit should be in the team. He was playing in November against NZ before he got injured. I assume he is fit.
I assume they expect Aamer to be fit as well and so that is why he is in the squad.
I don’t know about Tanvir - he made himself unavailable for AUS due to injury, and he may not be available again.
Aamer Sajjad - not a T20 player, even Yousuf is a better option. I’m not against any A team players being selected but they have to prove themselves in the format.
No Rana? What pathetic jokers. There’s us wanting to see Rana and Razzaq in the same side but they drop one for the other? Clowns
How embarrassing will that be if the A-team win?
I think that story 123 put up should be the nail in Butt’s coffin.
123
The purpose of the above post was just to highlight how farcical and meaningless PCB’s disciplinary actions are, just one series ago their coach and chief selector accused Malik of forming cliques in the team publicly now he is captaining the side. If Kamran was dropped from the English tour along with half a million fine that would have been a punishment, just dropping him for two inconsequential T20’s and we are done with disciplining him thats a serious joke.
They didn’t even had the courage to drop Afridi for this series. After two matches he will be back, his ego will inflate10 folds.
These half hearted steps are just a formality and have no real pupose behind them I would have preferred to play Kamran Akmal if we didn’t had the intention to punish him seriously.
And mind you we were playing this two match series as preperation for the T20 WC but the key players are missing. And those who have replaced them are not T20 specialists.
Stani & 123
Do you think that Richardson, Hooper and Ambrose could have attracted any body’s attention, those guys are were just coming in for money and the world would have completely dismissed this stunt as a joke.
Wasim
As far as I am aware the committee is looking into the Afridi and Akmal matter and there could be further penalties.
That’s my point, players such as Yasir Arafat, Khalid Latif, Wahab Riaz, Rao Iftikhar Anjum and Aamer Sajjad are not T20 specialists and have struggled in the format. I think this would be our best team:
1. Imran Nazir
2. Kamran Akmal (wk)
3. Shahid Afridi (capt)
4. Shoaib Malik
5. Misbah Ul-Haq
6. Umar Akmal
7. Abdul Razzaq
8. Mohammad Aamer
9. Saeed Ajmal
10. Umar Gul
11. Mohammad Asif
Others to consider: Rana, Tanvir, Fawad Alam
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/top-stories/Enemy-within-reason-for-Pakistans-defeat/articleshow/5527471.cms
123
There should be no Misbah ul Haq. Instead they should pick somebody young.
The link is a collection of cut and paste collection of old rumours. Other than Kamran Akmal incident everything else is just made up, Why every captain keeps on selecting Malik if he is so evil? Misbah’s body language told a different story, his legs were trembling and hands were shaking when he came to bat in his last innings.
Most people don’t know Yousaf has been the mentor of Misbah in domestic cricket and they have very good relations I don’t think Misbah would have done anything wrong with him intentionally he was just out of form.
@123,
Agreed with your above team but could have couple of adjustments:
1 - Forget Misbah, he isn’t that Misbah of 2007, include a new batsman instead of him or I am seriously thinking of making a place for Rana Naveed in this squad but can’t find any.
2 - Or we can shift Kamran to #3 and add an opener with Imran Nazir (a little more reliable) options are: Salman Butt (He can score at run a ball and has shots that suit first 6 overs power play) Shazaib(?) Imran Farhat (Give him a chance).
@Wasim, I don’t know why you are so hard against some players e.g. Fawad and even you mentioned something about him in post which is simply not near to truth (Regional Politics, Karachi or Lahore player etc) but I am not sure about this so will not say anything about it.
But Fawad is a gutsy player but he is one unlucky bastard look at his stats look at his performances ( last 3 ODIs in recent white wash ) he played a very vital innings and role when batting was almost collapsed. Is he bad than Younis or Misbah? He can play same role in T20 ( you need someone who can hold the inning and also keep the score board ticking if we had lost early wickets as we usually do). He is a much better fielder (MCG T20?) he provides an option of spin bowling in supporting conditions when needed although no body used him so far (Unimaginative Captains we have or may be we have Afridi, Ajmal and Malik). He doesn’t have the perfect technique (so what majority of them don’t have any) but he has guts to play and could be an important part of the team.
This is simply my point and I don’t want to start Fawad/Malik war once again as it was on Stani’s.
I am shocked at Kamran, if you want him to punish do it in a way it looks like he is punished what is this, and you are dropping him from T20 for poor performance in test even when he almost won your only T20 match on a drastic tour. Bloody idiots.
No Rana Naveed even when you can’t have Asif in UAE what the hell, will Gul and Razzaq be able to complete the pace attack.
Brilliant work PCB for World T20 preparations, kudos!
Reverse
If we were playing a test or Odi I would have said nothing about Fawad his batting style suits those formats although he still has to prove a lot, his stats do not show the exact picture a lot of low scoring n.o have inflated his average.
But so far what I have observed that he does not have too many high scoring shots, which are required in T20. But he is a good feilder as far as his bowling is concerned that chapter is closed when was the last time he bowled in domestic cricket or International cricket. In last T20 other than his fielding he has nothing to show for.
I have nothing against him personally and believe me it’s not criticism based on regionalism as I haven’t spared anyone. Misbah, Malik , Akmal and Farhat are not from Karachi. I write what I believe there are no hidden agendas.
People give him a higher rating then he deserves especially for the shorter format and that is my opinion. But lets wait and see if he can play the role of an anchor and score with SR of 100.
It’s not that I don’t understand 123’s view point or your’s but you can’t have a debate if you agree on every thing, the key for any debate is to highlight contrasting viewpoints. So that those who read get the most out of it.
@Wasim, I am not accusing you for being regionalism but your comment was a bit shocking you never had said such thing before, may be you were trying to spice it up or what but yes Kahlid Latif’s selection is suspicious he isn’t a T20 type batsman at all.
As far as Fawad is concerned he is weired I read and heard people praising a lot about him to the extent it look like just as his PR team but on the other hand he got some fan who almost hate him and don’t consider him a cricketer even and you are too bit harsh on him may be or it just my illusion. It is surprising for a guy who just had played a handful of matches in any format to gather such extreme reactions.
Let wait and see what he turns out to be (Provided given regular chances).
Reverse
I don’t know if I am harsh on him, I don’t think he has the range of shots to survive in T20. If he improves his foot work he can definitely be a good test cricketer he has the temprament to grind it out and fight, in Odi’s he will have to bat higher because again he doesn’t have the range of shots to accelerate in last few overs, each time he came to bat in Odis when big hitting was required he failed, and always scored when he came in the middle of the innings. Like we both said we will find out his worth in T20’s after the Dubai series.
If you have any doubt about my statement regarding people being less criticial of players from Karachi go on Pakspin you will not find a word about Khalid Latif, Khurram Manzoor and Fawad.
If you compare the stats of Umar Gul and Rana in the Odi series you won’t find much of a difference but people have crucified Rana whereas Gul didn’t get any criticism.
Did anybody watched Dale Steyn’s devastating spell against India yesterday? It was a treat to watch.
The way he set up Sachin was a lesson for Gul and Aamer who kept on bowling short or wide out side off stump in Australia. Steyn’s speed was ranging between 134-139 the speed at which Gul mostly bowls
but he made the batsmen play through out the day. Just because of his bowling Parnell and Harris also looked good because the Indians went in a shell.
India are struggling and only a miracle can save them for losing this match.
If you guys get a chance do watch him bowl today he is in great form.
@Wasim, may be that is the reason, I didn’t noticed for anyone else but in case of Fawad i noticed some guys are hyping him too much and other are too critical. So far he didn’t displayed any big shots you are right but in domestic T20 I guess I heard he played some sensational knocks and I don’t remember correctly but I guess I saw one of them I think.
@Styen, that was brutal he just got the hell out of Indian batsmen. First it was interesting battle between Styen and Sehwag and after that he was all over. That also remind us even on flat pitches a quality bowler can find ways to get batsman out. It was amazing and it even faded some good bowling by M Morkel. Harris doesn’t look like a threatning spinner or may be was just faded by Styen. I only watched highlights so need to watch complete day pay to comment better which I am going to find time anyway
Reverse his last good domestic T20 innings was against Lahore Eagles whose bowling attack was spearheaded by Junaid Zia.Lets wait and see how he performs in Dubai. The new guys should be given a fair chance to prove themselves.
Morkel was good and Kallis was Ok, Parnell and Harris were harmless.
Steyn was superb he kept on attacking the stumps and pitched the ball up with slight movement bothways, this is what Aamer and Gul will have to learn they kept on bowling short in Australia and when the batsmen were set they bowled negatively wide outside off stump. Steyn’s pace was comparable to Gul.
A few changes in the Odi team and test team are necessary, how much time should we allow to a youngster to prove himself in the national team? A couple of matches, one series, couple of series, One season, what should be the bench mark ?
@Styen and Aamer, Gul, I think Pakistani bowlers jump in anticipation of little bounce if they see in pitches same like our captains always opt to bowel first whenever there is a little bit of grass or bounce on pitch. They tried to bounce them out and this must be good feeling to have some good bounce after playing on lifeless domestic pitches but they should know that those are their home conditions and their batsmen know bounce better and are best players of bounce.
@chances, I think there is no hard and fast rule for this but you should at east provide some security to them for a peace of mind. If you fear of being dropped next match you are already playing with half of your strength and will and whatever you do is mostly to impress selectors or for your own career so no team work at the end.
First they need to select the deserving players, no parchi, no safarshi, no Uncle’s nephew or dear Son in Law and when a pure talent selected give them security and target to achieve during a particular series and let them enjoy it. Even if it is not long term at least if you have selected them for a series then tell them you will play all matches or max matches don’t worry and show us your best. Captain can also play a big role. No team politics involved. No leg pulling only then you will start getting some result. Look at Aussies they tried their new Guys this summer but they gave them time even after failure.
How much time? Well no one is dumb, you can see the glimpses of talent they got even in small efforts which lead to more chances, so as far as there is some hope of getting something out of them without making them a liability they deserve a chance or in simple words they deserve a decent chance. Like Fawad I think there was an option to play him all 5 ODIs and than may be 5 more and you are all set to post martem his performance blah blah.
More on this later. Any ideas? Any thoughts?
Great bowlers never fear of getting hit, Gul and Aamer kept on bowling short because somehow they liked to see the batsman jump and leave the ball, whenever they pitched up they gave away a boundary, you have to attack the wicket especially when the batsman is set.
@ Chances
In my opinion the answer is simple, if you have a player who has nothing wrong with his technique you give him a full series or send him in the first match by telling him regardless of your performance you will play in the next match so don’t take pressure just enjoy the game. But if you have a player who fails because of his technique you take him back in the nets and make sure that his problems are rectified before given another chance.
In our team we are playing youngsters interchangeably with seniors just to fill the slot, one fails the other one replaces him until he fails and the first one comes back. There should be a plan, once it is decided that a senior is out of form he should not get selected until he shows a marked improvement in the nets or domestic cricket. The debutants or new players should make a start at #4- #6 and the seniors should move up.
I would say a debutant comes in at 1,2 or 6. In Test and ODI’s numbers 3, 4 and 5 are the most important and should be filled by senior players unless a new player is exceptionally good.
123
The opener is a specialist position not everybody can play as an opener if a young player is groomed as an opener only then he should play as one. I agree # 3, #4 and # 5 should be occupied by seniors.
But bloody seniors denied playing at #3 in New Zealand which creats some problem, i also read reports about Kamran Akmal not happy about putting Umar at #3 so in next inning Yousuf came at #3. But Malik totally denied playing at #3. What you can do with these selfish seniors? Kick them out forever?
I was watching an interview with Miandad last night on Geo. He highlighted an important point, he said that if you look at Australia they have one technique which is taught across the board as a result their youngsters play just like the accomplished seniors once they get adjusted, whereas in Pakistan there is no grass root coaching as a result of which all the players have different techniques.
This was the only thing he said of any value in the whole interview the rest was only BS. It was funny how he was defending Faisal Iqbal, and the host disgusted me the most by his jingoistic and biased hatred of certain players. On Shahid Afridi the host said that we are all muslims so we should forgive and forget Afridi’s mistake, he kept on highlighting that he is a match winner, he criticized heavily Umar Akmal and Kamran Akmal for their row with the board after Sydney test which was fair enough but he blamed Kamran Akmal for the loss in T20 never mentioned how many scores Khalid Latif or Fawad Alam made he kept on saying that Kamran Akmal couldn’t finish it off as a result of which we lost.
What a shame, this is why I wrote earlier that the condition of performing does not apply on players from Karachi. I think if KA has to be punished then Afridi should also get punished there was absolutely no need for what he did, this is double standard that you want to forgive and forget one player but want to crucify the other. The same host and many others would have raised hell if god forbid Malik or Yousaf had done what Afridi did.
Like corruption and dirty politics, regionalism is also one of the biggest problems facing Pakistan cricket.
Reverse
Malik’s refusal to play at # 3 is only half of the truth he asked for time to get adjusted to the new position, in one of his interviews he said I didn’t refused I asked for three matches at the same number, which in my opinion is fair enouggh you can’t ruin somebodies career by shifting them up and down and by dropping them on the first mistake, whether it is a senior or junior they should be given confidence that they will not be dropped if they are moved from their position.
Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi claims that the ball tampering issue has been blown out of proportions by certain elements in the Pakistan cricket fraternity who want to support a captain from Punjab.
WTF Can any one tell this guy that the whole nation supported him to lead Pakistan and the Punjabi captain was changed in the middle of a series and he showed his gratitude to the nation by making a mockery of cricket laws and bringing shame for the country by tampering the ball. He needs to grow up and own his mistake rather than shifting the blame.
This was not the first time that Pakistan was on the verge of losing a series comprehensively and many times in the past he has been one of the major reasons behind our loss, does it mean that each time Pakistan will be on verge of losing he will either scuff up the pitch or take a bite on the ball? Is this is the kind of maturity Pakistan is looking for in their next leader? On top of that he has the audacity to involve regionalism to defend his own mistake. Enough is enough the guy has played enough dirty politics in Pakistan cricket, nobody is bigger than the game especially not a over hyped player like him.
Kamran Akmal is being punished for issuing unnecessary statements in the media, I think it’s high time that PCB management should put their foot in this guys mouth he needs to be punished for passing such a blatant accusation.
LAHORE: In view of the national cricket team’s pathetic performance in international cricket as well the growing menace of indiscipline and player-power, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has once again decided to hire a foreign coach with hard-nosed Australian legend Greg Chappell topping the list of candidates in running for the post.
Well-informed sources told Dawn that PCB chairman Ijaz Butt had discussed the idea with his think-tank and it was decided to give Chappell top priority, given his high credentials as a tough task master.
The experts believe that the Pakistan team, which is currently ranked at a poor 7th in both the Tests and the ODIs, is quite talented and strong on paper and only groupings among the players mars its progress.
Pakistan could not even win a single Test or ODI series in 2009-2010, losing successive games to Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Australia last year.
Sources said Chappell is also keen to avail such an offer and if the two parties agreed on the terms and conditions, he may well join the Pakistan team as coach before the England tour in July.
Chappell earlier coached India from 2005-2007 but his numerous clashes with senior players including then skipper Sourav Ganguly and the subsequent first round loss of the Indian team in the 2007 World Cup forced him to quit the high-profile job.
Pakistan, too, has not had much success with the foreign coaches in the past with England’s Bob Woolmer (late) and Australia’s Geoff Lawson failing to revive the team’s fortunes during their respective tenures in the past six years or so.
Chappell was one of the finest Test captains who led the Australian team from 1975-77 and then again from 1979-83. He played 87 Tests scoring 7110 runs at excellent average 53.86 and 74 ODIs, scoring 2331 at 40.18. Chappell had also acted as Cricket Australia selector for a short term
Hafeez scores an unbeaten 99 off 64 balls against UAE A team in Dubai. Shazaib Hassan scored 48 off 32 balls and the top scorer of QEA trophy Asad Shafiq scored 22 off 15 balls. Pakistan A scored 202 in 20 overs and won the match comfortably by 119 runs. They face a tough task when they face England lions on Friday. Pakistan A team includes the top performers of QEA trophy.
Reverse,
I don’t think its the actual position but the fact that they dont want to be moved around. I’ve highlighted this before with Malik. Yousuf should not bat at 3 - hes the most experienced player and I think should come in at 5 in ODI (middle overs) and tests because he plays to the situation. If selfishness prevails, I would impose heavy fines which will teach them not to do it again in the future.
Wasim,
I don’t want to sound like I’m defending Afridi, what he did was wrong, but from my point of view what Kamran Akmal did was directly challenge the PCB and insult the PCB by saying he was playing etc. and thats what Umar Akmal tried to do - they tried to show that they were bigger than the team so that they could force Kamran’s selection. What Afridi did, like I said was wrong, embarrassing and humiliating but was not insulting nor was he effectively saying he is bigger than the team.
As for Kamran finishing the match, that is something you would expect from anyone who has played that number of matches at international level e.g. like Afridi did against WI in the champions trophy - he got the team home - it wasn’t as difficult but Pak were struggling. Also, Kamran, such an experienced player still has problems with keeping - this is something he should have tried to fix himself over the past couple of years when we have not had as much fixtures.
Wasim,
I think the All star team touring would definitely made a difference:
1 - For our own cricket future, youngsters watching the players after such a long time and generating an interest in cricket
2 - Many people may not notice but someone has to play in Pak first - no-one will be willing to risk that in a long time.
3 - It only takes one team to play before slowly others start to come e.g. West Indies, Bangladesh moving onto more of the main team
I would be confident that Pakistan A can win. Some impressive performances especially Hafeez with batting over the past few months and he is also a useful bowler and fielder. We’ll see whether anyone steps up against Lions.
http://www.cricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/447711.html
I wonder who this player is. From what I can understand, he was either dropped for the first test against AUS or sometime throughout the series.
123
The mysterious player can only be Malik because he was the one who was dropped from the test matches in Australia. He only played in the last one. But you can’t trust any one of these guys they are all a bunch of liars. How can a player who is not playing can effect the team’s performance on the field? If he was that big of a problem then why they didn’t send him back home or made his behaviour public, but instead they played him in the third test and now PCB has sent him as a captain of the T20 team to Dubai.
@Wasim, yeah right Malik is the biggest case as there are some past reports about him but Kamran Akmal’s behavior wasn’t that good at all. He was whining around like a baby when he was dropped from third test. This was a definite violation of discipline and he should have been punished during tour but seems like he is now but dropping from a T20 practice tour isn’t a punishment after all.
Many people are whining about why Yousuf made it public and why he give such statement about the player in public etc even he didn’t mentioned the name. But if we can understand who he was I think majority of people can. And I also think his name should be made public with some serious punishement against him to make an example. PCB already keep too many loose ends and now it is a chance to tighten some of them. Shoaib Malik should also be sidelined for some time like his name sake Shoaib Akhtar and any other trouble maker.
But thanks to our great selectors and clown he is the Captain once again and if they will be able to win T20s in UAE he and his lobby will represent himself as a great choice for next captain, what the heck!!
Reverse
What is the credibility of Yousaf? Didn’t he openly took side of Kamran Akmal and Umar Akmal and was as responsible for the defeat in Sydney as Akmal? His field placement was questionable, the way he got out was also shady.
Now when he is under scrutiny he is looking for a scape goat an easy target.
Malik played only in one test match how Yousaf is going to explain the poor performance on field all those dropped catches, poor field placement, negative bowling and batsmen throwing away their wickets if all the players had their remote control in Malik’s hand then I guess he is very powerful but not powerful enough to remain in the team for all the matches in the series.
I think the best way to deal with the issue and to find out truth will be to have these players face to face on a show and then ask them questions.
An even better thing to do will be what I have been saying all along drop all the four senior players and start fresh, Pakistan won’t do any worse then what they are already doing.
These stories of players creating trouble during a series why do they only surface when the series is over, why they don’t bring them up while the series is on? These are only diversionary tactics to further confuse people. After Yousaf’s statement nobody is going to focus on his questionable performance as a player and as a captain and nobody will focus on Afridi’s ball tampering, the attention and anger of people has been diverted, and Yousaf will kill two birds with one stone.
Last time when he had a row with Malik was when he was not included in the T20 format, Malik was blamed to be conspiring against senior players, now after Malik Pakistan has played under Younis and under Afridi in T20 how many times Yousaf played a T20 match?
Yousaf used Malik as a scape goat when he left to play for ICL he went there only for money he did it twice and only came back when the league was finished. Just because of his beard and religious appearance we can’t believe in him blindly.
Malik is not indispensable he is not a big player why are we keeping him in the team if he is such a big trouble maker, just kick him out. But I don’t think that it will solve any problem as the real reasons behind all these dirty politics and finger pointing are different.
We don’t trust him
we don’t trust Afridi
we don’t trust Malik
we don’t trust team manager of course.
we don’t trust board.
we don’t trust politicians, beaurucrates, technocrates anyone.
we don’t even trust ourself as a nation, is this the problem beneth all these problems we are collectively facing?
On other note: we have that thing in us but we are never united and never had developed the society which can lead us together to something better.
I can only guess that Kamran Akmal was dropped following disciplinary issues following what happened prior to the SCG test when he told the media he was definitely playing. He surely couldn’t be dropped on merit, could he ? He absolutely thrives in T20 format. Strike rate of 134 and average of 25 in this edition of the game for him. He is better in limited over cricket than Safraz in my opinion. Safraz is yet to prove himself. He is a decent stopper so far. Nothing else.
In regards to Muhammad Waqas. He didn’t have one single flaw in the U19WC. Kept very tidily and neatly. He is also, an attacking aggressive left hander who has been a “matchwinner” under pressure. A future prospect !
oh bloody spellings , sorry
My team from what the squad is r :
Nazir
Farhat
Malik
Latif
Umar
Fawad
Safraz
Yasir
Gul
Wahab Riaz
Ajmal
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What do you make of the contradictory statements made by Yousaf, Intikhab and Ejaz Butt regarding the subject matter one day they say that their is friction in the team the next day they say there is no friction in the team. I think it would be foolish to trust these guys, whenever they come under severe pressure to change the core they divert the attention of the public by raising this issue.
May be I am wrong as I am only speculating, the only reason I doubt this whole BS is because Malik is not a key player has never been indispensable, I have been hearing these conflicting statements about him creating factions and discord in the team since the days of his captaincy, why is he still in the team when he is not even a key player. Younis said it is difficult to prepare a player like him in a short time and persisted with him, Yousaf also persisted with him, and we all know he will be playing under Afridi too.
Why these captains continue to select him why don’t they keep him out?
Now if they have no say in his selection that means that the board backs a few corrupt players despite their poor performance and dirty politics. WHY??? just because of $$$$$$$$$
You can’t make a new player throw away his wicket or under perform otherwise his career will be over, take example of Aamer, Ajmal and UA.
Maz
There is no Aamer, no Asif , no Rana so we will have to stick with Gul, Riaz and Arafat but I was wondering why you didn’t included Razzaq.
@wasim, actually I am sick of all this, I wish those days of teen come back when we used to watch match and enjoy it and if we feel oh this is getting boring (aka Pakistan loosing) we went out and play our own match and have fun, so peaceful lolz
But these Guys are so sick and idiot they keep surprising you when you think oh there can’t be worse than this they came up with something you can’t even imagine. Leave you in agony and went on to more heights of stupidity.
On serious note: Captains may be using him to hole out of possible problems but why only Malik, I suspect there is something with him that he is always in some controversy as Shoaib Akhter is and we know what a goat Shoaib Akhter is similarly Malik is “Ghunna” he doesn’t go public and say things but he always has something going on from affairs to Indian girls and problems with team mates but all of that seems suspicious as he almost never came out and defend himself as he doesn’t even care about it. He must have some support in PCB top officials otherwise life must have been very difficult for him.
That is obvious, everyone try to hide things first till those are not forcefully went out as they know some where down the line they will also be held responsible for that.
Ok I am not making any sense, damn I am really sick of this, bring me something different :p
I don’t think it was Malik. he was dropped in NZ for the third test because he was clearly struggling as we all know. Yousuf clearly said that they dropped the player in AUS which indicates to me that the player was playing against NZ. Also, if it was Malik, and Afridi, Raqeeb and Intikhab Alam know, then why was he captain for AUS and the ENG T20’s - it can’t be him otherwise Yousuf or someone else would have told the board straightaway don’t make him captain especially against AUS when the team management were there. Also, why wasn’t he sent home? So, it can’t be him.
I would think that what they are saying is true. You have two management staff and Yousuf and Afridi - (both from different regions so its not regionalism or anything) agreeing on this one player. If this was false and a scape goat, someone would have said Yousuf is lying by now - so its true. This is no diversion, Afridi and Yousuf’s captaincy are being investigated and no story can change that. Players don’t have to be playing - affecting players in their mental mindset is probably what was done.
You guys keep saying dropping Kamran is not a good enough punishment, but don’t you think we should wait until the committee reports before we criticise - they may impose a fine.
As for contradictory statements, I think that the team is fairly united but all the uncertainty doesn’t help and starts to cause some friction. Raqeeb has no reason to divert attention - what pressure is he under?
It has to be a senior player to have an effect. Yousuf supported Akmal so its not him. Umar Gul’s omission in the first test was interesting. Murmurs about fitness, injury… Did we get the real reason he didn’t play? I hope its not him… because it would be a shame if it was but he did turn against Younis in October who I understand were very close and even though Younis backed him even though he struggled for form in champions trophy. He also had a scuffle with Aamer in NZ.
No doubt we’ll know soon.
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Interesting points.
You guys keep saying dropping Kamran is not a good enough punishment, but don’t you think we should wait until the committee reports before we criticise - they may impose a fine.
I think you misunderstood, I have been saying all along he deserved punishment for all the drama he created and deserved to be dropped from the team forever for the dropped catches if foul play was involved but just to punish him and let Afridi get away with just a two match ban will tantamount to using double standards.
Yousaf said that we dropped Mr ? in the Australian series, did he meant dropped after playing or dropped at the beginning?
It’s either Misbah or Malik. I will be surprised if it is Umar Gul.
Only Misbah was sent home, so may be it was him. In that case we might have something new, but a lot of blogs and other sites have been pointing toward Malik so I was a bit surprised why they keep on playing him when he creates such a vile atmosphere.
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You are not the only one who is sick of it. But the truth should come out.
My guess was right the accused player is Malik.
Malik met with Ejaz Butt today and has vowed that this time he will not spare Yousaf and will make startling revelations about Yousaf in 24 hours.
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/sport/ijaz-turns-down-maliks-request-on-captaincy-220
http://www.hindustantimes.com/One-player-ruining-team-spirit-and-unity-Yousuf/H1-Article1-507273.aspx
These are the only 2 sources I can find. I did put up an article before that highlighted this:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/top-stories/Enemy-within-reason-for-Pakistans-defeat/articleshow/5527471.cms
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/top-stories/Enemy-within-reason-for-Pakistans-defeat/articleshow/5527471.cms
I can’t find much on it. But the link above is one I put up a few days ago which says pretty much the same thing.
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Read jang sports section.
http://www.jang-group.com/jang/feb2010-daily/12-02-2010/sports.htm
So Yousuf is now saying that he will name 2/3 players who have also been causing problems - I suspect it will be Butt, Misbah, 2 Akmals.
Malik says he will say something about Yousuf soon and has told Ijaz Butt he doesn’t want to be captain, and says he only accepted it because Afridi asked him in the first place. But I thought Afridi knew about Malik’s mischief?
I’m starting to wonder whether this could have been a clever move by Yousuf. If you take Younis and Yousuf out of the equation for captaincy, in tests the only suitable candidates that remain are Malik, Butt, Umar Akmal (for those wanting a young captain), Kamran Akmal, Misbah. By saying they disrupt team unity, he keeps the captaincy.
I don’t know…
If Malik’s name is surfacing time and again for such controversies then he should be dropped from the team, he must have some dirt on the top management as a result of which they keep on selecting him.
The unity of the team can never be restored if these four captains continued to play for Pakistan. Eveyrone is for himself for me only the managers report is important. If he says that a certain player was creating discord the that player should be dropped.
hmmm and what if that manager is the dirt you are talking about or he also has that dirt on top of him, will it not effect his report favoring anyone of them? Well it is a possibility but I think his report will be much realistic but if it was Yaver Saeed I should have my doubts as he is a very suspicious person and to our luck he is in inquiry committee , bloody hell.
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There are three groups in the team and two groups in the PCB management but have you ever noticed that despite all the public mudslinging on each other and changes in captaincy and management the main characters still manage to hold their positions.
WHY????
Only because each one has dirt on the other and they know each others dirty secrets, otherwise there was absolutely no reason to retain players who do not perform and on top of that create discord in the team.
Malik’s response:
“I requested the chairman to let me have my say in front of the inquiry committee,” Malik said. “I want to ask you guys one thing. If you compare the spirit in the first seven matches on the Australian tour to the spirit you saw in the last two matches, what was the difference? Wasn’t it a totally different side? And who wasn’t playing in those last two games?” Yousuf missed the last ODI in Perth and isn’t a part of Pakistan’s T20I squad.
Malik took a further dig at Yousuf’s leadership, saying he would’ve attacked more during the fateful final day of the Sydney Test. Yousuf was widely criticised for the defensive fields he set when Michael Hussey and Peter Siddle added 123 runs for the ninth wicket, allowing Australia to set Pakistan 176 for victory, having been effectively 80 for 8 when the fourth day began.
“I think we should’ve attacked more at Siddle and Hussey. We didn’t and that is why we lost. We need to stop making excuses about why we lost and just go out on to the field and perform and give our full effort. I don’t believe in making excuses, I believe only in giving my best efforts on the field. I don’t need to justify myself, I just try and do that on the ground with my performances.”
Rashid Latif says Sarfraz Ahmed is a better batsman than Kamran Akmal.
And probably he considers himself better than Adam Gilchrist. It’s another example of criticism based on jingoism and vested interests. No doubt Akmal performed poorly as a keeper in Sydney test and for that an inquiry should be hold and he should be punished for underperformance and the statements he made after the match but to say that Sarfraz is a better batsman than Akmal is living in a fools paradise.
To be realistic Sarfraz’s batting is not even of club standard if Akmal has to be replaced then other candidates should also come into contention.
Wasim,
I don’t believe they have dirt on each other. Malik was sacked by the people has dirt on? If Malik can be sacked, then they can drop him as well.
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He was removed from captaincy on the pretext that he doesn’t deserve a position in the test team otherwise his record as a captain was better than any other captain but did they dropped him from the team afterward?
Even now he is being rumoured to be the conspirator behind the downfall of two captains but did they dropped him?
Why he became so indispensable?
My bad, I left our Razzaq out
I back Pakistan to win both matches, despite their huge losing streak of late !!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iqvkv1h3Tck&feature=channel
Must watch the above link Wasim !
Wasim, has Ijaz Butt actually been sacked or is this untrue ? I have already began celebrating but I think there is no such confirmation as of yet
Maz
Not yet, but no need to celebrate as those who want his place are not any better, Dasti & co are responsible for all the chaos they are only after PCB finances. Change is only good when it is for better.
The three names which have been sent to Zardari they are all tested and tried people.
Also why is Salman Butt all of a sudden called to appear in front of the committee. I think he has been causing some problems.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/515179_-Send-back-indisciplined-Pak-players-from-tour-
http://news.oneindia.in/2010/02/13/yousufsdefensive-captaincy-lack-of-team-disciplineblam.html
So Pakistan A have lost their series. I think the batting is at fault. I highlighted this in the earlier posts of this thread but look at the stats - only Hafeez and Shazaib have good records. All the others are absolutely appalling. In terms of bowling, I’m questioning why Tanvir Ahmed and Yasir Shah were picked.
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Salman has only been called to get his side of the story on the run out incident and it’s aftermath. Raqeeb has given clean chit to Malik in his report, now that is interesting.
The A team included top performers from the QEA trophy and these players should get exposure we should show some patience with them, the tour management has not picked the right combination. I think Pakistan A will make a strong comeback.
Wasim, I would like to see Abdul Qadir have another go at the job. He was pretty successful when he did it. He knows where the talent of Pakistan lies and has flexibility in his ideas/approach.
Have you seen the Pakistan “A” team BTW. Such poor quality. Hardly any of the names in that squad deserve their places with the excpetion of a few.
No Mohammad Irfan, Mansoor Amjad, Sohail Khan, U19 players etc.
Maz
Some of the A team guys were the best performers in the domestic season. Why they didn’t played Talha and Mohammad Yasin? Hafeez is an international failure how many years more we are going to give him chance, the A team needs continuity the team should have been more or less the same which played in Australia last year minus a few changes.
As regards Abdul Qadir, I don’t think that Qasim did anything wrong it was the players and the captain who chose not to give their 100%. You can select the best 15 but if they do not perform and play for themselves then there is nothing much the selectors can do.
And have you noticed that we change the selectors whenever some senior players are facing the axe.
I think Hafeez’s performances in one day cricket means he deserves another chance. He has struggled more than others in international cricket because he’s played more in countries like South Africa and England rather than the subcontinent.
The A team - they can be the best first class players etc. but at the end of the day they are not T20 players. T20 is a completely different format and the 2 players who we know are good in the format (Hafeez and Shazaib) have done well but the others haven’t really impressed.
I think the selection by Qasim was wrong slightly. For example why were Iqbal and Farhat selected for Tests and ODI’s? Why were there so many players? I have to admit, now I think about it, under Qadir there were some good squad selections.
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Hafeez scored a 99 against UAE A team other than that what has he done?
I think you are right Asad Shafiq, Umair Khan and Kashif Siddique do not have any strong credentials in T20.
Can you point out any material difference in the performance of Khurram/ Latif Vs Imran Farhat, and Younis Khan/ Fawad Alam Vs Faisal Iqbal do not quote me averages look at the runs scored batting at the same number.
Look at Hafeez’s stats in the RBS T20 2009. Also look at his bowling. When you take into account his fielding as well, he should be a pick.
Here are the stats from last year just in case you don’t find them:
Batting: 3 matches, 153 runs, HS of 79* , Avg 76.50
Bowling: 9 overs, 23 runs, 6 wickets, Avg 3.83, Economy rate 2.55
I think thats outstanding compared to Aamer Sajjad & Co. His stats from the three Pakistan A games recently are:
Batting: 119 runs, 81 balls, SR 147%, Avg 39.67
Bowling: 9 overs, 53 runs, 2 wickets, Econ rate 5.89
He might have not done well in these games in terms of batting but he still done better than the others and at least he scored at a very good SR whereas the others just slow up the game and get out. But look at his bowling. Clearly he is very good. And he is probably one of the better fielders.
I wont quote averages but can you tell me how many matches Farhat has played compared to Latif and Manzoor. Has he performed in test matches? When he was sent back to domestic cricket, did he perform? What was the basis of selecting him? Manzoor and Latif are given an extended run on the back of domestic form but why was Farhat picked? I agree with his selection for T20 because he is very experienced and has a god average and deserves a chance, but why Tests and ODI’s.
Same question with Faisal Iqbal. Why was he selected? Fawad Alam has been performing strongly for a long time. Can you compare Younis over the past 5 yrs with Iqbal? Do you think England would drop Pietersen (check his stats with Younis - very similar) to pick someone like Ravi Bopara or Ian Bell?
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Look anybody could have performed well against UAE A team out of 118 hafeez scored 99 against UAE I agree with you on his bowling and fielding, against good teams Hafeez’s batting has mostly failed. The top three teams in RBS T20 were Sialkot Stallions, Dolphins and Lahore Eagles and most of the players have been taken from these three sides. But there are a few guys in the team whose selection is questionable for the T20 format I think the combination was not picked carefully.
As regards Farhat and Faisal I am not saying that their performance has been satisfactory, ofcourse not but compare their performance from the Lankan series onwards with Younis, Khurram, Lateef and Fawad then you will probably understand what I am trying to say.
Anybody can become wise after seeing the results the selectors do not have a crystal ball in which they can look and see how a player will perform after getting selected. Fawad was only dropped because he had some major footwork issues, after one big score on debut he failed in 5 consecutive innings in tests.
Imran Farhat was selected as soon as he scored that 140+ score in his first domestic match after that he failed in domestic matches but the selectors unanimously decided that they wanted an experienced opening pair.
Now if you compare the opening partnerships of Butt and Imran with Khurram and Butt or Fawad or Khurram you will see that we were better off with Butt and Imran. Again I am not implying that it was satisfactory but from the available options these two were the best.
I think Khurram, Younis and Faisal have gotten equal opportunities since the lankan series, and again out of the three Faisal performed better. I think until Younis regains his form or we find somebody else for #3 Faisal should retain that position.
But then again it is my opinion you have the right to disagree.
Of course the selectors can get it wrong, but can Farhat scoring one century be justifiable for getting a recall when other players have been playing well for a couple of seasons? Why was Iqbal selected? I can understand decisions like picking Rauf because he was performing well domestically and in warm-up games consistently but in my mind the selection of Farhat and Iqbal never made sense.
I think Younis has regained his form now - but anyway I think Faisal should be dropped permanently. What has he done that has been special in domestic cricket? I would rather a new player be given a chance.
The test and ODI batting line ups from 3-6 should read Younis, Malik, Yousuf, Umar Akmal.
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Not every new player adjusts in the team like Umar Akmal, players like Khurram, Fawad and Lateef will take longer time and they will have to be played on and off so that they are given time to correct their mistakes and in the mean time players like Faisal who are stagnant they will get a chance.
There are no short cuts in the rebuilding process. Farhat and Butt will remain my test openers with Khalid Lateef as a back up, he has a better technique than Khurram and has a wider range of shots it’s just that he lacks confidence if he is encouraged he can establish himself.
I am still not convinced about Younis Khan’s form, but one thing is for sure Pakistan will have to kick out Malik and Yousaf if they have to rebuild and take out corruption and dirty politics out of the game, It will be a tough decision but if we have to stabilize the team that is the only solution.
please don,t drop Imran nazir