On corruption in Pakistan one of the poets I guess it was Syed Ahmad Jaffery who mimicked Iqbal’s Shikwa, rather it was a parody of Shikva in which he said:

Rishwatain Chalteen hain yahan
Jaisay Gulistaan may Naseem.

something something Altaf O Ameem.

And, Ibne Insha once wrote about the quality of leaders in Pakistan

Har Shaaq pay Ullu Baitha hai
Anjaam-e- Gulistaan kya hoga?

I think Ullu is a more respectable word, one should say Butt…..baitha hai aur vo bhee super glue laga ker

Ovrs Mdns Runs Wickets Economy
22.0 2 87 3 3.95 1 1 v England Cardiff 8 Jul 2009 Test # 1922
22.0 4 44 2 2.00 1 3 v England Cardiff 8 Jul 2009 Test # 1922
21.4 2 132 3 6.09 2 1 v England Lord’s 16 Jul 2009 Test # 1925
17.0 2 68 0 4.00 2 3 v England Lord’s 16 Jul 2009 Test # 1925
21.0 1 92 2 4.38 4 2 v England Birmingham 30 Jul 2009 Test # 1928
7.0 0 30 1 4.28 3 1 v England Leeds 7 Aug 2009 Test # 1929
19.3 3 69 5 3.53 4 3 v England Leeds 7 Aug 2009 Test # 1929
15.0 0 69 2 4.60 4 1 v England The Oval 20 Aug 2009 Test # 1931
17.0 1 60 2 3.52 4 3

http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/player/6033.html?class=1;template=results;type=bowling;view=innings

Mitchell Jhonson was totally ineffective against England and a look at his economy rate can help explain why.

It is a known fact that Jhonson is not the toughest of players mentally. If Pakistan can attack him, he will start spraying it around.

If I were to make a strategy against Australia, it’d be to attack Jhonson rather than Hauritz. The reason being that, Australia go with 5 bowlers. If Pakistan attack Hauritz, Ponting just has to take him out of the attack and bring a pace bowler to bring control. Then he can introduce Hauritz at a more apt moment when Australia have not much to lose. But, if Pakistan can attack Jhonson, then Australia will feel the pressure since he is their best bowler. And, Jhonson has a vulnerability when batsmen attack him.

Pakistani batsmen found it difficult to overcome his angle. They felt compelled to play the balls which moved away, but I didn’t see Jhonson bring any of the balls back into the right hander. Can he do it? Because if he can’t, then he is one-dimensional and the batsmen can get premeditated and attack him, being certain, barring a bouncer, where the bowl will be.

I’d also make a risky change– and some calculated risk is needed. It is to send Umar Akmal up the order, one-down. Unlike NZ, pitches in Australia are flat. As it is, when Umar Akmal comes to the crease, the team is totally under pressure and he finds it difficult to express himself. Up the order, he can take the attack to Australians, and especially, Jhonson.

The other thing I would change also is that, send Kamran Akmal to open. Again to play attackingly…and Kamran Akmal is useless down the order, by the time he comes, there is too much pressure.

And, in place of either of Butt or Farhat, play Fawad Alam down the order who can play a long patient innings.

In other words, pakistan start aggressively, and if things don’t work out, then can on the defensive in the form of Mohd Yousof, Misbah, Younis Khan/Faisal Iqbal/Shoaib Malik (whoever it is), and Fawad Alam.

The key in Australia, as we saw on the 3rd and 4th day, is to play aggressive cricket. Unfortunately, 400-odd was too much and though Pakistan fought well, the first two days lost were too many. If Jhonson can be targeted, then his erratic line-and-length can spill over to the rest of the Australian bowlers.

What is the meaning of a final warning in Fawad Alam’s case? Will they demote him to 13th man? All the better for him not to carry gloves or a bottle of water for those nincompoops who are good for nothing A holes. Besides, people like Intikhab Alam and Yawar Saeed should act like grown up men instead they are simply arrogant old farts messing around with the team selection with their biased opinions, personal likes and dislikes. They should be fired without any warning.

Shoaib & Munir

That’s him when he was photographed in Karachi during the load shedding, even the camera flash didn’t work.

“The Pentangular is happening and that would be a good way for him (Younus Khan) to play and get some practice. The Sydney Test is looking very unlikely right now and no decision was taken today. And who will he replace there? Various batsmen have scored some runs here so it might be unfair to drop them.”

The highlighted text above is such a regionally biased statement, it could only come from a Jingoist’s Gingivitis Mouth because it spreads the stench like a skunky phoo. He never thought of saying this when Fawad Alam was dropped when he scored more runs than Butt and Farhat combined together.

Does he mean to say that Farhat, Butt and Faisal Iqbal are better than Younus Khan or, Misbah who scored a 50 after 14 innings is better than Younus Khan? Younus Khan will add strength in the batting department but, the bowling side needs to be strengthened further by axing Abdur Rauf and Ajmal both.

Ponting was keen to celebrate the individual efforts from several of his newer team-mates at the MCG, but less effusive about his own record-breaking achievements. He said he was proud of the milestones but was unlikely to really appreciate them until he stopped playing.

“They’re things I’ll probably be most of proud of when I’m done,” he said. “We all play to win games of cricket and be involved in a team that is winning games of cricket. They’re things I’m very proud of, hopefully there are a lot more wins around the corner and if we play the cricket that we’ve played over these five days then we will definitely win a lot more games.”

I agree, it is exactly what I thought, all these are parchees.

But, Salman Butt is credited for making a 30 like he has made a 100. He is averagin in the 20s– that is totally unbelievable and much, much below par. Moreover, he has been around the team for the last 8-10 years, so it isn’t like he has recently come to the team and he can improve. This is just his long-term average, as is the case with Faisal Iqbal.

What the board has done is that, all te failures of the last 10 years, they have rewarded them by selecting all of them in the squad together.

On Fawad Alam, he is a very gutsy player. I can understand from his position, he has been kept in the squad for the last three years. He is selected for one match, if he doesn’t click, then they drop him. This after him making a 160-odd on debut in very difficult circumstances, when he wasn’t even a specialist opener. It is really unfortunate, the way he has been treated. I mean you could see why he must feel so frustrated, he is averaging in the high 50s at domestic level, yet it is as though senior people like Inthikab Alam are trying to reistrict him, not allowing him a consistent opportunity to play. I know Yawar Saeed said he has an attitude problem, but Yawar Saeed should see his own age– Fawad Alam is in the early 20s and our older gentlemen are holding personal grudges against him like children.

Yes, Shoaib, I guess you are right ?

Rana Naveed or Yasir Arafat?

You are on Pakistan’s side or Australia’s side?

It is only Pakistan’s bowling that will win matches. They should fortify the bowling further, keep Akhter in the squad at least. Abdul Rauf was in the squad for a year, and wo could guess, this giant who is 6 feet 6, 7 would come and bowl at Sourav Ganguly or Younis Khan’s pace. Why are they wasting places in the squad by selecting players like Rauf and Malik?

They should have good back-up, such as, Akhter and Afridi in the squad instead.

Afridi has said that he is willing to take his retirement back.