LEGSLIP

I disagree with several points that have been outlined during this thread. Firstly, how can one possibly say that dropping catches is acceptable because it is expected or has been a regular occurrence in the past? Ought we not to do something about it then? Otherwise we will never improve as a unit and remain as an inconsistent/laughable force. We will continue to struggle against world class sides. Progression should be the vision, not remaining as we are of have been in any walk of life.

Although I have been a critic of Misbah’s inclusion as well, how on earth can one say it was unforgivable with the manner in which he was dismissed in the second innings? That was an unplayable snorting gem of a delivery in which it is just unlucky for one to receive, especially first up. The angle and pace made it truly unsolvable to negotiate with no matter what anyone says. It is just pure high quality fast bowling as opposed to a poor short/technique you are saying it was. On deliveries like that you just have to hope is beats the outside edge which wasn’t to be the case for unfortunate Misbah.

Also, we should not exclude Imran Farhat for the next match. Although it may have been a streaky fluke he scored a century in the 3rd test against NZ. He hasn’t been provided with a sufficient number of opportunities since his return to the national side. This is a frontline reason as to why we have had this opening crisis in the past. Chopping and changing too often never allows one to adapt or settle which contributes to poor form.

Lawson said, Iqbal is not a test number 3:
http://www.cricinfo.com/talk/content/current/multimedia/441768.html

Khansahab,

You didn’t see him bat. Between a batsman who batted and looked like getting out 90 percent of the time, and a batsman who was at ease 90 percent of the time, who is more likely to play well in the next innings?

“This is the height of ignorance, because when was it ever normal or expected by Pakistani fielders to take their catches? When did Pakistan become an excellent or reliable fielding side?” Quote from the thread.

“I am agree” with Abdul.

Even if it is an accepted thing by a few that Pakistani team is one of the worst fielding teams in the world and even if the Pakistani team continues to be a bad fielding team, it should not have been highlighted as a “height of ignorance” and to undermine it with the luck that so and so has not played and that is the main reason that Pakistan lost.

There could be many reasons and fielding is the MOST IMPORTANT reason that Pakistan lost the match, that was possible to win. When catches are held, the morale of the team goes up like the commentators say, “they are walking with their tails up.” As if they (the fielding side) are the Murga(s) and the opposition is a Murgi.

******************************

And, as far as Misbah’s inclusion in the team, his re-call is very farcical he should not have been recalled to join the team. Because, he was not selected in the team for poor form. He suddenly became the first choice when Younus Khan opted out. My mind cannot accept this logic.

Since he joined the team, except for this one innings of 65 n.o., he did not score at all. Now, when there is a talk about reinforcing the team with a batting back-up, the captain is calling for Younus Khan’s inclusion in the team, the selectors are saying he (YK) should play domestic cricket first to prove his form. How many matches did Misbah play before he joined the team after YK opted out? Did he prove his form? Did he even play a single domestic match? Not even one.

And, on what basis Misbah has been included? The player (YK) who was an automatic choice opted out, lost his captaincy and even his place for refusing to join the team for NZ tour, wanted some time out and said he would join the team for Australian part of the tour. But, he was ignored and probably being punished. Or, they (the mafia) are considering it as an opportunity to keep him away.

Now, when he is being called by the captain, the selectors criteria has changed completely and why? This goes to prove the bias of regionalism embedded in the system. What is kosher for Misbah is illegal and forbidden for Younus Khan because, he is a Pathan and not a Punjabi. Or, is it a fact that Misbah is a better player than Younus Khan?

I’ll just repeat this commeent here, to throw this in the air:

Mitchell Jhonson’s performances against England:

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.

Khansahab,

I can understand what you mean, but what you fail to see is that, Faisal Iqbal is a 10-year old 24-run averaging failure. You can drive a truck between his bat and pad, and he is not talented like Sehwag to compensate for that defeciency. A person time and again failing for 10 years, then coming back again and again repeatedly– the uncle saying to the nephew, just make sure to make a 30 or 40 and I’ll see to it how anyone removes you from the team. Perhaps this would have been better if it were Bangladesh, but an Australia tour is not where people like Faisal Iqbal should be played.

If Younis Khan isn’t there, I’d play the fifth bowler in place of Faisal. He is not good enough to compensate for a bowler.

It is not about personal grudges, Pakistan has to select their best 11 players during the tour and Faisal Iqbal simply doesn’t cut it.

Khansahab,

I’ve got to disagree, Malik is a better batsman than Iqbal. Neither of them are good enough to be in the test team, but between Malik and Faisal, Malik certainly is a better player. Malik doesn’t move his feet much but Malik has a more solid defense than Faisal.

Butt has played 25-30 test matches and has one century. Why can’t Akmal go up the order to replace him and Alam come down the order?

Butt is not only a mediocre batsman, but he lacks concentration to take catches as well. Alam is a much better fielder as well. The whole idea of specialist openers is bogus, because the specialist openers average in the 20s (though Farhat averages relatively more). If a makeshift one can average more, and more aggressively, why not him?

Ponting has said that Jhonson is the best bowler in world cricket. However, on this one occasion, I disagree with Ponting. Because, a bowler can not be the best in the world, by primarily performing in Australia or South Africa.

Jhonson struggled in England and he struggled in India. I don’t think he has bowled in Sri Lanka and he obviously hasn’t bowled in Pakistan. One test for any pace bowler is the subcontienet, and another for an Australian pace bowler is England.

I think Steyn has the best strike rate in the world, bowled really well in Pakistan and India, and bowled equally well against Australia. Steyn also has a much lower average than Jhonson.

In essence, on the basis of performance, Steyn is better than Jhonson. However, Jhonson is right up there among the top 2,3. I also think Aamer shows much more promise than Jhonson. Because, Aamer is multi-dimensional and faster. He was the fastest bowler in either team in the first match. If Aamer’s quality of swing bowling in NZ is anything to go by, he is the closest thing to Wasim Akram right now.

Omer Admani

Ponting is a very good captain and the reason he has to back up Mitchel Johnson is because he is the main strike bowler. And, I agree with you that he struggled in India and England and when Sehwag and Eoin Morgan were hitting him, he lost his line and length and was looking pretty mediocre. So, the best way to deal with Johnson is to attack him from the very first ball.

Therefore, I agree with the idea that, Farhat and Kamran Akmal must open for Pakistan and one of them must attack. And, I am talking about test matches. In the ODI and T20 matches, Imran Nazir and Kamran Akmal must open. Once you demoralize the main strike bowler they become defensive and helpless.

One of the main reasons that Pakistan is so good in T20 is they play attacking cricket and even in the late middle order they have players like Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq. And, not to mention the bowling of Afridi and Gul. Both of them are top wicket takers in the world in T20 format.

khansahab i disagree with u on regionalism if punjab got more players in team its because of its population even check current first class season pujab got about 8 first class teams NWFP got 1 team balochistan got 1 team sindh got about 3 teams and if u see other banks and companies teams there also majority players are from punjab so most of players in pakistan from panjab this is the pool from where slectors are going to select pakistan cricket team in my opinion slectors personal opinions about a playes counts more than region which he belong to and this happens in south africa too in australia right now they got 3 or 4 openers who r better then watson but no one is crying foul i dnt mind 11 players from karachi as long they are performing and winning for pakistan dnt u think its much better to criticise someone based on his performance and not on his region miandad is from karachi and i think punjabis loved him more than sindhis waqar and wasim are from punjab but whole pakistan loves them still its not because of thier regions its because they are great players the problem with pakistan team is that we got only yunis and yousaf who r really good players take aamir asif keneria and umer as close to this catogory otherwise rest of team consists on bunch of mediocres who are always playing for there place in team

Omer …

I will agree with you that Malik is a better player then Faisal Iqbal on batting alone.

The thing is that Faisal and Malik are both loosers and hopeless as Test players, but when we compare them with each others, we see that Malik is relatively better then Faisal.

Faisal played 25 Tests with 1 century and 8 fifties and have an average of only 27.25 (pathetically low for a specialist Test batsman), while Malik on the other hand played 28 Tests with 2 centuries and 7 fifties and have an acceptable average of 36 (which is much better then Faisal’s average). Furthermore, Malik also bowls and have took few wickets in the Tests he played, which is not the case with Faisal.

While for the ODIs there is no comparison as Malik is definitely a much better player then Faisal in ODI as well as T20 formats.

Misbah, on the other hand, played 16 Tests only and have an average of 37 (better then both Malik & Faisal), whereas in ODIs Misbah have an average of 39.05 after playing 56 ODIs.

The above easily prove that out of the three (Faisal, Malik and Misbah) Faisal is the most useless, but he still continues to play just as much of Test cricket as Malik & Misbah.

Another surprising issue is that we rarely see any hatred, cursing, harsh and sarcastic comments and bitterness against ‘poor Faisal’, while there doesn’t pass a single day when we haven’t criticized and blamed Malik and Misbah.

This is just not right, or so I believe, at least.

The above new thread mentions “Misbah” more then 10 (yes, more then Ten) times and, as can be expected, not a single sentence is in his favour.

We all know Misbah is not the best batsman we have got in our existing squad, but he is certainly not worse then Faisal Iqbal who too is playing in the same Test match. Beside, Faisal, there are others like Malik, Imran Farhat, Abdur Rauf, etc. who are in no way better then Misbah.

The commentators and the writers have a higher responsibility as they have right to analyze, condemn and criticize the performances of any player they deem fit, but I think targeting any one specifically and personal attacks doesn’t gel well with the rules of good-quality and independent journalism.

In fair journalism, ideally speaking, pros and cons of a subject shall be brought upto the readers without being judgmental and the audiences shall be allowed to form their own opinions, rather then an overdose of writer’s personal likings/ disliking, because blogs shall be more suitable for that matter and not the threads (articles).

Khansahab, if u knew Fawad personally I doubt you would be thinking about him in the same way as you do currently. Fawad Alam has some technical issues. That is clear at the moment from what I’ve seen of him. He will be worked over by Australia. An average of 34 in not bad for IMRAN FARHAT. 3 tons and 12 50s. And after just 2 failures you want to drop him? Give him a worthwhile run before you make your inexperienced biased decision as ever. Have u got this obsession with Fawad because he is from Karachi as well? I strongly feel you do. Additionally, with Fawad’s off field behaviour he doesn’t deserve to be selected.

Meanwhile, what a side England are turning out to be and what a golden year they have had in the whites although they did lose to the Windies away earlier in the year. Graeme Swann is correctly the best spinner in test cricket around. What an achievement of 50 wickets in a calendar year for an orthodox off spinner.

And responding to Omer Admani’s question on the previous thread. Why do you dislike Rana and Yasir so much? You yourself have said that we need to strengthen our line up and possibly play 5 bowlers. Therefore, a fast bowling all rounder is a necessity if we are going to do that. They can both add valuable runs lower down the order and add the depth to the tail which is currently a vacancy as Aamer is not reliable as of yet with the bat. Therefore, if one of them plays, preferably Yasir Arafat they would be bring great value and flexibility to the team.

Khansahab …

As I said on previous thread, comment no. 73, my problem is that I can’t come to your level and start openly calling you “Regionally Biased”, but one thing is for sure, you knew Viseem Sakab much better then me. Rather at one point in time, he was your best buddy and shared a blog with you, so it explains a lot of who have his traits.

Sometimes in life, we hate some peoples so much so that in our intensity of rage we unconsciously start behaving like them, I hope this is not the case with you.

Khansahab …

I never mentioned the names of Javed Khan and Awas in any which ways, so why are you involving them in this discussion ?

BTW, I know they are both poles apart from him, but are you too ?

H A P P Y N E W Y E A R to All here on LS…

Have best of everything for the year 2010 !!

khansahib i do agree with u about fawad he deserve to be in team not for his batting but as a allrounder, reason he is not in the team is that he is not in good books of captains and that is not because of region, cause when yunis was captain he never gets same chances as other guys it is simply cause no captain has faith in his capabilities me and you can watch cricket on tv or read some press reports but we are not with teams in thier net and training sessions and we dnt knw thier attitude and how they play during that and especialy during tours they count a lot and unfortunatly for pakistan we dnt get home games now as for asim kamal he was born at wrong time cnt see him breaking into pakistan team in presence of inzi yousif and yunis but plz mention any batsman from pakistan not only from karachi which u want to be in team instead of misbah shoaib salman and farhat no fawad plz cause i agree with u on him and on miandad i was 24 when i left pakistan i played cricket with sargodha at junior levels and toured lot of cities but cnt rememeber even once that some one from punjab dislike him for being from karachi i think there are some guys from punjab on this blog they can correct me if i am wrong

Khabsahab …

No I am not scared or anything but I can’t argue with three persons at a time.

One by one, I am ready to anyone on

“Definitely if they needed me I can’t say no to them,” Afridi said. “If they sent for me I don’t want to say no, because they need me and if they need me definitely I can play for them. “Why not? I always think positively and with confidence.” Quote from above.

Someone should ask this Akhroat, why on earth he first announced publicly that he doesn’t want to be in the test side? Now, perhaps that hotheadedness has gone and the dust has settled in due to the cold weather in Karachi, he realized that it was a mistake. Anyways, Subha ka Bhoola Shaam ko Ghar vapis aye tou ussay Bhoola nahee Abdul Ch2So4 kehtay hain. So, let this Akhroat Afridi continue to live in the hope of getting an invitation.

Btw, Abdul how well do you know Fawad Alam personally? And may I ask you why you chose to be personally pally with him instead of Moulvi Mushi and Saqi? (Your best buddies) Oh, I forgot to mention the names of Rana Nayee and Arafat and if you don’t mind I can mention the name of even a more superior fast bowler than the two and i.e., Rao Ifti.

Munir

I would like to clarify the point of criticism which is under discussion i.e., if ONLY you see or analyze it from a positive side rather than a retort to khansahab’s comments.

It wasn’t just Malik and Misbah, there was another name which was associated with these two culprits and that is Kamran Akmal. We all have criticized these 3 Musketeers for planning, plotting and hatching a rebellion against Younus Khan. But, Kamran Akmal is scoring runs, playing well and he is not in focus. Whereas, Malik and Misbah are not performing, hence they are in focus. So, if they play well and contribute well, its hard to justify criticism.

My question remained unanswered when I asked about the logic of selecting Misbah on this tour. He was not in any squad for NZ and Aus. tour and the reason for dropping him was backed by saying, he is not in form and needs to play domestic cricket. But, luck favours the paindoo, after YK’s absence from the team the captain asked for Misbah the Messiah and he was sent to save them, whereas he grossly failed. His fortunes favoured him once again and, he scored 65 not out. And, that is it and added just a ZERO to remain a HERO.

I have also asked for an explanation on why is that, “what is Kosher for Misbah is illegal and forbidden for Younus Khan?” Because, Misbah was sent in place of YK without playing a single domestic match and YK is being asked to prove his form by playing Pentangular Tournament. How farcical this can be? It is very obvious that they are punishing YK but, they don’t want to say this publicly because it will create an outrage in the public.

The above answers amir’s question towards khansahab that YK is a pathan but, he lives in Karachi and does not have the same clout as Misbah and Malik have.

The other thing is we have criticized Malik, Misbah and Kamran but, none of us criticized Umar Akmal, Mohammad Aamir, both are from Punjab. Au contraire, we praised them a lot. We criticized Umar Gul and demanded his expulsion from test squad. Afridi was criticized whenever he played stupid shots and got out. He is criticized whenever he gave stupid comments. So, in LS no one is spared, not even you and me.

En c’est moment …. at this moment ….. Chaudhary Malak Saab day Pyjamay da koi zikr nai.… bakaoz he doesn’t deserve to be discussed at this moment.

Munir

On your KFC-ing out from the arena, I guess you haven’t acquired the art of Multi-Tasking. What kind of a banker are you?

One by one or ek ek ker kay ao, reminds me of this:

A cinema owner had a talking parrot and he was proud of his parrot which used to tell people to form a queue and come to the ticketing window by saying: ek ek ker kay ayee A janaab, baari baari say aaye A janaab, line laga ker ayee A janaab.

One day a famous movie was released and there were too many people and it was kinda chaos and people were literally fighting to get near the ticketing window and one man got so furious that he climbed up and punched the pinjra (cage) which was hanging over their heads and pulled it down. The cage fell and opened and the parrot flew away, the owner was very disappointed to hear this news.

A short while later, someone told the cinema owner that his parrot is sitting in the nearby park and the owner rushed to witness the scene. Cheel, Kuwway and other birds were flying over the parrot’s head and hitting his head with their beaks, (thongain maar rehay thay) and the parrot was saying: ek ek ker kay ayee A janaab, baari baari say aaye A janaab, line bana ker ayee A janaab.

Ps

I take up the role of a Cheel and leaving the Kuwwa option for khansahab.

Khansahab and Javed Sahab

meri bhi pic lagao yaha per yaar kaisey lagatey hey picture? some really stupid imagination crossed my mind just now…I am asking for my pic here like ‘bechaa’ like he wants some icecream as well.

Thanks Khansahab for the last post and lol@ManChestErr

Khansahab,

This is nothing else but, securing Faisal’s and Farhat’s positions in the team. Basically, the captain and the team-management want Younis over there and they might have played Alam at the expense of either of those, but the selectors aren’t having any of it. Farhat’s uncle Ilyas is the selector and Miandad’s nephew has made a 40– with such humongous feats, how do you expect any changes?

It is good for Pakistan cricket to play India every once in awhile. Because, the right changes only seem to come in the team, is when they lose to India. Otherwise, the selectors and the management is usually totally apethetic to the team’s performance, putting in their nephews and golden boys along with 3,4 players who actually deserve to be there. However, when Pakistan loses to India, the local pressure is so much that eventually they have to change. But, a year or two after that, they tend to sneak in the players again. When the local pressure is a lot, there is no way, even the president’s son can play for a long time without performing. Thus, the trick is to, get them off the team at that moment, and put them back in the team after a year or so. This is how it works in Pakistan. Therefore, these 10-year-old failures that we keep on seeing time and again in the team, to include, Malik, Faisal, Farhat, and Butt are people with with strong sources in Pakistan cricket.

Therefore, the only way that Pakistan cricket can move forward and be rejuvenated from time to time, is by playing against India every 1 year or 2 and losing. The only problem with that is, players like Malik and Butt survive because they can play on placid tracks and against India’s pace bowling. If India can get very good pace bowlers, and if Pakistan play time and again against them, it will be good for Pakistan cricket.

Happy New Year to all

Guys how do you attach your picture with comments. I have been asking for help but still waiting for answer.

Afridi would drop T20 deal for countryDANIEL BRETTIG
December 31, 2009
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AAP

Flamboyant Pakistani allrounder Shahid Afridi would drop his lucrative Twenty20 deal with South Australia to go play for his country in the Sydney Test match if asked.

On the day Cricket Australia reiterated its desire for an international window to accommodate the rapidly growing domestic T20 competition, Afridi had no qualms about choosing the cap over the cash.

All overseas players recruited by the Redbacks are free to break their contracts to play international cricket at any time.

“Definitely if they needed me I can’t say no to them,” Afridi said.

“If they sent for me I don’t want to say no, because they need me and if they need me definitely I can play for them.

“Why not? I always think positively and with confidence.”

Whether or not the Pakistanis would recall Afridi to the long form of the game given their need for greater application with the bat than the naturally aggressive hitter would provide is another matter, but the clash between internationals and T20 cricket will only grow as an issue in coming seasons.

CA chief executive James Sutherland pointed to the likes of Afridi, plus West Indians Dwayne Bravo and Chris Gayle, as evidence of the competition’s growth, and suggested it would only gain in strength if Australian players, and other internationals, had room to play.

Afridi has pointed to the example of former national captain Younus Khan as part of the impetus for him to play in Australia, following the No.3 batsman’s stint with the Redbacks last summer.

Now as the Pakistani tourists figure out a way to extricate themselves from the mire of a 1-0 deficit following defeat in Melbourne, Afridi said Younus “should” be in the team for the SCG Test.

“I think Mohammed Yousuf wants him, depends on selectors,” he said.

“I hope he can come back because he played a season here so he has a lot of experience (in Australia) and he’s got a 50 average in Test cricket so he should be in the squad.”
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-sport/afridi-would-drop-t20-deal-for-country-20091231-lkut.html

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-sport/afridi-would-drop-t20-deal-for-country-20091231-lkut.html

AAP

Flamboyant Pakistani allrounder Shahid Afridi would drop his lucrative Twenty20 deal with South Australia to go play for his country in the Sydney Test match if asked.

On the day Cricket Australia reiterated its desire for an international window to accommodate the rapidly growing domestic T20 competition, Afridi had no qualms about choosing the cap over the cash.

All overseas players recruited by the Redbacks are free to break their contracts to play international cricket at any time.

“Definitely if they needed me I can’t say no to them,” Afridi said.

“If they sent for me I don’t want to say no, because they need me and if they need me definitely I can play for them.

“Why not? I always think positively and with confidence.”

Whether or not the Pakistanis would recall Afridi to the long form of the game given their need for greater application with the bat than the naturally aggressive hitter would provide is another matter, but the clash between internationals and T20 cricket will only grow as an issue in coming seasons.

CA chief executive James Sutherland pointed to the likes of Afridi, plus West Indians Dwayne Bravo and Chris Gayle, as evidence of the competition’s growth, and suggested it would only gain in strength if Australian players, and other internationals, had room to play.

Afridi has pointed to the example of former national captain Younus Khan as part of the impetus for him to play in Australia, following the No.3 batsman’s stint with the Redbacks last summer.

Now as the Pakistani tourists figure out a way to extricate themselves from the mire of a 1-0 deficit following defeat in Melbourne, Afridi said Younus “should” be in the team for the SCG Test.

“I think Mohammed Yousuf wants him, depends on selectors,” he said.

“I hope he can come back because he played a season here so he has a lot of experience (in Australia) and he’s got a 50 average in Test cricket so

Khan Sahab thanks i have done it but infront of my primary blog, it says N/A…..what should i do now?

oh i just saw my photo, so that means i dont need to do anything…….thanks for your help khansahab

Khansahab,

If we count all the dropped catches (especially Akmal’s) and Hair’s atrocious decisions, Kaneria’s average would be much lower. He is a very good bowler, but we expect him to win every match. At times there has been no support for him, as it used to be the case before Aamer and Asif, that the likes of Rana would be going at 6,7,8 runs an over in a test match. And, the batsmen, in those situations could attack Kaneria without anything to lose. That’s probably the worst position for a spinner to be in…

The best bowling I saw from Kaneria was against England in Pakistan and against SA in SA. In the former I remember Kaneria took 4 wickets off 4 bowls, and Hair only gave one of those decisions in Kaneria’s favor. In SA Kaneria got Kallis out thrice in an over to actually get him out once, as Akmal missed the other two chances. But, that has been his story: At times, the only way he could get the batsman out was to bowl him out, and that is very difficult for a legspinner.

khansahib i agree with yousaf that kaneria dnt get same respect like others statisticly he is our best bowler of decade but he is the one who is always critcised it is very unfair to compare him with Qadir although kaneria’s strike rate is better than Qadirs but still they bowled in different era i think kaneria is much better bowler now then 5 years ago when he got 7 for in first innings because of his Essex experience he got much more control and his hot head is cooled a bit and he is matured now he and Asif had to bowl realy wel to take pakistan any closer to aussies

Happy New Year to everyone.
Rain has delayed the match, any idea what the team is ?

khansahab

After dropping AB Devillier’s sitter Kamran said, koi baat nai shaid bhai koi baat nai and the next ball Afridi clean bowled him. This was in the T20 WC

khansahab

You have a knack of finding real ugly mug shots for ur avatar….. btw have u seen the movie avatar?

Khansahab,

Afridi cannot replace Kaneria. Afridi can’t play as a genuine wicket-taking bowler in the team. Simply, there is no comparison between Afridi and Kaneria at the test level.

Where Afridi can be useful, however, is providing that balance that Pakistan needs in the team. Afridi has an attacking mind-set and he also fields well. On his day, he can play an innings that can turn the match. And, as a bowler, he can be very useful when the pitch offers uneven bounce, especially since he is always at the stumps.

Afridi and Kaneria are very different bowlers. It is Ajmal who will find it very difficult at the test level, and imho, is not worth the place in the squad. For one thing, Ajmal barely spins the ball. When Hauritz took 5 wickets, it was surprising how much he was able to spin the ball, especially when Ajmal wasn’t able to do it throughout the test match.

Khansahab and Javed Khan,

I haven’t seen Avator, but from what I have heard, it is a very creative fantasy. Aliens are the good guys and humans are bad. However, it has nothing to do with the war on terror. We can blame anyone for the war on terror, but the bottomline is that right now Muslims are killing Muslims and Pakistanis are killing Pakistanis. And, the situation seems so out of control right now that it is speculated that breaking apart of Pakistan is not a question of if, but when..

Seems like today’s game will be ruined, the drizzle is getting heavier I can see that on the TV.

Omer, in Bangalore test, both Kaneria and Afridi played and Afridi out played him in ALL departments.

Javed Khan,

One match doesn’t make Afridi a better bowler than Kaneria. I don’t think Afridi will himself ever claim that he is even close to Kaneria. Replacing Kaneria with Afridi will render spin bowling totally ineffective. Afridi bowling alongside Kaneria will make the bowling attack much stronger though.

If it rains whole day, the captain might be able to proclaim at the end of the match, that it is divine intervention that saved us

Khansahab,

I haven’t seen the movie, maybe it is true. I might see it today if it rains all day.

Btw, did you see what happened in Karachi recently?

The Taliban are now tactically trying to undermine the state of Pakistani. Drawing on the Shia-Sunni schism now, they are widening their tactical scope in undermining the state. Rampant pillage of property ensued and it is not too unlikely, going by this, that Taliban will use everything they have to undermine the state, so that they gradually come into power. This will include not only drawing on religious schisms, but also exploiting ethnic differences. Also, undermining the state economically, and financially, will further mitigate the state’s authority and power.

What bowling by Sami– got both Hughes and Ponting

Sami gets Watson too– amazing bowling. Sami has stumped everyone.

ponting shot himself in his foot by winning the toss and batting i think he backed his team of facing pace instead of facing kaneria in fourth innings at scg great bowling by Sami pace and swing Asif also is bowling well Gul looks like the weakest link

The most fascinating cricket I have seen in a long, long while.

Asif hits the bad– the umpire gives the batsman out, he asks for a review, and the decision is overturned.

Asif gets worked up after that. And so does the crowd. They collectively start booing Asif. Now Asif has been thrown a challenge, and Asif responds by taking two wickets in two bowls, each time the crowd booing collectively.

After that the crowd is stunned into silence. For his hatrick bowl, Asif waves his hand to the crowd to boo him, but they won’t. Next bowl, the crowd still doesn’t boo. The next bowl, the crowd still wouldn’t dare boo.

Pakistan is walking or rather dancing all over Australia on this first day of second Test !!

Australia are 117 for 9 and that too after the first session was washed out.

Good comebacks from Sami 3 wickets and Mohammed Asif 6 wickets. Imagine, if Aamer was well and bowling along with these guys, I think Australia would have been all out below 100.

Now, if Pakistan plays good sensible cricket and provided rain-gods doesn’t play the villains, then I think we are in with a good chance to level the series right here in SCG and go to Hobart on equal footings with the series wide open.

BTW, Umer Akmal dropped an easy catch in the morning, similar to the one he dropped in the first Test.

20 overs by Asif out of 44– 41 runs and 6 wickets…marathon spell. What a bowler. The best part about it– the crowd never booed him again after those 2 wickets. It was astonishing– they must have thought they were jinxing their own team by inspiring Asif more and more. That is what drives him in fact, the challenge…

Pakistan’s other bowlers lack incisiveness to bowl to the tail. They should attack more, bowl from the leg side, and bowl bouncers at the chest– so as to not give room to the batsmen to swing their bats. As Australia bowled to Ajmal in the first innings– that way there is a good chance that a bowler like Jhonson can be injured.

Javed Khan @ Comment no. 32 …

I like what you have said in the start of your comment, and yes I will take your explanations positively.

My argument with Khansahab was not on why Misbah is playing in the team, but rather if he is more or less comparable with Fawad Alam, specially, if Fawad is not bowling (which the Captains don’t bowl him anyway).

The thing is that we all know why Misbah is back in the team, and if Younis did not backout of the NZ / Australia tours then there was no chance for Misbah to be playing again. So will you blame Misbah for coming back into the team or Younis for giving him a perfect opportunity ?

The logic of selecting Misbah, according to me, is Younis’s reluctance to play. It seems PCB and new Captain (Mohammed Yousuf) wanted one of the experienced batsmen so when Younis did not agree to play they recalled Misbah.

Secondly, although I don’t much follow Pakistan’s domestic cricket and am not exactly aware of how much cricket Misbah played or did not play before being reselected for replacing Younis for the NZ / Australia tours. But you are wrong when you said, “Misbah was sent in place of YK without playing a single domestic match and YK is being asked to prove his form by playing Pentangular Tournament. How farcical this can be? Because, I know this much for sure that after Champions Trophy in SA, Misbah was removed from Pakistan team, but he went back and played domestic cricket in Pakistan. Now I don’t how many matches, but he scored 284 runs in one of his innings, which also was his career best. So I think, may be, this was the reason, beside main reason of Younis’s refusal, for Misbah’s reselection in the team.

See the following link:

http://www.cricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/430997.html

And this one also …
http://www.cricinfo.com/nzvpak2009/content/story/436697.html

Now the irony is that I never liked Misbah, but here I am defending him. My initial point was Misbah, no matter how bad he is, he is still better then Faisal Iqbal, Shoaib Malik, and can be comparable to Fawad Alam (if Fawad is not bowling).

If possible, please can you rate these four players (Faisal, Misbah, Malik and Fawad) for me in order of their existing position in the team. Please consider Fawad without his bowling advantage, as he is not allowed to bowl anyways.

Lastly, I agree with you fully that Misbah is definitely not a good batsman but from within the squad available in Australia, I think he deserves to play every game ahead of Faisal Iqbal and Shoaib Malik, or even Fawad Alam, if Fawad is not bowling. (I know Fawad has gone back home and to me it very unfortunate that he could not get a chance to play, but I am just trying to explain my view point here).

I heard it before but I still liked the parrot storey on ek ek kar kay aao bhai, and I am more worried of Cheel then Kuwwa

Khansahab …

You have finally succeeded in bringing me head to head with Javed Khan on this issue and you must be enjoying it now.

Mohammad Munir,

I totally agree with you. Younis shot himself in the foot. He is a very good player, but he is very ‘kharr’ dimaag.

When they were pondering about sending him for the second match, he told the selectors (or the chairman) that he will join the team, but on one condition, that he will not be the captain. It should have been obvious to him that he wasn’t going to be the captain, but he didn’t want to make everyone feel like he was budging on his initial stance. And, that could have irked the selectors or the chairman. Because, after all, he was invited to captain a few times. And, he kept on acting like a hero, making statements such as, ‘if I drop Malik from the team, people will say that I am takig revenge’. He tried to act too much like the ‘good guy’, as in his recent comment about mantaining his initial stance, he tried to act as though he is the hero again. Eventually, he didn’t do anything regarding Malik before and there was a revolt against him, led by Malik. This time the board didn’t send him. If Younis concentrated more on his best team rather than herogiri, he might have actually led the team well. Already Umar Akmal, Aamer debuted under him and Alam hit a big century on debut. So, in his short stint, he did find a few players, but he also had to eliminate the mediocre opposition. Taking along good players with big egos makes sense, but keeping ordinary players revolting amongst you doesn’t.

We lost the first Test mainly due to our batting failure, whereas bowlers performed relatively better. Secondly, we had only four bowlers, comparing to 6 specialist batters and one wicket-keeper batsman, while our team could not reach a score of 260 runs in either innings of the match that in spite of such good batting track.

But still we are going into the second Test with three out of four bowlers changed (Gul, Sami and Kaneria), and most surprising and grossly unfortunately no one of Faisal, Salman and Imran Farhat is being replaced, and Fawad Alam still not included, rather sent back home.

We were all over the Aussies today. What a grand start to 2010. Hats off to the Mohammad’s . Ricky’s toss decision has partly payed the penalty. Once more he underestimates Pakistan. I doubt he will get away with it this time. But that as a sole reason for Australia’s below par performance today is total exaggeration. It was simply and frankly the brilliance of Asif and Sami’s bowling on what was nevertheless a decent track to bat on. After all professional batsmen should be able to perform on any given day regardless of the pitch and conditions. Well top batsmen can anyway which is what Australian’s middle order are said to be. Therefore, just the toss decision is a lame/pathetic excuse for the Aussies. They are just still not used to having dark days like these.

Sami bowled with good rhythm, pace and discipline. He has really poked back at his critics and once again shown why he was such a prospect when he emerged on the scene many years back. Imran Khan rates him highly and now we once again begin to realise why. Asif on the other, was also splendid. Incidentally, he made his debut on this very venue 5 years back when he was very expensive. But what a bowler he has transformed into now. Had he refrained from the extracurricular activities I’m sure he would have been up there with his sights on overtaking some record breakers. His absence from the arena has really upheld his capability in terms of stats.

Omer yaar, Afridi is better than Kaneria. I (am) agree with Javed Khan on the subject matter.

AMIR, what u think of Imran Tahir for SA ?

Although Asif got 6 wickets and bowled well, I would give credit to Sami for setting up the trend and removing the first 3 important wickets, he bowled with a lot of vengeance and pace. IMO, Shane Watson was out and it was his hat-trick but, UDRS denied. The other decision of Billy Doctrove was over ruled by UDRS when he gave Marcus North out LBW but, UDRS over ruled the umpire’s decision. IAN Chappel was ranting and ranting that it is stupid and farcical to over rule the umpire’s decision because, from the naked eye and from the slow motion replay it was evident that North was out, but only the hawk-eye was showing the height of the ball that it was a few inches above the stumps.

The ball had hit North’s pad just under the knee roll and it was pitched in line and was going straight, hawk-eye can only project a trajectory guideline but, it is not 100% accurate. Any umpire if not biased would have given him out but the technology saved him, not that I am against the technology but, these are such incidents which can change the course of the game and also create doubts in the minds of the umpires. I appreciate what IAN said, him being an Australian did not support the Australian batsman instead he was fair and just. Whereas, Richie Benaud is not only old and biased but he needs to retire from commentating.

As regards Sami, it was a blessing for him that Aamir did not play, even if Sami was included at the expulsion of Abdur Rauf, they may not have given Sami the new ball to bowl. When Umar Akmal dropped Hughes I thought, that is over and Sami would never be able to bowl again with confidence but, he bowled so well that he was almost on a hat-trick which was denied because of technology.

This is the second lowest total by the Australians on SCG and the lowest at home since 1996. Over all the captaincy by Moulana was not bad and he was seen at the centre talking to his boyz and arranged attacking field positions which is a good sign. Pakistan should be able to win this match if they bat sensibly and take a lead of at least 100 runs.

maza imran tahir was playing for titans last year a pretoria base cricket team and he performed quite well i never really heard about him this year its been said that he is going to get his sa residency this year but u never knw cause things are not simple in africa even he gets it i dnt think he wil get chance to play for sa cause traditionaly we dnt relly on wrist spiners fast bowlers always come first paul haris is only playing cause he can do a holding job when the ball gets old anyway imran tahir is good talented leg spiner but i think he waisted his talent by playing abroad and not in pakistan domestic cricket

c’mon guys how can u compare afridi’s bowling with kaneria’s he is a better odi bowler but in tests he is not. bowling in twenty20 and getting 2 or 3 wickets is different then bowling in tests umer gul was also very good in that version but test are different ball game and please tell me that if afridi was that thick skined why he opted out of test cricket the most difficult version of cricket afridi can b in test team but cause of his batting bowling and fielding but defenatly not for his bowling only kaneria is our no.1 spiner and he has proved it again and again with his record and performances problem is that we want him to win us all the matches but what we dnt understand is that even imran waqar and wasim never win us all the matches they played in and kaneria is currently no.4 in pakistans all time leading wicket takers and that speak volumes about the guys ability

Quite a remarkable turnaround for Sami.. starting with the 3rd day of the quaid-e-azam trophy where he suddenly found rhythm. let’s see how this Pakistan counter-attack lasts because for all we know, our batsmen will let us down once again tomorrow morning.

khansahab.. sorry, was busy with my cricket book, then went South Africa for Champions Trophy and then Karachi for the book launch. Only just got back last week. I see no shortage of activity here on LS.

Khansahab, I got him here !

As far as Asif is concerned, I think, apart from Australia so far, he has won a test match against every major team.

When India came to Pakistan in Karachi, then against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka, against NZ in NZ recently, SA in SA (albeit Akhter helped him in one match but thru the series Asif had SA’s measure), and I think he came close to England in England, but the Hair fiasco ruined the match.

Munir

U got me here with that link, like u I was also not following domestic cricket with so much interest and I took the word of someone I trust that Misbah did not play domestic cricket after the team selection. However, the URL confirms otherwise. But, against whom did he score? Lahore Shalimar, none of the bowlers are or any recognition and the point is when he joined the team in NZ what did he do and how much did he score? And, do you seriously believe that he is a better batsman than Younus Khan? In the first test he scored 65 not out because out of all the people RICKY PONTING dropped his catch when he was on a zero. So, he would have been on a double zero. He is a pretty mediocre player. Secondly, the criteria of scoring in domestic cricket is the only yardstick of deciding a player’s selection into the national team, then Fawad Alam deserves the most on the basis of his consistent average in the domestic circuit.

Javed Khan,

Technology didn’t deny Sami the hatrick, the umpire initially gave the batsman not out.

Technology makes the game fair. It is the same for both teams, as Hawk-eye judges the bounce in the pitch. Thruought the match, it will be the same.

One howler was eliminated and one decision which was 50/50 was eventually overturned. But, that same decision, if Pakistan is batting, will still be not out. So, in the course of the test match, both teams would have it even.

Benaud is very biased. Ian Chappel is a very good commentator. He says it the way he see’s it…and, of course, like any Australian should, he supports Australia, but he isn’t calculatedly biased.

The best part of the match– I don’t know if you saw it– was the crowd booing Asif and he took the wicket each time. I have noticed that Australians are a superstitious people and they must have thought booing was a bad omen after that. But, the whole context built the whole thing up, and Asif showed that he is mentally strong.

Amir

A mind can only see what it is prepared to see and we are all the slaves of our mind, we have been trained to accept what the majority thinks and believe and, we not only think that the majority is right but, we firmly believe in it. We believe in having specialist bowlers and batsmen and, those who excel in both we call them all-rounders and want them to perform and excel in both departments, we compartmentalize them and seldom analyze their achievements in totality. This is the case with many all-rounders and we label them as batting all-rounders and bowling all-rounders and we have ruined their careers. Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik are a few names. When I say ‘we’ I mean the selectors, the administrators, the media and the general public.

You are asking us how can we compare Danish Kaneria with Shahid Afridi in test cricket? This is not a sin to compare but, a view to shed light on the other side of the coin that it is not totally dark, there is some truth in our argument.

Kaneria has more wickets (245) because he played more test matches than Afridi.
Kaneria’s test economy rate is 3.01 and Afridi’s test economy rate is 3.18 not that much of a difference (this is a fact that in the last 2-3 years his bowling has improved a lot).
Kaneria’s strike rate is 67.4 and Afridi’s is marginally better 65.7

In the batting and fielding departments, there is no comparison between the two. Therefore, if I have to select a player I will not compartmentalize his efforts but, view it in totality and select him on merit basis rather that conventional method. The game of cricket is changing rapidly and test matches are played differently, an example is how Sehwag plays in test matches. Kaneria may be a marginally good bowler than Afridi but, he has not won matches single handedly like Imran, Wasim, Waqar, Warne and Murali. Whereas, Afridi has done with his bat and ball both. I don’t want to drag this debate into a ‘never-endum’ sort of debate but, I want the selectors to think out of the box.

As regards Afridi’s self imposed exile from test cricket, from the time I heard that he wants to rest, I have been saying that he needs a kick on his rear and the PCB should put their foot down and tell him like Shahriyar Khan did i.e., cancel his central contract and also tell him that if he wants to dictate his terms then his place in the ODI and T20′s is also not guaranteed. Instead of giving a nip in the bud, selectors like Ilyas and Chairman like Butt considered it as an opportunity to fill in the players of their own choice like son in law Farhat and Giryaeen Salman Butt and Faisal Iqbal because of his uncle. Isn’t it surprising that none of these people said anything against Afridi’s opting out of the test cricket?

Omer Admani

The ball that hit Watson’s toe was a borderline case, the umpire gave it not out and technology confirmed that it was doubtful and it went batsman’s favour. BUT Asif’s ball that hit below the knee roll and umpire gave North lbw was over-ruled because the hawk-eye confirmed the height of the ball was not right. Hawk-eye only gives a guideline after measuring the speed of the ball in that 22 yards distance and it projects a trajectory based on the speed and the bounce but, it is not 100% correct. Umar Gul’s lbw was denied by the UDRS and that was OK whereas, North’s was ridiculous. Asif couldn’t believe and neither many others but it was Moulana Yousuf who kept his cool and asked Asif to keep his cool, helped Asif to get back to his rhythm.

Yes, I saw the match till the end and saw how Asif was asking them to boo for his hat-trick but they didn’t, by the end of the over they applauded for his bowling, if it was in India there would have been total silence.

All the wickets except for Umar Gul’s were taken from one end of the ground. Sami took 3 and when Asif changed ends, he took all 6 from that end.

ON SYDNEY’S PITCH

Last January Australia beat SA on SCG because of the pace attack, Siddle was the MOM he took 8 wickets whereas, spinner Hauritz took only one.
Kaneria bowled only 2 overs and gave 18 runs, the pitch definitely is not for spinners. Lets see what Hauritz will do on the 2nd day?
Pakistan’s batting is very vulnerable, many people are surprised that they did not lose a wicket on the first day and are 14/0 that is some achievement.
Yousuf and Misbah are the most senior batsmen in the current team, only Yousuf has to rely on his guts and play a gutsy innings.
If Yousuf scores a century on SCG in this match and Pakistan wins, it will be a better achievement for him than scoring the 1800 odd runs and breaking Sir Viv Richards’ record.

Lawson says Aamer is not 17 but may be 19 years old.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/just-how-old-is-aamer/story-e6frexni-1225815510340

Javed Khan,

I agree, batting is going to be tough. Pakistan should not play fearful cricket, especially since they are on top. The openers actually played pretty well, because they looked to score off the bad bowls, and let anything way outside off stump go.

But this is Pakistan, so you never know.

I am surprised, though, at Mohd Yousof’s captaincy (apart from bowling at the tail where he gets too defensive and waits for things to happen). In the first match against Watson they came out with a clear plan and were focused and in the second match they looked positive too. Maybe this is just Waqar’s positive influence on the team..

Maza

Is it you who added me as a friend on fb? are you Abdul? cuz i heard abdul was a cricket player and so do you, as far as your picture on fb is concerned

Tea Day 2 …

Pakistan, at the moment, have their foot right firmly placed right at the Australia’s throat and all they have to do from here is to keep applying the pressure and never to loosen their grip.

Pakistan, for the first time in the series, have a clear and visible advantage as they have reached 190 for 2 down with Faisal and Yousuf are at crease with the lead swelling at 63. Both their openers played their part well and reached their individual fifties, now all Pakistan have to do from here is to play the same ruthless cricket that the Australians are so famous for.

So far, Pakistan have played better then everyone’s expectation and we can reach the minimum lead of 200+ without much trouble. But, Pakistan can still not afford to give even an inch to the Australians from here and they should aim for the innings win by increasing the lead to the maximum and, if possible, keep playing throughout the third day.

Javed Khan …

And, do you seriously believe that he is a better batsman than Younus Khan?

NOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooo … !!

I never said that, and you are now putting words into my mouth to prove your point. ‘Mishbah’ (as some commentators call him) is never even equal to Younis Khan and to compare him with Younis is an insult for Younis Khan.

This is what I said …

> Misbah IS BETTER THEN Faisal Iqbal.

> Misbah IS BETTER THEN Shoaib Malik.

> Misbah IS COMPARABLE TO Fawad Alam (if Fawad doesn’t bowl).

And finally, I still Believe, Vouch, Confirm, Guarantee that …

Misbah is much worse then Younis Khan, who is miles ahead of Misbah as a player and as a person !!

Again Mohd Yousof lost concentration when Umar Akmal came to the crease.

I agree with Omer, Umar Akmal have some effect on Yousuf’s game, as Yousuf was playing very nicely with Faisal Iqbal and looked well-set, but when Umar came in and started playing in a dominating fashion, Yousuf got under pressure and started playing too fast for his style.

I think even Kamran Akmal is not playing his natural game since the arrival of his younger brother and the way Umar have caught the limelight.

Umar Akmal is a very talented and fearless batsman, he is a delight to watch, he impressed me a lot with his ability to move within the crease so swiftly and so fast that the bowlers sometimes don’t get any chance to adjust their line or length and he slashes his cuts and drives at will. I hope he stays like this and not get bogged down by his captain, coach or manager who might be asking him to curb his aggression and play more carefully. Some players when they are pushed to go against their nature loses their natural talent and their ability. Last night when I saw him live smashing five fours and his 21 in 8 balls and then he calmed down. Ian Chappel was saying that he (Umar Akmal) reminds him of Viv Richards and Steve Vaugh i.e., when they used to come to the crease they used to attack the bowling instantly and then they used to calm down.

Tony Greig cannot pronounce Akmal instead he says, Akhmal and Mishba Al Hak for Misbah ul haq and when fellow commentators were laughing at his accent in pronouncing their names he said, he has practiced it while taking shower.

khansahab

Whatever the truth may be about Asaf and Veena Malak, the fact is Veena nay iss murday may dobara jaan daal dee. Varna yae tou ho gaya thaa nikamma.

3 rd Day

So typical of Pakistan to remain complacent when they are not supposed to be. Whereas, Shane Watson came with a plan and he is hitting fours from the first over, he had 2 fours from Asif’s over and now when Umar Gul bowled him a bouncer he hooked it down straight into the hands of Danish Khadderia, who took it so casually that the ball went through his fingers and he helped it to make it a SIX.

This is what I have been lamenting all about that a player should be judged in totality. If Watson scores a century here, even if Kaneria takes 3-4 wickets it is not going to equal the damage that has been done now. This reminds me of Mohammad Hafiz dropping Rohit Sharma’s catch in the first T20 final and converted it into a SIX. That was the crucial and turning point of that match and Rohit along with Irfan Pathan scored 36 valuable runs. Pakistan lost by 3 runs. Dropping catches are very lethal and I suggest that a player should be penalized from his match fees like $100 per dropped catch or may be more.

In Melbourne Umar Akmal dropped Simon Katich who went on to score 90 odd runs, even if Umar Akmal makes a good 50 it does not equate.

Just look at Yousof’s captaincy–

Gul was bowling bouncers and he has Kaneria for the hook/pull shot. He could easily keep him at midoff or midon.

Now when Kaneria is bowling, he has all the field on the boundary, right out of Inzamam’s textbook. An edge flew and no-one was there to take the catch, and a typically a fielder would be there with any captain.

I’m agree with javed, are you not abdul?

In one over of Kaneria, not only did Faisal Iqbal drop a simple catch, but Kamran Akmal missed a simple run-out opportunity– he had the ball in his hands, and the stumps besides him to hit, but he didn’t try to hit them. He just made the fake attempt in which keepers show to the batsman that they are about to hit the stumps but they don’t, except that he did that when Watson was way out of the crease– Ridiculous. Hughes was dropped by Faisal, a simple catch which he made seem more difficult because he was dozing off. Grand liability.

Akmal also played a pathetic shot while batting. Kamran Akmal’s position in the team shouldn’t be secure because of his brother.

Javed Khan,

Unfortunately, Afridi doesn’t spin the ball. He isn’t a test-level spinner if he were to play as the premier spinner.

Omer Admani

Bhai jaan, I am also watching the match live on BIG SCREEN TV and not on a computer, that simple catch you are referring to ‘dropped by faisal iqbal’ was at least a meter away from his hand, so you cannot call it a simple catch, it was a half chance. The catch that Kaneria dropped on the boundary which resulted in a six was simple. And, because of that Watson is still playing approaching his 100, he was on 19 then. Kaneria also dropped a caught and bowled chance of Ponting but luckily not much damaged done, Faisal Iqbal took a great catch of the bowling of Gul. And, yes Kamran Akmal after collecting the ball should have whipped off the stumps instead he stood straight with the ball in his gloves like a spectator. Watson’s bat was at least 4-5 feet away from the crease when Akmal collected the ball. Akmal made everyone stunned by not taking the bails off.

Hussey’s first ball went to the boundary from an outside edge, there was nothing wrong in that delivery and that was once again let off of by Danish Kaneria, he tried to play soccer and missed the ball. What an idiot of a player he is?

And, it is your opinion Omer that Afridi does not spin the ball or he isn’t a test level spinner I guess Abdul is a great spinner of the ball and “I am agree” on that.

As regards Yousuf’s captaincy generally I am not in favour of his captaincy, but I don’t think he is making silly mistakes here in this match. Ian Chappel is praising his captaincy, field placements and even his bowling changes, he made four changes in 4 overs and finally got Ponting by bringing back Gul. So, that’s considered as a smart move by the captain. From your point of you it may not appear as a good move but, he got the prized wicket of Ponting.

Shoaib

“ab kya bucchay ki jaan logay?” chorro bhee, we all know Maza is Abdul and he is 17 years old, protege of Mushy and himself a deadly spinner of the ‘balls’

Hi Guys,

Interesting tussle going on between Australia and Pakistan, at this point 2 down and still trailing Australia has a big task in front of them. I am sure you all find it refreshing to see Pakistan dominating a Test match like after so long. Even in NZ when they won a Test they did not dominate. In this Test they have been right on top from Day 1, both with the ball and bat. Pakistan should choke them now and strangulate the middle order. Go for the kill. This is no time to let them off the hook.

newguy

good to see you back after a long absence. Seems like you were enjoying the euphoria? As regards Pakistan choking Australia, they themselves are chokers and look at the way they are playing at the moment, they simply do not have the killers instinct in them. If Australia takes 200 lead they will win it is as simple as that.

WATSON GONE

Umar Gul and Faisal Iqabl combo worked again. It is Watson’s nervous 90′s again, he is out on 97.

For the first time on this tour, Umar Gul is bowling like a real pro, the way he used to bowl as a lethal bowler in T20′s, today he is definitely by far the best bowler, he got only 2 wickets so far but he is bowling his heart out. Shane Warne was commenting that on day one Yousuf showed a lot of confidence in Gul by making him bowl again and again to get Bollinger’s wicket and that must have got his confidence back. Besides, Waqar must have also given him some useful tips.

In between they showed a video clipping of Waqar bowling at Ponting in Australia a few years ago, the ball pitched outside the off stump and Ponting left it thinking it is wide, but the ball came in and hit the off and middle stump. That was a beauty.

Akmal dropped another catch off Kaneria– of Hussey at around 20.

So now it is established– the only way Kaneria can get a wicket is by bowling the batsman out.

Javed,

I was enjoying holidays, but I was also reading most of the comments here. Watson gone now and Australia are under pressure, Pakistan need to get only 2 more wickets and the rest will succumb to pressure. This is Test cricket, and 3rd innings pressure of facing an exit is not easy for even the seasoned batsman, the last experienced pair is at the crease, one of them gone and the match is with Pakistan. I think the openers played well in the last few games and this is good for Pakistan, I think 200 will be gettable. But if they can get 2 more wickets in the next 50 runs or so then they will be chasing even less.

Javed Khan,

It might be just my opinion that Afridi can’t lead the bowling attack in test matches as a spinner, but it is a fact that he doesn’t spin the bowl.

Afridi is an attritional spinner and is a better attritional spinner than Ajmal, and a better batsman than Faisal, so it is him who he should replace Faisal. But, when Ponting is set, Clarke is set, Hussey is set, it is not Afridi who will get them out, it is Kaneria. Afridi doesn’t have a bowl which is genuinely wicketaking, it is only when the wicket is broken or the batsman plays a bad shot, that he will get the batsman out. Much like Ajmal, except that Afridi is better than Ajmal and will be more useful when the pitch breaks as he is stump-to-stump.

Faisal did drop the catch– he made the movement towards the bowl late, he was dozing off.

But the real culprit is Akmal who keeps on denying Kaneria again and again. We lost the series in SA squarely because of one person, Akmal. Now it may be the case that, because of Akmal again, we might lose the series again in Australia.

Akmal is a wicketkeeper and a specialist catch-taker. He is in the team because of that reason, not to flaunt his verbose and gregarious self. If he can’t take the bowl when it slightly deviates of the edge, how can anyone expect him to reasonably consistenly take catches when it deviates more?

This is nothing new to Akmal– at test level Pakistan must seriously think about replacing Akmal with another keeper who can take catches. Akmal’s batting is overated, he his more or less hit and miss. Umar Akmal is the real deal and the better gene, and Kamran shouldn’t remain in the team just because of him.

Javed Khan Vs Omer Adman = Shahid Afridi Vs Danish Kaneria.

Or rather …

Javed Khan + Shahid Afridi Vs Omer Adman + Dinish Kaneria.

It will be a good ‘double wicket’ contest

Pakistan is once again dropping too many catches. Akmal dropped another easy one off Hussey.

On the other hand, Faisal took a very good catch at slip (by Pakistani standards at least) to dismiss Punter.

Why we do not have even a single Pakistani commentator for this all important series ??

And why is Tony Greig there, is he representing Pakistan ?

BTW, these ‘Gora’ (Australian) commentators are not the most decent and there is an air of sarcasms in the way they comment.

Asif got rid of Clarke and Australia are 4 down with a lead of 19 runs.

While in the very next over of Kaneria, Kamran Akmal (who is having a very bad Test with the bat as well as gloves) have once again dropped Hussey at 45. This could prove expensive for Pakistan.

Two wickets in two consecutive overs would have been great

I cannot believe this, KAMRAN AKMAL dropped THREE CATCHES of Hussey and Kaneria is the unlucky bowler.

Omer Admani

The way you see a 46 year old auntie called Bellucci as a 17 year old young chick then the same way you can see that Faisal Iqbal dropped that catch. Like they say;

hurr dill faraib cheez nazar ka ghubaar hai,
nazrain haseen ho tou khizaan bhee bahaar hai.

The ball was at least a meter away from his stretched hand. And to make you feel good he took 3 catches today and also fielded well.

Just look at Kamran Akmal he dropped 3 catches of Hussey and Ian Chappel was saying, ‘someone should take out that brick from his glove.’ Even Shane Warne was disappointed after he dropped the 3rd catch and said, ‘come on Kamran……’ But, there is no shame, no remorse on his face, he keeps smiling and showing his bateesee 32C. And, keep saying koi baat nai koi baat nai, Wail bol Daani bouy…. shabaaa shaabaa shaaabaaash Daani…. I haven’t seen a thick skinned as Kamran.

Kamran “FCUKING” Akmal dropped Hussey third time

All three times it was ‘Daanny Boowaaye’ Imagine how Kaneria must be feeling. Poor thang

Munir

its not a contest neither double wicket nor single, remember what Sweetie once said? She summed up in one word and i.e., Jhakki

newguy

i think you are up because it is Sri Lanka vs. India tonight in that tri-series, am i right?

On one side there are sympathies for Danish Kaneria because Kamran Akmal dropped 3 catches of his bowling and on the other side, himself he dropped 2 catches, one of Gul’s bowling and one on his own, Then he misfield an easy one by trying to play soccer and converted that single into a four. And, just now he stopped one of his own bowling and then threw it back towards the batsman in an attempt to warn him. But, his throw was so wild that it went between the wicketkeeper and the first slip for an over throw for 4……….there was no need to throw the ball and no one was expecting that he will actually throw it. Ab aap isss Ch2So4apay ko kya kehenge?

Gul at the moment is bowling an amazing spell………

7 down … lead is 48 runs.

New ball due in 3 overs, should Yousuf take new ball or continue with old, as Danny is bowling so well with this older ball ?

Kaneria is an amazing bowler, because for every setback that Akmal threw on him, Kaneria took a wicket. He had his wicket before the first catch was dropped and after that, for each catch that Akmal dropped, Kaneria took a wicket without any help from Akmal. Amazing bowler– Akmal has stolen a lot from his averages, but he is still by far the best spinner in Pakistan. There is no-one, quite simply, near him.

Javed Khan,

If a 40-year old aunty turns more heads than a 17-year old chick, she doesn’t become 17. She is 40 and more attractive than the 17-year old chick.

Gul has bowled really well, and if you notice, he didn’t bowl that short-pitched rubbish that he was bowling for a while. No-one doubts his talent, in fact with his height and persistence, if he can hit the length spot more often, and then bowl bouncers which are head-high, he can be a very threatening bowler. But, what Gul lacks is this ability to think thru about his bowling and Waqar has transformed him again. Waqar had done this before and at that time, I thought he was a really good bowler, when he broked Sarawan’s toe, and certainly Waqar can help him understand wicket-taking now as well.

From Cricinfo …

This is what they had to say about Kamran Akmal, and Umar is not much behind too …

Number-crunchers will confirm it, but if Kaneria had a wicketkeeper who could hold onto some edges, he would’ve gone past 300 Test wickets long ago. Instead he has Kamran Akmal. The senior Akmal dropped regulation edges from Michael Hussey thrice off Kaneria’s bowling, on 27, 45 and 52. In the morning Akmal had inexplicably forgotten to remove the bails in a run-out attempt on Shane Watson. Younger brother Umar has also dropped two sitters in the series so far; perhaps Adnan, the best hands of the three brothers according to the late Bob Woolmer, should be recruited as a substitute?

Mohammad Munir,

Umar Akmal dropped two catches in three matches so far, but Kamran is a wicketkeeper (and a specialist catcher) and he dropped three consecutive ones off Kaneria, and he will drop more if past is anything to go by.

The reason why I try to avoid the catching comparison between the two is that, Umar Akmal is a genuine batsman and Kamran Akmal is hit or miss. Besides that, putting Umar Akmal in the equation absolves Kamran Akmal of his responsibility sort of, as they say, hota rehta hai, but Kamran Akmal’s position is a vital for Kaneria. Because, Kaneria is a genuine matchwinner and Kamran Akmal negates him by dropping catches or missing stumping chances. Kamran Akmal is easily, by far, the worst wicketkeeper in Pakistan’s history. In fact in one match in SA only, he missed 7,8 chances with Kaneria bowling if I counted correctly, so much so that his missed chances were so common that they were simply ignored by the commentators after a certain point.

It is not ironic that Kaneria was at his peak during that time, and as Akmal’s poor keeping carried on into England, Kaneria’s form and confidence started fading. People say, why doesn’t Kaneria apply consistent pressure and keeps on going after that magic bowl. And, it is because, when he applies pressure and sets the batsman up, Akmal misses the opportunity, and Kaneria gets frustrated and feels the only way to get the batsman out is bowl some kind of magic ball. Apart from that the field placement is so pathetic while Kaneria is bowling that no pressure is mantained, the batsman gets easy singles of balls which are perfectly fine– and Kaneria is again led to bowl that magiv bowl and try different things.

Kamran Akmal’s replacement should always be in the squad. If Pakistan win this match, and go onto Gabba with a chance to win the series, they might not be lucky enough to have a 200-run first inning lead again. Kaneria’s bowling, as usual, will be vital– he is a genuine matchwinner. But if Akmal will drop catches, that can totally nullify Kaneria.

We have already seen that Hussey simply can’t play Kaneria. So, we could already consider him out twice in the next match if the keeper is right. This sort of thing gives the team a great psychological boost.

From cricinfo:
“Watson was the beneficiary of a number of reprieves, commencing with Kaneria’s dropped catch over the fine-leg boundary that took him past the 1000-run mark in Test cricket. He might also have been run out on the stroke of lunch, only for Kamran Akmal to neglect to remove the bails while he was well short of his ground. It has been a tour to forget for the Pakistani gloveman”.

And, the selectors must ask the question, which test tour hasn’t been an unforgettable one for Akmal as far as keeping is concerned. He did it in SA in Sa, England in England, SA in Pakistan, and again now. In between Kaneria’s confidence was so low that Akmal didn’t receive as many catches to make it an unforgettable tour, but a few that he received, he did spill at lelast 30/40 percent out of them.

But the selectors might not have kept up, since the selectors are changed every now and again themselves.

Therefore, it would be a good idea for the board, to have a sort of review of each player after any test series and their performance, briefly, highlighted. This way any new chairman or selector can open those notes and see what has been going on in the past. As it is, after each new captain is assigned, each new chairman is assigned, and every time a new bunch of staff is assigned, whether selectors or otherwise, all the 14 payers in the squad get a new life and all the past “memory” is removed.

Something other then Cricket …

UAE has officially inaugurated the World’s Tallest Tower (Burj Khalifa) at 828 meters, beating the nearest opponent by around 300 meters.

Check this out:

http://gulfnews.com/pictures/viewer/download-burj-khalifa-wallpapers-to-your-desktop-1.562213

http://gulfnews.com/pictures/business/facts-on-the-world-s-largest-skyscraper-1.562013

Javed Khan,

I went to bed before midnight because I have to get up early for work.

But as I have said Pakistan got themselves into strong position after Watson and Clark wickets. This match Pakistan cannot lose from here on. They will looking at 100 odd at the most or less. You guys should give them credit, even with dropped catches they made up for it and dominated the Test for 3 days. This will be an excellent achievement for Pakistan cricket.

I am just passively following tri-series, not much interest except watching another ODI series, the only interest I have is Bangladesh and India haven’t played very much and I want to see some of the Bangla players against India.

The second catch which Akmal dropped of Hussey was so easy, so dolly that even a school boy would have held it. Because, it was a bat, pad slow and easy catch which Kamran Akmal threw it down. Was it deliberate? I doubt it but certainly it looked very odd that he pushed the ball to the ground. A wicketkeeper dropping three catches of the same batsman by the same bowler when he was on 27, 45 and 52 is criminal and what if Hussey scores a century and turns the match around? Already the lead is 80 runs now if it passes 180-200, Pakistan would be struggling. The opening pair by chance played well in the first innings, so don’t expect they will do it again. Besides, Australia would be going for a kill and their fielding is much superior than Pakistan’s.

Missing that run out chance of Watson was mind boggling. Akmal was expecting Farhat to break the stumps (at that time Watson was halfway down the pitch) and when it didn’t Akmal collected the ball behind the stumps while he was on his haunches and then, he stood up with the ball in his gloves while Watson’s bat was still 4-5 feet away from the crease. At that moment, Akmal behaved like a spectator and he looked like an idiot standing there with the ball in his gloves. Even Harbhajan Singh would have broken the stumps (whether the ball would have been in his hands or not but, Akmal did not even have that presence of mind like Harbhajan’s)

Penalizing would be the best method for every single dropped catch. Dropping first catch in a match $100 fine, second one $200, third one $500 and a match suspension. This is the only way these people will learn, otherwise they are lazy, lethargic and complacent.

Munir

Except for the fact that Burj Khalifa is the tallest tower in the world or an architectural symbol of monstrosity, I don’t see any remarkable thing or an economical achievement that it would contribute towards the rebuilding of Dubai’s failing economy. For the Watani, it gives him an immense pleasure to say first in the world, biggest in the world, tallest in the world but, what is the use? It is so bloody expensive that only a filthy rich or a nouveau riche can boast about living there.

I don’t know why so much soubt is pouring in and Pakistan aren’t confident.

Pakistan should simply knock the runs without any wickets. Pakistan should focus on the next match, meaning that, the more comprehensively they win, the better it will be for the next match. Pakistan has played better cricket 5 days out of 8 in the series– they have been the superior team and deserve to win the match.

Omer Admani;

Easier said than done wali baat hai. We all expect them to knock off the runs without any wicket and win comprehensively, but all is well that ends well. So, the first thing is to knock off Hussey’s wicket and, I hope Kamran Akmal is not going to give him six more lives to make him a cat.

Talking of the next match, Aamer would be fit for the Hobart test and the question is WHO will be dropped? I hope its not Sami nor Gul because they both bowled well. They can play with 4 seamers and Kaneria, then they have to sarifice faisal iqbal. Because, Butt and Farhat are untouchables.

Pakistan can win from its bowling and if they have 4 good seamers who are bowling well at the moment, they really don’t need the 7th batsman. Six batsmen are enough to score decent runs and get the opposition out by using the 4th genuine fast bowler plus a leggy.

Javed Khan,

I agree it will be a bit harsh to drop Sami, but I think Aamer should replace Sami.

Sami bowled one good spell and hasn’t bowled well– but Aamer and Gul are bowling consistently much better. On that basis, that is what I’d go with.

Gul has everything except that at times he is simply lost and doesn’t know what to do, without a plan. With Waqar’s influence, he becomes a totally different bowler. And, if Gul can come fulfil his potential, then what a pace attack Pakistan can have: Aamer, Gul, and Asif– a complete bowling attack with Kaneria. Because, then we’d have a left-armer, a line-and-length type Asif type of bowler, and Gul who can bowl bouncers, yorkers, bang the ball in at length, so that it jumps awkardly, and reverse the bowl. It can become the most complete Pakistani bowling attack since the late 80s, early 90s.

Just look at the captaincy of Mohd Yousof– starting from Yesterday and now carrying on today, it is as though it is Inzamam himself captaining the team (he must have talked on the phone with Inzamam). Pakistan are in a win-win situation here– as if they lose, they might see the back of Mohd Yousof and Kamran Akmal for good, which going by this, is not bad for them.

Mohd Asif should be made the captain– he is a very good thinker and strategic person.

Ian Chappel said exactly the right thing–
If the captaincy were to be given marks out of 100 on logic, Yousof would have scored zero. In fact other people can conceivable score zero and still be better than Mohd Yousof.

Kamran Akmal should never be in the test team.

I am inclined to believe that there is zero correlation between education and capacity to think/logical clarity. Asif shows a lot of tactical nous, his performances are reasonably consistent, and he always seems to want to do well. His education level is, thus, irrelevant– so long as he understands self-interest and has tactical nous.

Yousof has backed Kamran Akmal– article on criconfo.

Hence, we are seeing, nothing else, but a reincarnation of Inzamam now.

In other words, Yousof is drawing on the “unity” in the team regardless of performance, a concept Inzamam initiated. Inzamam kept on persisting with the Rana’s, and that culminated with him being humiliated against Ireland in the world cup.

Yousof has to play his best 11 players– and Kamran Akmal is not one of them.

He has given the example of Ricky Ponting. That is ridiculous. If Yousof would realize that he is not 50 percent the player Ponting was/is and he may just take the highlights package, and start seeing the innings that Ponting has played before, he will realize why Australians are backing Ponting. Not only that, Ponting is a very aggressive captain. Ponting is also building a team and he has no gifts such as Mohd Aamer and Umar Akmal, unlike Yousof.

If Brad Haddin had dropped these chances, no Australian team even on the domestic circuit would play him. He should go and ask other Australians what would have happened if Haddin had dropped such chances. Nevermind the history, if it just happened in one match. Akmal is not good enough as a batsman to replace 3,4 Australian specialist batsman. This is not a one-off, this is going to keep happening, because there are technical flaws in the way Akmal keeps, it is not a concentration problem.

here we go pakistan need 176 to win and i m realy nervous about it i hope we dnt play like aussies played in 1994 against sa when fannie devilliers took 8.for and aussies were all out 112 chasing 120 odd runs i agree with javed that there should be financial penalties and match bans for dropping catches kamran droped another catch of sami today sarfraz ahmed is a much better wicket keeper and a reasonable batsman i dnt knw why they dnt have a reserve wicket keeper for a tour consisting of almost 4 months now there is no pressure on kamran of lossing his place i think they should send him back and cal another keeper cause if they can do it to fawad alam why not kamran akmal if pakistan is gonna lose this match it is only because of one man and that is kamran he is the worst keeper ever to play for pakistan

What a show!
Pakistan could have won this match even without playing second inning but:
So many catches have been dropped
Pitiable performance by Kamran Akmal, I don’t know how the hell this wicket keeper is still in the squad.
Miserable captaincy by Mohammad Yusuf, deficient in judgment, he’s been very relaxed and defensive from this morning, seems like ‘’he is not bothered anymore’’
Bowlers were asking Yusuf to adjust the fielders; he is like yeah do whatever you believe is good enough.
Australian Commentators have been making fun of Pakistan cricketers throughout the match
Full fling balls from Kaneria, I don’t appreciate that how the hell Mr. top spinner can produce full toss nuggets one after the other at this level of cricket.
Mohammad Yusuf is not a superior captain. He doesn’t have such skills and he just cannot acquire such a spark. Some people can learn how to lead and some people are born with the quality and some people cannot learn it because they were not born to lead.
I am not sorry for being so unkind, in the future may be I would see Mohammad Yusuf as an improved captain but that’s how I think about him at present.

A great win for Australia– again they have shown that, if you give them an opportunity, they will raise their games under pressure.

Kamran Akmal didn’t give one, but he gave 5. The missed run-out and 4 catches. Along with Yousof’s captaincy, that simply did Pakistan and Australia made the most of it.

Pakistan should ask Yousof to retire now– his denfensive psychology is translating badly into the team. What happened today was nothing but a reflection of his attitude since yesterday when the 9th batsman came. He was reminding the youngsters with the mike, after dominating the test match for 3 days, that we can still lose. For that, Yousof should given the sitara-e-Inzamam honor.

Kamran Akmal shouldn’t even play for domestic teams. He is not a wicket-keeper.

Now I see what the reason is of Yousof not being able to bat with Umar Akmal.

Yousof starts competing with him, as though th match is between Umar Akmal and Yousof. Yousof feels he can hit at leisure too– as Umar Akmal…and tries to show his class. Unfortunately, he fails to see that his primary job is to stay there and for all other players to bat around him.

Umar Akmal and Yousof should be kept three batsmen apart in the batting order. Them batting together isn’t good for Pakistan cricket. In fact Umar Akmal should open or come one-down and play like Sehwag, otherwise he will time and again come in these situations where he will see thru the team losing the match. At the top, and without Yousof, he will actually be able to win a few matches.

Thee most ironic thing about the whole series is that, the openers surprisingly played well.

The time has come for Faisal Iqbal and Misbah to go, and Younis and Fawad Alam to replace them. In place of Akmal bring in another keeper, remove Yousof, and fit in Afridi somewhere.

What does Yousof mean when he says that his shot turned the game and he takes responsibility?

When you take responsibility, you don’t just announce it, you quit captaincy, or you retire. That is called taking responsibility, not just saying it, and moving on as if nothing happened.

In other words, not only is he just putting the whole thing off by saying that, but he isn’t even showing a willingness to identify the weaknesses and work towards changing them– and making the team better. What does it mean to say that dropped catches are part of the game? Dropped catches are part of the game, so just keep on dropping most of them? Losing is also part of the game, so lose 100/100 times, and move on..?

This isn’t the way forward– Yousof’s captaincy was bad and at his age the team can’t afford a 2-year lurning curve. He should resign.

And, Akmal keeps on dropping catches, and ask the Australians, the Indians, the Sri Lankans, whether a keeper dropping such a high percentage of catches is “part of the game”?
What sort of attitude is this, at least identify the weaknesses and improve on them, correct the bad selection decisions (especially Kamran Akmal as this is a 3-year old routine and we have so much about it 2 years ago that we just accept him dropping catches as if nothing has happened). It would be a lot more convincing if some good came out of the test match.

Khansahab,

That is what I have also been saying since a while. The reason why I said Faisal instead of Misbah is that, given the team we had on the tour, Misbah seemed the more likely person to make an impression. However, by all means, they should replace both– Younis with Faisal and Afridi with Misbah.

I agree, Sami has been a very unlucky bowler thruout his career. Akmal has consisntently dropped catches of his bowling too. And, Sami is a confidence bowler, when he has it, he bowls well– and when he doesn’t, he sprays it…

Osman Samiuddin is clearly dissapointed, because Pakistan just handed the match to Australia. And, it is not like we didn’t know that these things wouldn’t come up– we knew, and I have pointed out many times before, that Kamran Akmal is a genuine matchloser, who can do it singlehandedly (as was Rana). And, we also knew, that making Yousof the captain was very unimaginative on the part of the board. Afridi should have been made the captain. However, all these things had to come together at once for Pakistan to lose the match from that position, and they did. Divine intervention, doesn’t seem like someone above is happy with either the ways of Mohd Yousof (aka Inzamam)?

The test may have been a great advert for the game but this is just a piss take or confidence breaker for Pakistan. They came so close to a rare victory against Australia, it was literally out of the question for Australia to win during many points of the match but yet it was the eventuality. Yes, a heartbreaking outcome indeed. A depressing emotion is going through many supporters and rightly so. So much support and time is dedicated to the game and yet this is how the national team performs. Diabolical. Many from this point would have lost faith and interest and again rightly so. Even a minnow side wouldn’t have faltered from the day 3 overnight situation.

The field setting was absolutely the height of frustration for us (supporters). Cold headed logic. Just gifting the opposition an opportunity to get back in the game. Such a defensive unjustifiable tactic. This also, released the pressure off the batsmen. They were able to get settled and get their eye in with the simplest of ease. It was as if the score line was reading something totally different. Pathetic captaincy and even management from the coach or senior players. Didn’t they realise how fatal this whole episode was developing into? But even then, when some realisation was beginning to kick in the batsmen were settled and the more superior of the forces.

Furthermore, 3 drop catches from a professional wicket keeper is totally beyond acceptance. This was penalising agony, but this is not like the first time this has happened. I expect a change soon. Consolidating on the criticisms, Nathan Hauritz was made to look like a demon or emperor. He bagged another 4th innings 5 for. He bowled well and deserves credit but to be honest it was only orthodox finger spin. Such a poor method or controlling of instincts proved to be a downfall once again.

Nevertheless, many would have said that this is respectable defeat due to the matter of fact that Pak have taken 20 wickets and competed. But that is total nuisance. If one can’t push for a victory from such a commanding position, then how can they expect to win any other test? Therefore, this a daunting occurrence in terms of future reference. That statement may have been a respectable regarding had the game been a different more neck on neck situation but it wasn’t to be, instead Pak dominated for 3 days but yet ended up on the losing side. In that capacity, it is worrying. In fact, that is an understatement. It is demoralising, visually devastating and heartbreaking.

I just heard Ian Chappel’s comments on cricinfo and I agree with him– Pakistan simply didn’t deserve to win the match, the way Yousof captained once 8 wickets had fallen.

I was wondering myself, after watching Kamran Akmal dropping those catches, and Yousof’s captaincy thereafter: How would it feel if Pakistan won the match despite this, that there’d be a really unsatisfactory feeling lingering beneath, that this will persist for the next 2,3 years– this bizarre captaincy and Kamran Akmal?

My opinion watching the whole test match and seeing the captaincy and the 4 dropped catches and one stump chance. i don’t got much to say but Pakistani people needs to come out and Bury the player along with the PCB member and selector. What the hell is our selector thinking leaving professional players back home and sending their relatives on tour who don’t know how to play cricket. It’s time somebody shoot the selectors and PCB members. After this insulting defeat is there nobody to put pressure on PCB and ask them what the HELL ARE THEY DOING. And its time for these PUNJABI’S to accept the fact that they bring nothing but shame to the country and that its time to let players from Sindh, Baluchistan, and Pukhtanistan get a chance and play. For exmaple, Pakistan won 2 world cup in which both captains were PATHAN. so it’s time to come out of the dark and accept the fact that Pakistan will never perform or win if they Play politics within the game. Time for PCB to take out Kamran Akmal, Misbah, Malik, Imran Farhat, Salam Butt, Fasil Iqbal and bring some promising player that was to play cricket for the respect of their country not for themselves. PCB needs to be strict on the player and tell the player straight up that they work for the country of PAKISTAN, Pakistan don’t work for them. They need to teach the player some discipline and team work and if they can’t do that then time to throw them out of the team like Australia do.

Arshad Khan you live in Troy Albany? I was in Albany for a while during Christmas. Anyways, your frustration is similar to that of many others. I was expecting this to happen. I would have been shocked and surprised if they had won. Our fellow blogger Maza Abdul experienced some penalizing agony during the match and khansahab has summed it up well.

We have already discussed Akmal’s dropped catches yesterday and now I don’t want to comment anything about this defeat because, I find it difficult to express my feelings about the way ALL the Pakistani batsmen batted, especially Misbah.

Javed A Khan how do you know i live in Troy, Albany. have we met before. i only put up this post cause i couldn’t hold the anger anymore so i had to express it.

If Sarfaraz Ahmad the second wicketkeeper is rushed to Australia, then he won’t be sitting on the sidelines this time because dropping 4 catches and missing a dolly or a bunny run out is enough for Akmal to go to the gallows. Misbah should also be sent back, he is a big liability because you expect him to be there as a strong middle order and he is just a Dummy. Misbah’s entire career is like that, except for the sporadic brilliance he showed in the first T20 WC against India where he was unable to finish the match in favour of Pakistan, he has always been a mediocre and, at present he is highly over-rated because of those two innings and his MBA from Punjab.

Omer Admani

Making Mohammad Asif Pakistan cricket team’s captain would not be a mistake or a folly but, it would be a BIG blunder. IF he is pardoned and forgiven for what he did in defaming the country and if people want him to play then just let it be to that extent but, talking about honouring him to be crowned as a captain of the team is highly deplorable. God forbid that should never happen. Because it is so negating and against the morals and ethics of the game to reward him and honour him by saying, ‘on professional grounds he deserves to be a captain or he is the only deserving candidate to lead the team.’ This is absolutely ridiculous and a demotivating factor for the rest of the players.

Right now there is no one but Shahid Afridi who should be named as captain of the Pakistan team for ALL the 3 formats of the game. And, they should groom someone young to be the next captain after 5 years. It could be Mohammad Aamer or someone totally new. But, he must be the captain material to lead from the front and a real pro. Younus Khan, unfortunately made so many mistakes in accepting and rejecting the captaincy that he doesn’t deserve to be considered anymore. But, he can still play in the test side, because he is any time better than Misbah and Malik in the middle order.

Arshad Khan, yes we mat at Troy’s Campus last year at the annual dinner……..

come on, do you think one needs to be Einstein or CIA to know where you live? In this technology age it is elementary my dear Watson.

It is good that you have vented out your anger, but those sitting in the PCF coffers like a cobra will not be budged by yours or mine criticism, the whole system needs to be changed. But, the big question is whom do you replace ‘em with?

Guys!

There is a new thread on the blog titled, “From the dreams of stealing a historic victory to the jaws of a deplorable defeat”

Please comment on the new thread to express your feelings about the recent match that Pakistan lost. Thanks.