Razzaq needs to realise that his bowling and fielding are not good enough for international standards

Even though players like Razzaq, Butt, Ajmal, Malik etc have shown some improvement compared to how they used to field years ago, the problem Pakistan is facing is that the standard of fielding is not improving in line with how fielding has improved in countries like Sri Lanka, India and West Indies. This is sadly again due to the fact that, other teams are selecting players on the basis of their fielding ability and

Political selections such as that of Malik and Misbah have obviously prevented the selection of good players

then giving them exposure to cricket so that they can get better in other departments. At one time Pakistan could dismiss this strategy with minimal fuss because they had match winners like Anwar, Inzamam, Wasim, Waqar etc. But now for whatever reason the same calibre of players is not emerging, and therefore Pakistan needs to rethink its strategy. For example, Sri Lanka played Dilshan whose bowling was like Shoaib Malik’s when he started, and batting was like a tailender’s. But, he was in the team mainly due to his fielding and now he is one of the best batsmen in limited overs cricket. India used Suresh Raina who was also an expert fielder but then he improved his batting and has now become one of India’s most reliable players. Pakistan introduced Fawad Alam three years too late and he responded by playing some match winning knocks in T20, and an unprecedented century on a seaming track in Tests, but he has been sidelined due to politics. As a batsman and fielder both, Fawad was miles better than Dilshan and Raina (keeping in mind how they were when they started) but now his international cricket future is uncertain, simply because his countrymen would prefer to see someone like Shoaib Malik in the team rather than him.

The form of Pakistan's key bowlers is worrying

The Pakistan think tank cannot impose a system where merit is the main factor in selection, and Pakistan cricket is suffering because of this. An important tour lies ahead for this underperforming team, and if predictions are anything to go by Pakistan is likely to lose the Test series against England and Australia.

The summer weather in England so far this year has been drier than normal, and how much that would impact the pitches remains to be seen. It goes without saying that Pakistani bowlers would prefer bowling on England’s pitches compared to how they would have

Pakistan will miss the batting prowess of Yousuf and Younis

felt bowling on Sri Lankan pitches, but their batting on England’s pitches has never been satisfactory. The batting card for Pakistan on the tour of England should have read- S Butt, Yousuf, Younis, U Akmal, F Alam, S Afridi, but now three players from that card are not playing, which means that the batting has halved in strength. Naturally with drier weather, spin bowling becomes a useful option but Pakistan does not need to worry as much regarding their spin attack because Kaneria has experience in England, and Ajmal and Afridi are reliable.

Australia has shown improvement in T20 and this was clearly visible in the last T20 Cup. Pakistan showed some signs of concern in that Cup as they seemed to excel in neither bowling, batting or fielding. The signs are clearly ominous for Pakistan because they are not a force to be reckoned with in T20 anymore, they are worsening in ODI’s and they are weakest in Test cricket.

There are many challenges for Afridi- keeping the excellent batting form, uniting the team on a difficult tour, and devising some ingenious plans to produce winning results

Pakistan plays some country matches before their first T20 against Australia on 5th July. They will probably win the county matches and they may win against Australia in T20, but they need to put up a good fight in Tests. In fact they will probably be treating the Tests against Australia as a testing ground for the Tests against England.

What Pakistan should have learned for the T20 Cup and the Asia Cup, is that it needs an improvement in all areas- batting, bowling and fielding. Improvement does not come overnight, but ratings do not change overnight too and Pakistan has constantly plummeted in international ratings. After watching Pakistan lose to India in the Asia Cup, one should realise that Pakistan- India matches are not “50-50 chance” contests anymore- one team is clearly stronger than the other. Shahid Afridi will have to work some miracles to make his team put up a decent show against Australia in Tests- and to his misfortune he is pitted against the deplorable standard of fielding, political selections of undeserving players and pathetic management of the PCB of over a decade.

Butt is the laughing stock of the cricket world and under his leadership Pakistan cricket has gone from bad to worse

There are reports of turmoil within the PCB as Ijaz Butt has failed to change the culture of the PCB and in fact internal strife, mismanagement and incompetence levels have increased. Butt is under immense pressure to resign as it is alleged he is too old, incompetent and more concerned about running his private business than managing the cricket situation in the country. Since Butt has appeared on the cricket scene, the team has gone from bad to worse. There is no vision, no planning, and like his appointor, Asif Zardari, Butt is spending more time facing flak and responding (unconvincingly) to criticism than actually doing something positive to remedy the affliction the Pakistan team is experiencing.

On one hand Butt said that Yousuf was the wrong choice as captain of

Pathetic Yousuf thinks he captained well in Australia

the team for the Australia tour, but on the other hand he said there was no alternative. What kind of decision-making is this? Why was a younger player not appointed as a temporary captain? Yousuf proved to be a worse captain than anyone thought. Not only was he completely negative in everything that he did- batting, field placement, bowling changes, managing team morale etc, he also failed to win the respect of his team-mates, unlike Inzamam who was at least senior enough to obtain some respect from the juniors. It was also disheartening to see Yousuf openly condemning Butt’s running between the wickets and Manzoor’s technique. Interestingly, Butt proved to be Pakistan’s best batsmen in Tests and Manzoor probably played the best knock by a Pakistani in the Test series.

According to many news reports, Malik is the reason behind dirty regional politics in the team

At the same time as Butt’s inept management and Yousuf’s maladroit captaincy, there were reports of team disunity. Some reports went as far as suggesting that two camps were created in the team- the Karachi camp (thought to be led by Younis Khan and Shahid Afridi) and the Sialkot/Punjab camp led by Shoaib Malik. In fact some news suggested that the team manager had created a report on Shoaib Malik using politics to advance his camp’s interests. Whether any action is taken against Malik for this remains to be seen. Indeed, Malik captained Pakistan’s T20 match and although it was known Pakistan would provide a tough challenge to Australia in any circumstance, Malik’s captaincy has been hailed as “inspirational” and “attacking” by his misled supporters. The truth is that a club T20 team from Pakistan can provide a tough challenge to Australia in T20, yet somehow Malik’s supporters have forgotten this.

In such dire times, Pakistan needs a completely new and revolutionary strategy. As far as team

Umar Akmal is a gifted batsman and has a very good cricketing mind

Fawad has some technical batting problems, but he still impresses. He is the best fielder in the side and his batting and fielding impressed the Australians

performance is concerned, in Umar Akmal and Fawad Alam Pakistan found their best 2 ODI batsmen. This firstly proves that the much maligned Pakistani domestic structure can still produce good players. Secondly, this proves that for some reason or the other, the team’s main batsmen- Younis, Yousuf and Malik, are not up to the mark and must make way for juniors. When your best ODI batsmen are not your 4 or 5 most experienced batsmen, you know something is wrong with your team.

The horror seen in Butt’s time shows that a former cricketer is not necessarily a good administrator. Pakistan should appoint a management expert with good cricket acumen to lead the Board. In fact, the best way forward is probably to fire all former cricketers who are involved in running the show as all of these cricketers seem to have shady motives and personal grudges against each other, and an organisation cannot run successfully in this way.

Inti, it is no laughing matter that under your term as coach, Pakistan has become a very weak team, especially when chasing targets

A younger, fitter coach should be appointed. Pakistan should look beyond people like Intikhab Alam and should opt for a relatively low profile coach, perhaps from some regional academy. Pakistan has suffered too much and too long under Intikhab- his failure reflects in the fact that no improvements have been seen in the players. All the technical weaknesses remain, the standard of fielding is still poor, the bowlers are still getting injured relatively easily. The worst aspect is that mentally the Pakistan team has worsened under Intikhab, whereas when Inti was appointed he said mental strength would be one of his main areas of focus. Pakistan is losing Test matches from winning positions and it is looking increasingly vulnerable when chasing even modest targets.

Mediocrity is prevalent across the squad. Being mediocre is in some

Too many mediocre performers spoil the broth

ways worse than being pathetic, because a mediocre player makes 30 runs with some consistency to cement his position in the team, but is always focusing to remain in the team because he finds it so hard to make sizable scores, especially when the situation demands some character from a batsman. Similarly, bowlers like Rana and Rao survive on picking up 1 or 2 wickets here and there, or keeping the economy rate to under 4.5. Whereas, a pathetic or substandard player gets booted straightaway from the team. Shoaib Malik must not be tolerated anymore in the lineup. Similarly, Rana and Rao must be permanently banned from playing international cricket.

He can be very stupid sometimes, but his "outside the box" gameplay may well be what Pakistan cricket needs to survive

Afridi’s ball tampering incident was regrettable. However, whereas it has caused anger for many, many also see Afridi as someone who would be willing to think outside the box and who would be desperate to win matches for Pakistan. Although Afridi is not the brightest cricketer in the squad, he is very unlikely to tamper with the ball again. Afridi has received his penalty from the ICC and he must now be forgiven by the PCB and Pakistani public. Pakistan needs Afridi’s passionate captaincy and fighting spirit, and the fans should persuade the PCB to experiment with Afridi in all formats. Otherwise, Malik or Akmal will be appointed captain and Pakistan should not reward their consistently poor performances any longer.

Now the PCB must use their initiative and build a Test team with Younis, Yousuf, Afridi, U Akmal and Fawad Alam in the middle order. In ODI’s, Afridi, U Akmal and Alam must be the main batsmen and perhaps Butt will also improve his ODI form and become a significant cog in the wheel. In Umer Akmal and Fawad Alam Pakistan has found two exciting and talented players and now the PCB must look for more players like them.

The Australians do use sledging to their advantage and many critics are claiming their main weapon against Pakistan will be sledging. However, is it really Pakistan’s major worry? Batting, as always, seems to be the main worry for Pakistan and the batsmen barely performed up to mark against New Zealand. In fact, had it not been for Mohammad Asif, Pakistan could have been beaten comprehensively in all the Tests.

Make no mistake about it- Pakistan's bowling is their only saving grace

Mitchell Johnson and Sidde both feature in the top 25

Australia has a strong pace attack which can rattle the Pakistan top order easily

 Test bowlers in the world, and although this statement is perhaps not as impressive as one might consider it to be, Australia also have Bollinger who has 15 wickets in 3 Tests so far. He is a left armer which means the change of angle might unnerve Pakistan to some degree. Even though Australia does not have Clark and Lee to complement Johnson, Siddle and Bollinger can take Pakistani wickets. Yousuf has commented that Pakistanis will need to show patience, and he cannot be more right. It seems futile stating the obvious given that Pakistani openers never learn from their mistakes, but both Butt and Farhat will have to wait until the new ball stops swinging before going for their shots.

Malik and Misbah are indispensable for some reason

Due to politics Faisal Iqbal, Malik and Misbah will definitely get more chances to play than Fawad Alam, but Pakistan must not persist with these players if they make mistakes in the first Test. It is thought Malik will not play in the first Test since he is out of form and since Faisal Iqbal made a 50 in his last Test, but Yousuf has commented recently that he has high hopes with Malik and Misbah. In fact, if any of Butt, Farhat, Iqbal, Malik or Misbah make their usual mistakes, Alam must replace that player in the second Test. It goes without saying that neither Malik nor Misbah deserve to be playing for Pakistan. One can say the same for Faisal Iqbal, but he has been in and out for many years unlike Malik and Misbah who have been selected in pretty much all Test, ODI and T20 squads despite being mediocre players.

Pakistan is counting on the batting form of the Akmal brothers and Yousuf to counter the Australian bowling attack. If Umer Akmal can score runs in this series, it will be another feather in his cap and he will probably be promoted to a Category A contract. The youngster has shown he can handle pressure and he must not falter at this stage, otherwise critics will start questioning his calibre.

Bowling wise, Pakistan has some fascinating options to ponder. The pace attack consists of

It is difficult considering Ajmal as an attacking option, but he will get a chance to play if Kaneria is injured

 Aamer, Asif, Gul, Rauf and (now) Sami. There are rumours the Pakistani management might play both Kaneria and Ajmal, and there are also rumours that Kaneria has injured his finger which means he might not play. In the first Test I believe Pakistan should go for the attacking option and play Asif, Aamer and Gul. Kaneria should be the spin option. It is always best to go in the first Test using the best XI on paper. If there is need for a 5th bowling option, Yousuf can opt for Butt, Farhat or Alam- depending on who is playing.

The rest of the line up should be as follows: Butt, Farhat, Yousuf, Iqbal/Alam, Umer Akmal, Misbah/Alam, Kamran Akmal…

The toss of course plays a major part; if the pitch shows some life and Ponting decides to bowl first, then Pakistan will probably lose this Boxing Day test. If Yousuf wins however, he should bowl first- simply because Pakistanis are inexperienced in Australia and he is the only world class batsman in the team. In any event, Asif, Aamer and Gul in full slow can do damage to the Australians if the pitch is offering seam and swing. Once the ball stops swining, Kaneria can attack the middle or lower order batsmen. This is of course wishful thinking- it all depends on how the pitch is like and how the players perform on the day itself. Rest assured, though, that sledging is not Pakistan’s main worry and the batsmen need to support the bowlers and play intelligently. Otherwise, this series will end as yet another nightmare for Pakistan cricket fans, and Pakistan will see the frightening possibility of being compared with Bangladesh and Zimbabwe in Tests.

When will the PCB realise that tolerating average performances will destroy Pakistan’s status in international cricket? When will the cricket administrators realise that Pakistan is treading down the path of the West Indies, a team which ruled the cricket scene for two decades but is now considered almost a minnow team? Corruption, politics and negligent management has destroyed cricket in the West Indies and Pakistan is certainly heading down that path.

There is no denying that an indication of a weak cricket board is that player power is rampant and players consider themselves above the board and the country. In the Pakistan team groupings are formed and certain players back other players and create a situation where, “I scratch your back and you scratch mine”. The board could not convince Younis Khan to accept captaincy and as a result a weak and inept captain was selected in Shoaib Malik. The board cannot persuade Malik and Misbah to raise their level of performance against good sides in pressure situations despite both these players being on the top tier of central contracts, earning a sizable amount every month from the PCB. No administration has ever been able to control Shoaib Akhtar and he continues to fool the board, the team and the fans in broad daylight but he is above every being it seems. He is barely capable of bowling 5 overs in a match and yet he is an automatic selection in the team. This is a joke and this can only happen in Pakistan. Nasim Ashraf’s administration tried to put Akhtar in his place but Ashraf became very unpopular with the masses when he tried to curb player power.

A lot of the PCB’s incompetencies result from the social and political problems in Pakistan. There is corruption, ethnic bias, nepotism, dishonesty, mismanagement in the police force, in the armed forces, in the civil service, in government offices, so why should be cricket board be bereft of such evils? The cricket board, after all, is a public organisation and it works in tandem with the sports ministry. How to resolve these types of problems, becomes a political discussion, not a discussion about cricket and we have spoken about these issues many times on this blog.

There is an absence of professionalism in the PCB which filters down to the players on the field when they are playing. On his day Kamran Akmal can score a century against Australia, but in the same series he is very capable of dropping easy catches and playing stupid shots. Consistency has been Pakistan’s biggest problem for over a decade now and the PCB is absolutely clueless. Consistency does not come from the player itself; when a player performs and does something spectacular, that is a sign that this player is capable of doing something amazing and it is up to the team management and the board to ensure the player reaches his potential and performs more often. However, the PCB has not been able to answer the question, “How to nurture a player’s talent so that he becomes consistent?”

Since the PCB is incapable of producing consistency from the players, it should rotate players more often so that seniors are kept on their toes. Pakistan cricket has to come out of this tried and tested mentality that a senior player should not be dropped because it will weaken the team. Why do senior players in Pakistan have so much power and why are they untouchable? Recently I saw a programme where it was revealed that Shoaib Akhtar has sources in the Punjab government, which is why he is never dropped on accounts of unfitness or bad behaviour. So again we come to the point about corruption and favouritism in the Pakistan and how that affects everything, including sport.

Fawad Alam has become a victim of team politics and most people now consider him to be exceptionally tenacious to still have a big heart and still hope for playing for Pakistan. Fawad has been amongst the top domestic batsmen in Pakistan for about 3 years. He has performed in all formats- 4 day, 1 day and T20 and he is amongst the few players in the world who average above 40 in all 3 formats domestically. Whatever limited chances he has benefited from playing at the highest level, he has made a mark but he is still being ignored. He single handedly won a T20 for Pakistan when he hit 3 sixes in 5 balls. He has been involved in brief partnerships with seniors like Malik, Misbah and Yousuf and he has outperformed them, yet he has been ignored. Recently in a practice match against the international Pakistan side he was the best batsman against the bowling of Akhtar, Gul and Tanvir and he was the best bowler too. He is also one of the best fielders in the country.

So in real terms it seems no improvement was detected with Pakistan cricket. There is widespread incompetence, player power and politics that is ruining the sport in the nation. People in Pakistan are becoming fed up of the team’s substandard performances and are turning to other sports like football, baseball and basketball.  In the time of Imran Khan and Miandad, players played with more fire and patriotism but now these current players only play for themselves and for money. As cricket has become more “glamourised” and “commercialised”, perhaps that is not entirely the fault of the players themselves. However, politics and nepotism are definitely evils that should have nothing to do with sport.

I don't know why we are loosing but I am happy

Younus Khan refused to captain the Pakistan side twice by saying:  “I don’t want to be a dummy captain.” On paper and in theory it sounded very impressive that this man has the guts to say that he does not like to be under someone’s thumb.

Now, what made him change from refusing to be a dummy and acting like a dummy? It is very obvious from his statements to the media, pre and post match comments that he wants to keep the whole world happy. He has clearly mentioned that he cannot drop Misbah and Malik despite the fact they are not performing well, especially Misbah simply because one is a former captain and the other is a vice captain and if he does that, the media will be after him. It means he is scared of the media and not doing justice with team selection.

By now even a school kid who plays cricket can say with authority that the UAE pitches are favouring spin bowling. Australia’s weakness is spin bowling, Pakistan’s weakness is its batting. Pakistan has the advantage of strengthening its batting and spin bowling department by including Fawad Alam in the team. He has been in the squad only to sit on the bench or we saw him as a 12th man in the 4th ODI.

Australian batsmen are used to playing fast bowlers, as they have one of the best fast bowling battery in their team and they are not afraid of fast bowling. But, they are finding it extremely difficult to handle Afridi and Ajmal, even Malik bowled well in the 3rd ODI. So, any dummy captain would notice this weakness and take advantage of the situation. But, Younus Khan in his pursuit to keep the whole world happy is blinded by his goody, goody nature.

He has become a laughing stock among the commentators and cricket fans that you ask Younus Khan, ‘how are you?’ He would reply.  ” I am happy, I am always happy, no matter what I am happy.” It is good that you are a happy go lucky (rather unlucky so far) person, but on the ground you have to be firm and tolerate no nonsense from any player who under performs or play below par.

Just because Shoaib Akhtar is a senior player and carries a lot of clout behind him and in the 4th ODI he took two wickets in his first two overs, he got a free hand after that, he was clearly out of breath and couldn’t maintain his line and length and in the fielding department he was making a mess of the situation and Younus Khan was seen laughing at his pathetic fielding. This is not what you expect from a good captain. If you can’t admonish him on the field, take action against him later and drop him from the playing XI.

Misbah out of form

Mishab is totally out of form like he was for the rest of his life prior to the T20 WC stint. In the 4th ODI, he was out first ball, but umpire Aleem Dar said, he couldn’t hear the nick and did not give him out. Despite a life Misbah continued his poor form, played a very slow innings and scored 30 odd runs.

Younus Khan’s own batting form is simply pathetic he has not been able to score in any match during this series and yet he has the audacity and the cheek to say, ‘we are learning.’  Learning how to loose? This is pathetic.  Malik was heavily criticized for saying the same thing after loosing a match, ‘we are learning’ and the irony is they also call themselves as professionals.

I am so happy that I don't mind throwing away my wicket

Professionals don’t learn at this level, the deliver and the Pakistani captains consider these international matches as a learning place? It is indeed very pathetic.

During this series Shahid Afridi not only performed well with ball and bat, but he was seen encouraging, cheering, bucking up every single player. In fact he took the lead role which Younus Khan and Misbah are supposed to do. He was going with the bowlers before their run up and talking to them. He was seen congratulating Ajmal, Malik, Akhtar and even Akmal whenever they took a wicket or a catch. He was also seen very upset at Shoaib Akhtar’s lazy running in fetching the ball and clearly gave him the message that he is not happy with his fielding.

shahid-afridi-dama-dum-mast-qalandar

This is how a captain must be leading from the front and not just laughing, smiling and saying I am happy. May be you are trying to cover your embarrassment or may be you are really happy but the Pakistani public and fans are not happy upon loosing 3 matches in a row. The second ODI was given away to the Australians in a platter. After a 95 run opening partnership the team collapsed like a house of cards. Its a shame that none of the batsmen played well.

The question is, is Pakistan going to look for another captain? Or, are they will keep Younus Khan who says he is not a dummy captain, but certainly acting like one. Or, if they decide to replace him, who would be the new captain? There is no one better than Shahid Afridi not just because of his seniority but because of his temperament and his ability to lead from the front and his proven domestic record speaks in volumes. Therefore, it is about time for Pakistan to give Shahid Afridi a chance to lead the team Pakistan in the forth coming T20 World Cup. And Younus Khan is definitely a misfit for T20 and so is Salman Butt.  May be Younus Khan should lead the test side but, if that is going to effect his batting then he should better not lead the test team as well.

What are your views on Younus Khan’s Captaincy, please go ahead and speak your heart out.  For sure, my vote is for Afridi.

The responsibility on Younis's shoulders is enormous, and the expectations of Pakistani fans are greater

A new leader is at the helm in the form of Younis Khan, a generally respected figure. Younis is one of the few stars of Pakistan cricket of the past decade who have not been involved in scandals or disgraceful incidents. Across the world Younis Khan is known as a friendly, caring individual who is deeply patriotic about his country and passionate about his culture, but who does not let that come in the way of respecting other countries and cultures. Although it is too early to speak in favour of or against Younis’s captaincy, he needs to lead with relentless aggression because that is the only way Pakistan can become a top side.

TOP PERFORMERS

The top performers for Pakistan going into this series are Younis and Umar Gul. Whereas

With Shoaib Akhtar's fitness being debatable, Gul goes into this series being Pakistan's main strike bowler

Younis has been Pakistan’s best batsmen for almost 2 years now, Gul has been Pakistan’s best bowler for almost the same duration. Apart from testing Younis’s captaincy skills, this series will also test his character when it comes to batting. Younis only averages 16 against Australia in ODI’s and he needs to improve that figure.
Gul needs to bowl with fire and aggression. If he can extract the right bounce, bowl quick and use reverse swing, he can cause Australia plenty of problems.

LOOK OUT FOR…………….

Will Afridi's batting form return against the 2nd best ODI side?

Shahid Khan Afridi: Afridi has been in good domestic form and made an impact both with bowling and batting in the recent RBS One Day Cup. If Afridi can get into some kind of batting form, he will be a force to be reckoned with in this series. He is going into this series as Pakistan’s most reliable spinner.

Sohail Tanvir: Tanvir got into some form in recent tournaments after consulting Javed Miandad. He started with a bang and he needs to retain the same attitude. If he can bowl with pace he will trouble some Australian batsmen.

Nasir Jamshed: Younis reportedly prefers Ahmed Shahzad over Nasir Jamshed, not least because of obtaining the right hand/left hand opening combination with Salman Butt. However, Nasir has more experience and has impressed to some degree so far in international cricket. He needs to bat with confidence and play his natural game. A good series against Australia will guarantee him selecton in the team at least for another year.

Australia will be banking on captain Clarke, all rounder Symonds, keeper Haddin and medium pacer Bracken.

Symonds is back, and he enjoys ripping Pakistan to shreds

Symonds averages 62 against Pakistan in ODI’s which is his highest average against any Test playing nation. Haddin is averaging 43 this year. Clarke is going into this series as Australia’s best batsman. Bracken is amongst the best ODI bowlers in the world, although against South Africa he was not in his best form.

A lot of Pakistan fans are predicting a series win for Pakistan, and some are also saying that Pakistan will end up winning 2 matches. Australia cannot be underestimated and in fact the LS Management is doubting Pakistan’s potential, although they acknowledge this potential. Players like Hauritz and Shane Watson have the ability to turn matches around single handedly. Hauritz was the Man of the Match in the last match against South Africa, so he is in form.

The biggest advantage to Australia which is also Pakistan’s biggest disadvantage, is that some consistency can be expected from the Aussies. Clarke can bank on knowing the limits to what his players can and cannot do. Younis will be less sure of his team’s potential, but his job is just to offer support to his players and persuade them to play positive and aggressive cricket.

Who is the next legend in the making?

Pakistan cricket thrives on uncertainty. The fans expect the unexpected. That has been the pulse of Pakistan cricket for a long time. Today Pakistan is devoid of legends like Wasim, Waqar, Imran and Miandad. The problem I have with Younis and Qadir’s management is that we are only seeing 1 or 2 new players in this squad. Barring Nasir Jamshed, Ahmad Shahzad and Fawad Alam, all of these players have been tried and tested. When his career ends Younis will probably be considered a legend, but ODI cricket has not been his forte until very recently. So, none of the players in this squad are capable of emulating the feats of Saeed Anwar, Miandad or Wasim Akram.

However, playing under a new captain and in home-like conditions, still offers limited hope to Pakistanis. Younis will be in the spotlight because he has supported playing these tried and tested players. Now it is upto Younis Khan to create some magic and create history by leading his team to a series victory against a formidable side, a win which will go in history books as the revival of Pakistan cricket. A loss is expected, but a win will transform the morale of a bruised nation, and an emotionally battered people. This is Pakistan’s chance to make a difference.