Well Pitched - a cricket blog

Kevin Pietersen Retires from ODIs and T20s

2012-05-31T15:49:00.000+04:00

The Summer of 96

2012-05-17T15:19:00.000+04:00

I'm not sure how many of you remember the Lombard Challenge from 1996, but those of you who do will remember it as the U-15 cricket world cup that was held in England during the summer of 96. Called the Lombard Challenge U-15 Cup, the competition was contested by 10 teams including all the 9 test playing nations at the time and Canada.

I was in Pakistan for my summer holidays at the time when the tournament was being played and I remember watching all the games Live on Star Sports. It was quite interesting to watch the potential future Pakistan stars competing at a global stage. What made it even more exciting was that the Pakistan team was quite dominant and from what I recall, it won most, if not all, of its matches.

The final of the tournament was played between Pakistan and India, which gave the entire tournament a totally different edge.

I wonder why It has never been held again.

But that is not what I wonder the most about. I really wonder what went wrong during the summer of 96 that none of the players from Pakistan's Lombard Challenge squad that represented Pakistan in international cricket managed to become a permanent feature in the team.

There were 7 players in Pakistan's Lombard Challenge squad that made it to the top level - Faisal Iqbal, Bazid Khan, Shoaib Malik, Hasan Raza, Taufeeq Umar, Yasir Arafat, and Kamran Akmal.

Something must have happened during that summer of 96 that none of these players have lived up to their "potential".

The international careers of Bazid Khan and Hasan Raza seem over. Although with the way the recent selections happened, one can't rule out a comeback for anyone! One can argue that neither of them were given a decent stint with the international team to establish themselves - Bazid played only 1 test and 5 ODIs, while Hasan played 7 tests and 16 ODIs.

Bazid's last ODI innings was a half century against Bangladesh in 2008, so it does seem unfortunate that he wasn't selected again.

Hasan was dropped from the test team in 2002 after scoring fifties in both innings in a test against Australia, only to make a comeback in the series against England in 2005, which wasn't too successful for him. His international appearances are dispersed over a long period and he was never really allowed to settle into the team. Maybe if he was given a proper run he could have translated his domestic success to international cricket as well.

Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal had long stints with the international team with both of them being regulars for almost a decade. At present though, one of them is barely hanging on to a place in one format, while the other is completely out of favor.

Shoaib Malik captained Pakistan in all three formats of the game before he was removed following major dressing room politics. He got involved in spats with senior players, never came across as a confident leader, and was regularly accused of being a puppet of then PCB Chairman, Nasim Ashraf. Malik did make it as a successful limited overs batsman and won many ODIs and T20s for Pakistan, but today he is not even a shadow of what he used to be. He was never considered a test player, and now finds himself out of the ODI side as well. He is still part of the Pakistan T20 squad, yet it might be his last few days unless he produces something magical.

Kamran was the preferred wicket keeper for best part of the last 10 years in all forms of the game, however for the last year or so he has been on the sidelines with the PCB trying out various new players behind the stumps. Being constantly embroiled in spot fixing allegations and bad form behind the stumps seem to have ended Kamran's career a lot earlier than he would have liked.

Taufeeq Umar had a very promising start to his test career and forged a strong opening partnership with Imran Farhat during their early days in international cricket. Even though he was averaging above 40 in tests, a string of low scores led to his ouster from the team in 2005. He made a comeback at the end of 2010 against South Africa and since then has been a permanent feature in the test team.

For how long though?

Afaq Raheem, a prolific domestic opener, has just been selected in the test squad, and there have been increasing calls for Azhar Ali to open in place of Taufeeq to fit in another middle order batsman. So it might not be long before Taufeeq finds himself on the sidelines like the rest of his 1996 compatriots.

Faisal Iqbal and Yasir Arafat have just made comebacks to the test and T20 squads respectively.

Faisal, like the rest of his team mates from 1996, had a very promising start to his international career. Always considered a test specialist, he showed his potential with half centuries in his debut series. His real worth came to light in an innings of 80 odd against Australia against an attack that comprised of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne. The way he took the attack to Warne demonstrated what a great batsman he could have become, before poor scores resulted in his axing.

He made a comeback to the team in 2006 in the series against India after a very successful domestic season and proved the selectors right scoring a century in his first game back in the test in Karachi. He remained a permanent feature in the test team till 2010, before being dropped again after some low scores. Now, two years later, he is back in favor and has made yet another comeback after a successful domestic season.

Why Yasir Arafat is back in the team is beyond my understanding. He has constantly failed for Pakistan and has never been able to translate his domestic or county cricket success to international cricket.

There must be something about that summer of 96 that all the players who made it from that Lombard Challenge squad to representing Pakistan at the international level have still not been able to cement their places in the team. Barring Yasir Arafat, all of them made reasonably sound starts to their international careers, faltered and got sacked at certain points of their career, and made several comebacks. While some of them may have played their last international cricket match, some are still on their comeback trail.

With all of them around the age of 30, some of them have unfortunately faced premature ends to their international careers; while those that are part of the team are still not considered established international cricketers.

Getting my head around Pakistan's three squads...

2012-05-12T18:31:00.000+04:00

No PCB press conference is ever held without some heads turning and shouting WTF!

It all started well with Misbah stepping down from the T20 captaincy, and Zaka Ashraf announcing Mohammad Hafeez as the new captain of Pakistan's T20 team.

Well played by the PCB and Misbah in ensuring that it happened the right way with Misbah "stepping down" and not being pushed out.

I won't deny that I was rooting for Afridi to take over the captaincy once again but I guess the selectors wanted to look ahead at the future. With Hafeez taking over the T20 captaincy, he is also being set up for taking over the leadership in all 3 formats of the game once Misbah moves on. Which will definitely happen in the next year or two at most.

It is up to Hafeez now to demonstrate his leadership potential, which all of us have heard of, and make that role of captain in all three formats his very own going forward.

Till now, all was well and good. But then came the announcements of the three squads.

There were stories going around that the PCB, selectors, and coaching staff were contemplating going for three different teams. And go for different they did.

The only common theme in all three squads is that each squad comprises of 16 players, and only 4 players are present in all 3 squads: Mohammad Hafeez, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, and MOHAMMAD SAMI !!!

Great that he's made a comeback, but man how does one pacer go from being out of favour for so long to being in favour for all 3 formats. Something that only 3 regular international players have managed.

The selectors made a number of changes with some new faces being introduced, several players earning a comeback, and a few being dropped. Its a bit of a khichdi really, a total hotch potch.

I don't mean to undermine the PCB selectors. I'm sure it was hard work, and I'm sure that long hours were spent discussing the composition of the T20, ODI, and Test squads. But I really don't remember the last time when so many players made a comeback to the team at the same time!

T20 SQUAD
Retained: Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Umar Akmal, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Malik, Hammad Azam
Dropped: Misbah Ul Haq, Awais Zia, Wahab Riaz, Asad Shafiq, Abdur Rehman, Aizaz Cheema, Adnan Akmal, Imran Farhat, Junaid Khan
Comebacks: Khalid Latif, Ahmed Shehzad, Yasir Arafat, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Sami, Nasir Jamshed
New Faces: Shakeel Ansar, Raza Hasan, Haris Sohail

This is what is called a major overhaul!

As many as 9 players have been dropped from the T20 squad that took on England. Not only is there a new captain, there are 3 new faces, and as many as 6 players making a comeback to Pakistan's T20 team.

Shoaib Malik's retention upsets me considering how he has continuously failed at the international level. But to be fair, he did seem to come back to form near the end of the T20 series against England, and he performed reasonably well in the Faysal Bank Super Eight T-20 Cup (FB T20) while leading his Sialkot Stallions to the title.

Out of the 9 players who have been dropped, Awais Zia and Asad Shafiq are questionable. He didn't set the stage on fire in his debut series against England, however he did seem to have good potential. It really doesn't make sense to drop someone after just 1 series.

Besides Khalif Latif, who was the leading run scorer in the FB T20, the other comebacks do not really make sense to me.

I am a big supporter of Ahmed Shehzad and I think he is a future Pakistan opener, however unless the Bangladesh Premier League was part of the selection criteria, there is no basis for Shehzad's return. Other batsmen, namely Imran Nazir, Asad Shafiq, and Shahzaib Hasan scored more runs in the FB T20. Moreover, Imran Nazir and Shahzaib had decent outings in the BPL as well.

Yasir Arafat, Sohail Tanvir, and Mohammad Sami have done nothing of note in domestic T20 competitions to warrant a comeback into the team. Sami was outstanding in the BPL, Tanvir was a star in the South African T20 competition, and Arafat has been a consistent performer in the English county scene; but if foreign competitions are criteria for selection then the selectors need to make that clear.

Despite the comebacks being questionable, the three new faces in the T20 team are all well deserved. Haris Sohail and Shakeel Ansar, both from the Sialkot Stallions were among the top 5 run scorers in the FB T20. The duo seem as talented as the bats from talent cricket the cricket equipment specialists.

Shakeel has been picked as the wicket keeper, and his century, which was the only one in the FB T20, showed that he can bat. Even though his first class and List A record does not leave much to be desired, his T20 record is impressive. But he is 33 years old so the selectors aren't exactly looking at a future prospect here.

Haris Sohail performed consistently for the Stallions in the FB T20, and has been a solid performer at the domestic level for the last 5 years. He has an exemplary first class record averaging close to 47, while his T20 record, with an average over a 100 is phenomenal. At 23, he is definitely one for the future.

Raza Hasan has been on the fringes of national selection for quite some time now, and the 19 year old left arm spinner is also considered as the long term first choice spinner for Pakistan's ODI and test squads. He has displaced Abdur Rehman in the T20 team and with time he will get promoted to the other formats as well if he puts up impressive performances in international cricket. His call to the national team could not have been better timed with him finishing at the top of the wicket taking tally in the FB T20.

The PCB selectors have picked a young T20 team, obviously keeping the World T20 in mind, however it is largely inexperienced as well.

It will be interesting to see the combination they go in with considering the team has as many as 5 openers in Hafeez, Jamshed, Shehzad, Latif, and Shakeel.

My XI: 1. Ahmed Shehzad 2. Shakeel Ansar 3. Mohammad Hafeez 4. Umar Akmal 5. Haris Sohail 6. Hammad Azam 7. Shahid Afridi 8. Umar Gul 9. Mohammad Sami 10. Saeed Ajmal 11. Raza Hasan

ODI SQUAD
Retained: Misbah-ul Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed, Shahid Afridi, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman, Asad Shafiq, Aizaz Cheema, Azhar Ali
Dropped: Hammad Azam, Wahab Riaz
Comebacks: Imran Farhat, Mohammad Sami
New Faces: Rahat Ali

By in large, Pakistan's ODI squad is what it was in the Asia Cup and the series against England prior to that, with just a few changes, which really do not make much sense.

Wahab Riaz has hardly been played by Pakistan in recent times, but he's always been considered as good potential, but suddenly he finds himself out of favour. The person replacing him is Mohammad Sami, who once again did not do much in last season's List A cricket in the domestic scene.

Imran Farhat's inclusion and Hammad Azam's exclusion is completely nonsensical! Farhat was dropped for the Asia Cup on the back of repeated poor performances and yet he comes back for the series against Sri Lanka. On what basis!?

And poor Hammad Azam. Every chance that he has got, he has shown his potential. With Pakistan missing genuine allrounders, Hammad is one player who can be groomed to fill in the gap left open by Abdul Razzaq, and which would be left even more widely open in a few years once Afridi hangs up his boots.

Yet the selectors have gone with an ODI squad without him.

Rahat Ali must have impressed Dave Whatmore and the selectors during the fast bowlers camp that was recently held. He also had an impressive first class season picking up 61 wickets at an average of 19 finishing the season as one of the leading wicket takers.

But that was first class cricket, which should get him place in the test team, not List A cricket!

My XI: 1. Mohammad Hafeez 2. Nasir Jamshed 3. Younis Khan 4. Umar Akmal 5. Misbah Ul Haq 6. Shahid Afridi 7. Sarfraz Ahmed 8. Umar Gul 9. Mohammad Sami 10. Saeed Ajmal 11. Aizaz Cheema

TEST SQUAD
Retained: Misbah-ul Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Adnan Akmal, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman, Junaid Khan, Aizaz Cheema
Dropped: Umar Akmal, Imran Farhat, Mohammad Talha, Wahab Riaz
Comebacks: Faisal Iqbal, Mohammad Sami
New Faces: Afaq Raheem, Ayub Dogar

With the way Pakistan's test team has performed over the past 18 months, there really was no need for any changes to the test squad, yet the selectors thought otherwise.

But why drop Umar Akmal, who is the future of Pakistan's batting? Sure he has not been part of the starting XI in tests with Asad Shafiq being preferred over him, but Umar's presence in the squad as the reserve batsman is imperative to his development as a player.

Faisal Iqbal makes a comeback based on his recent impressive domestic performance, which was one of his most successful seasons with 1013 runs at an average of 53.3. Faisal's 5 centuries during the past season were second only to Usman Salahuddin's 7, and the last time Faisal came into the Pakistan team on the back of so many centuries, he scored another one against India in Karachi.

However The likes of Fawad Alam (1062 runs ar 64.5), Haris Sohail (1184 runs at 49.33), and Yasir Hameed (1124 runs at 46.8) would be disappointed at being overlooked in favor of Faisal Iqbal.

But the man who would be most disappointed is Usman Salahuddin. With 1401 first class runs, he was the second highest run scorer in the past domestic season, and his average of 77.8 is a good 15 runs more than the next best average during the season. Moreover, no one scored as many first class hundreds as Usman did during the 2011-12 home season.

Yet he finds himself on the sidelines, while Afaq Raheem and Ayub Dogar make the squad for the first time ever.

Afaq Raheem was the the only one who scored more first class runs than Usman did during the past season, with 1420 runs at an average of 54.6, but he also played 6 more innings than Usman did. There is no doubt that Raheem deserves his places in the squad on the back of his domestic performance, but I believe even Usman does.

Considering that Usman is only 21, he should be considered as one for the future, especially over the likes of Ayub Dogar, who despite being the 3rd highest run scorer behing Raheem and Usman, is 32 and not really one that Pakistan can build their test future around.

This is the only format where I think Mohammad Sami deserves to make a comeback. His 56 first class wickets at an average of 16.6 not only resulted in one of his best ever domestic seasons, but also ensured that he was the best experience fast bowler on the domestic circuit during the past one year.

But he doesn't take international wickets! A bowling average of 50 is hardly one to be proud of, but I really hope that Sami can set his record right going forward. This will surely be his last chance.

My XI: 1. Mohammad Hafeez 2. Taufeeq Umar 3. Azhar Ali 4. Younis Khan 5. Misbah Ul Haq 6. Asad Shafiq 7. Adnan Akmal 8. Umar Gul 9. Mohammad Sami 10. Abdur Rehman 11. Saeed Ajmal

Shoaib Malik, you bloody liar !

2012-05-06T15:59:00.001+04:00

A few days ago, it was reported that Shoaib Malik was hopeful of making a comeback to the Pakistan team for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka; and keeping that in mind he had turned down county offers.

He also claimed that the counties had required that he sign a contract to choose county over country in case he was invited for Pakistan duty.

I doubted that any county contract would have that clause.

Just two days since Malik claimed to have those offers, Hampshire and Essex have come out and said that they never made any offer to Shoaib Malik!

Oh Malik, how you have been caught red handed trying to fool the public, the selectors, and the board.

What a liar.

So its come to this where Shoaib Malik will do anything to get back into the good books of the people that matter? He will resort to lies and dirty tactics to try and win the people's favour, and that of the selectors?

Malik was in miserable form throughout last year. After he was dropped and brought back on Misbah's request for the series in England, he failed terribly.

There is no reason for Malik to be in the Pakistan squad. There is no room for him there either.

No reason because of his utterly shit international form - I really don't think that domestic form counts for anything if you keep failing continuously in international cricket.

And no room because of his continuous lies, manipulation, and politicking.

Every single senior played had a problem with him when he first became captain. Yousuf, Afridi, Razzaq, Shoaib Akhtar, and even Younis Khan who doesn't generally get involved in petty politics had issues with Shoaib Malik's presence as the team leader.

Not because he was a junior cricketer leading them on the field, but because he was a spineless idiot who became Nasim Ashraf's puppet and almost destroyed the careers of Mohammad Yousuf and Abdul Razzaq.

It is no secret that he has time and again returned to the international fold on the back of political pressure. Why else would an out of form cricketer be selected repeatedly.

Enough is enough now.

With all this tainted history, and the recent lies in an effort to manipulate the selectors and fans minds, Shoaib Malik needs to be kept away from the Pakistan cricket team for good.

Please!

Super Tuk Tuk Man

2012-04-29T10:25:00.003+04:00

Virat Kohli - A Boy amongst the Giants?

2012-04-03T15:54:00.007+04:00

He averages over 50 in ODIs. He has 11 ODI centuries. 10 of those centuries have come in victories. He averages over 65 in ODI wins. And he is only 23 years old, and was a year old when his team mate Sachin Tendulkar made his international debut...

Virat Kohli has not even completed 4 full years in international cricket, yet he already boasts of achievements that some of the one day games greats did not even achieve.

Kohli already has as many ODI centuries as Viv Richards, Gordon Greenidge, and Aravinda De Silva managed in their entire careers. He has already scored more ODI centuries than Gautam Gambhir, Matthew Hayden, Inzamam Ul Haq, Kevin Pietersen, Javed Miandad, and Dean Jones to name a few.

One can't even say that he has been bashing the minnows on batting friendly pitches as he has scored ODI hundreds against Australia, England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand. Both at home, and away.

What is remarkable about all this is that he is still at the initial stage of his ODI career having established himself as a sure starter in the Indian starting XI just two years ago.

The start of his career has been so tremendous that he is currently among the only five batsman in the world who have a 50+ average in ODIs.

In this short period of time, Kohli has shown India and the rest of the world why he is such a vital player in the Indian team.

He is a proven match winner already and he recently demonstrated how big a match winner he is with probably two of the best ODI knocks you will ever see - the 133* (86) against Sri Lanka at Hobart and the 183 (148) against Pakistan at Mirpur.

Both the knocks came in knock out games, which Kohli single handedly won for India. The fact that India still didn't make the finals can be put down to fate, which might have deserted the Indian cricket team in recent times, but has been doing wonders for Kohli.

Such is Kohli's dominance in Indian victories that his batting average increases by 15 runs in matches that India has won. He has the fifth best average among all ODI cricketers in victories, placing him along side the likes of Brian Lara and Michael Bevan.

All this just makes me wonder what Kohli would have achieved by the time he hangs up his boots 15 years from now. The possibilities are endless.

There is no doubt that sustaining this kind of form over 10 to 15 years is something that has only been achieved by the giants of the game, but who can deny the fact that Virat Kohli is well on his way to becoming one of the giants of the game.

In an event hosted by Mukesh Ambani to celebrate Sachin Tendulkar's 100th international 100, Salman Khan asked Sachin who he thinks could break this record.

Sachin's response was Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are the two people who could. He probably mentioned Rohit only to please his fellow Mumbaiker...

But for Kohli, all I can say is - 88 more to go boy.

England not learning much in Asia

2012-03-29T12:27:00.001+04:00

Afridi punches a fan at Karachi Airport

2012-03-24T13:13:00.001+04:00

Do We Believe Mohammad Amir's Story?

2012-03-20T10:48:00.004+04:00

I want to. I really want to. I want to believe that Mohammad Amir was an innocent 18 year old boy who was set up by his friend and captain, and his fixer.

But I can't.

There are a lot of things about Mohammad Amir's interview that are bothering me, and I feel like we are being told a story that is not true. I feel like we, the Pakistan cricket fans, are being lied to again.

Since the interview aired, I've heard a wide variety of thoughts from the general public and Twitterati. A section feels sorry for the kid and believe he was truly set up, and another section believes he is lying.

Many also feel that this is just the start of his rehabilitation and image building plan that has been put in place by his well wishers.

That it may be, but let me start with why I am having a hard time believing this story of a set up.

Why Now?

Even those who believe Amir have been asking this question since last night. Why now? Why tell the world that you were set up now when you had 18 months to do it? Why stay quiet all this time?

The day the story broke in the News of the World, there were senior men in the Pakistan dressing room like Yawar Saeed, and many back in Pakistan, like Ijaz Butt, who had repeatedly requested Amir to be honest and tell them the truth.

But Amir remained quiet. Why?

I understand that at first he denied all accusations because he panicked and then finally pleaded guilty after he was guided appropriately. That's fine.

But then why remain quiet after pleading guilty? Why not tell your story then? Wouldn't that have been the right time to tell the world that you were set up?

I am not sure if there is some law that does not allow those who plead guilty to turn into a witness in a case, but if there isn't then why didn't Amir just become a witness in this whole spot fixing hoopla? His story would have surely helped the prosecution!

So why now Amir?

Why Couldn't he Trust anyone else besides Salman Butt?

Amir says that the reason why he chose to remain quiet was because he did not know who to trust since the person he trusted the most had just betrayed him. He hadn't even told this story to his family according to him.

Did he really not trust anyone else more than Salman?

Wasim Akram is his self proclaimed idol. He has talked about calling Wasim bhai on many occasions for advice. Wasim bhai was also the one who spotted him in a camp and groomed him whenever he got the chance.

So how difficult was it to pick the phone up and tell Wasim bhai how badly you had been trapped?

Waqar Younis was the team coach. Waqar had been working with Amir for many months and surely Waqar would have taught him a thing or two about bowling and how to conduct oneself considering Waqar had also burst into the scene as an 18 year old. I'm also quite sure that Waqar would have developed some sort of relationship with Pakistan's rising star in the dressing room. So why was it so hard to sit down with Waqar and explain to him how you had been set up?

Aqib Javed was also with the team. Aqib must have seen Amir during his time with U19 team and the NCA as well. Aqib is known to have a good relationship with all players, and in particular with the juniors. Aqib has been one of the most respected members of the team's coaching staff in recent years. Why couldn't Amir trust him?

Moreover, before Salman Butt, Amir had played under the captaincy of Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, and Shahid Afridi during his 14 month cricket career. Were Pakistan's senior most cricketers not trustworthy for Amir?

Where the F&*$ is Ali?

There is enough evidence in the text messages exchanged between Amir and Ali for the authorities to implicate Ali in a spotfixing case.

Here is a man who was trying to corrupt a young cricketer and he is no where to be found? Whose failure is that? His numbers and texts were found on Amir's phone so why didn't anyone try and get hold of him? Amir says Ali was Salman Butt's friend whom he had met in Dubai. How hard could it be to trace him? Why did no one try and question Ali in the court?

Amir has openly accused Ali of being complicit with Salman Butt and Mazhar Majeed in setting him up. If Amir was fighting this case in court, Ali would be a key witness wouldn't he?

Now I am no psychiatrist but if you take a look at the interview again, then when the first time Atherton mentions Ali, Amir changes his posture, raises the pitch of his voice, and then speaks about him. Now it could be that Amir got angry, hence the change in body language, but to me it just seemed like he was lying.

Did He Really Not See the Setup Coming?

Now we all know that he is an 18-19 year old boy, but he is not a dimwit.

Amir himself said he was curious to find out what Ali wanted from him, which is why he initially entertained his text messages and asked him what he wanted, before telling Ali that he would not do it.

Amir knew that he had done nothing wrong with respect to what Ali had asked him, so why did he get scared of ICC getting a hold of those text messages? The ICC didn't get hold of them but that is what Mazhar Majeed told him to set him up according to Amir.

I find it hard to believe that an inquisitive person like Amir who has enough sense to probe Ali to find out what he wants, and has enough sense to tell Salman Butt twice that he would not get involved in fixing, doesn't have the sense to say to Mazhar that it doesn't matter if the ICC has got hold of the text messages, they can't do anything to him because he hasn't done anything wrong.

He could have very easily walked away from Mazhar's car in the parking lot after saying that he would not do it. But he didn't.

According to Amir he panicked and he really thought he was in trouble. But how could one be in trouble when you haven't taken any money from a bookie / fixer, nor have you underperformed?

If you have not seen the interview then please go here and take a look and decide for yourself if you want to believe Mohammad Amir or not.

Whether its true or not, Michael Atherton has done a wonderful job getting us this story. And despite the fact that I have my doubts about the credibility of the story, I do feel sorry for Mohammad Amir, who I believe suffered from a generally corrupt dressing room environment.

He was just at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Atherton ends the interview with a very pertinent question: will cricket ever want Mohammad Amir back?

Its a difficult question. A part of me wants to see him in those green colours so badly, but another part of me is frustrated that I am still being lied to.

But does it really matter that Amir has lied in this interview? Or what matters more is that fact that he has served his punishment in jail, he is serving his ICC ban, he has learnt his lesson and will never fix again, and that he has apologized endlessly to all his fans?

India Thrash Pakistani Pace Bowlers

2012-03-19T11:47:00.001+04:00

Innings of a Lifetime from Kohli

2012-03-18T21:23:00.001+04:00

Mohammad Hafeez & Nasir Jamshed Rock India's Boat

2012-03-18T14:52:00.001+04:00

Pakistan vs India is Here Again!

2012-03-18T10:58:00.002+04:00

In an hour now...

Concept by Shakeel Hasan

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-17T15:00:00.001+04:00

Just a day to go ....

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-13T23:09:00.001+04:00

COMING SOON!!!

Title Credit: Shakeel Hasan

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-12T14:35:00.000+04:00

6 days to go ...

Idea suggested by Shakeel Hasan

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-11T11:23:00.003+04:00

A week to go!

Conceptualized by Khizer Usmani

Asia Cup Facts, Figures, and Random Info

2012-03-10T17:50:00.006+04:00

The 11th edition of the Asia Cup gets under way tomorrow in Dhaka with the hosts Bangladesh taking on Pakistan.

The last time the tournament was held in Bangladesh, in 2000, Pakistan were crowned the Asia Champions. Incidentally, that is the only time that Pakistan has won the Asia Cup with India winning the competition 5 times, and Sri Lanka 4 times.

That is quite surprising considering that 6 of the Asia Cups were held between the mid 80s and year 2000, which was a period of Pakistan's dominance over India and Sri Lanka. Yet Pakistan has won it only once.

Here are some more interesting facts and figures, and some random info, regarding the Asia Cup:

There has been plenty of confusion regarding the name of the tournament. The first three editions of the tournament were associated with cigarette brands and were called "The Rothmans Asia Cup", "John Player's Gold Leaf Trophy", and "Wills Asia Cup". This was followed by an association with beverages (since ofcourse smoking was considered harmful to health and cricket) and there were two editions that were known as "Pepsi Asia Cup". The other 5 editions have just been called the Asia Cup.
India and Pakistan, which are by far the two largest cricket nations in the world, let alone Asia, have hosted the Asia Cup only once each. India in 1990, Pakistan in 2008.
The UAE has hosted the tournament twice and it has also participated in it twice. However it did not participate in the ones it hosted. Weird shit.
Sanath Jayasuriya has an exceptional record in Asia Cup games. He is the only batsman who has scored over a 1,000 runs in Asia cup matches, he has the most number of 100s (6), and in 24 Asia cup games he averages 53.04 and has a strike rate of 102.5!
The highest score by a batsman in an Asia Cup game is 144, by Younis Khan against Hong Kong in 2004.
Muttiah Muralitharan's 30 wickets is the record for most wickets taken in Asia Cup games.
Pakistan's 385-7 against Bangladesh in the 2010 edition of the Asia Cup is the highest total by a team in Asia Cup games.
Misbah-Ul-Haq was the Pakistan Vice Captain during the Asia Cup in 2008, he was out of the team during the Asia Cup in 2010, and he is the Captain of the team in this edition. #strangewaysofPakistancricket
6 captains have led India in Asia Cups, 8 have led Sri Lanka, and 7 have led Bangladesh. For Pakistan, however, one can field a best XI team of Asia Cup Captains. I'll try and give it a batting order as well: 1. Saeed Anwar 2. Rameez Raja 3. Zaheer Abbas 4. Javed Miandad 5. Inzamam-Ul-Haq 6. Misbah-Ul-Haq 7. Imran Khan 8. Shahid Afridi 9. Shoaib Malik 10. Moin Khan 11. Abdul Qadir
That is some batting line up. A bit weak on the pace bowling front, but then we seem to be relying on spinners these days anyway.
This should come as no surprise, but Shahid Afridi has the best strike rate amongst batsmen in Asia Cup games. He has scored his 388 Asia Cup runs in 13 innings at a strike rate of 139! Afridi even has a decent Asia Cup average of 43.11.

Here's hoping to more of the same from Afridi during this Asia Cup, and some more facts, figures, and randomness from the competition that gets going tomorrow.

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-10T14:25:00.004+04:00

Asia Cup starts tomorrow!

8 days to go for Pakistan vs India...

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-08T12:58:00.000+04:00

10 Days to go...

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-07T12:25:00.000+04:00

11 days to go ...

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-06T15:47:00.001+04:00

12 days to go ...

Gearing up for Pakistan vs India

2012-03-05T13:09:00.001+04:00

13 days to go ...

How Do You Bring Balance back into the Pakistan Team?

2012-03-03T18:13:00.006+04:00

What is an ideal ODI combination?

The answer is not as simple as it is for a test combination. A test match is a game for specialists and most teams, if not all, go in with the age old formula of 6 batsmen, a wicketkeeper, and 4 bowlers.

In ODIs you need atleast 5 bowlers, and you also need a 6th bowler if one of your key bowlers goes for plenty. Going in with only 5 bowlers is a huge risk in an ODI.

And your ODI wicketkeeper has to know how to bat really well.

Pakistan has always been blessed with quality allrounders that have always ensured that Pakistan fields a strong ODI unit. From the days of Imran Khan to Wasim Akram, Abdul Razzaq, Azhar Mahmood, Shahid Afridi, and Shoaib Malik, Pakistan has never had a problem with the balance of their ODI team.

Till recently.

Besides the absence of a quality allrounder like Abdul Razzaq, Pakistan is also suffering from the fact that there aren't any wicket keepers around with the batting ability that the likes of Moin Khan, Rashif Latif, and Kamran Akmal used to have.

We all know that Pakistan faced an issue with the balance of their team during the 4 ODIs that they lost to England.

Asking an out of form Shoaib Malik to fill an allrounders position at number 7 or 8, and making Umar Akmal keep wicket did not work to solve this balance issue in the series against England.

Misbah and Dave Whatmore need to address this issue before the Asia Cup gets underway and they need to know what their best XI is before they land in Dhaka.

What XI would you play?

The Openers

Despite Mohammad Hafeez' relatively bad form with the bat, he has to be one of the first few names you pencil in on your team sheet. No doubt about that.

Who partners him is the more important question. Do you go in with Azhar Ali who knocked a well made century while opening in the last ODI against England? Or do you go in with the more aggressive Nasir Jamshed? Or do you give Sarfraz Ahmed a chance to do what he has done for PIA in the domestic scene?

I would go for Nasir Jamshed. Simply because he can belt the leather like the best in the business, and if he gets going he can take a lot of the pressure of Hafeez who can then look to bat through the innings.

The Middle Order

Now here is the tricky bit. Considering that Pakistan needs to go in with two allrounders and a wicket keeper from 6-8 in order to ensure six bowling options, which three batsmen do you go with for positions 3 to 5?

Pakistan is kind of spoilt for choices in their 15-man squad for the Asia Cup with the experience duo of Misbah and Younis Khan, along with the young and talented brigade of Umar Akmal, Asad Shafiq, and Azhar Ali.

One can't really leave Misbah out considering he is the captain, though if it were up to me I would not have him anywhere near the ODI team.

Can you really leave Younis Khan and all that experience out? Can you drop the extremely talented Umar Akmal who has been Pakistan's best batsman in recent times? Can you ignore the rapidly developing Asad Shafiq who has played some promising knocks in recent times?

The only one you can bench really is Azhar Ali. Given the way he plays, if he doesn't open, he doesn't fit in anywhere else in the ODI XI.

So which three from Misbah, Younis, Akmal, and Shafiq do you play?

You can't play all four unless you make Umar keep wickets, which we all know is not the right thing to do. If you play all four and make Sarfraz keep then that leaves space for only four bowlers with Hafeez being the fifth. And as I said, playing with only five bowlers in an ODI is a big risk.

I am tempted to play Asad Shafiq, but I also do not want to leave Younis Khan out. He is a valuable member of the team and his experience is needed in the middle. Shafiq is being groomed for the number 3 position, and it will be his for the taking once Younis Khan moves on, but for the now the young talent would have to make way for the experienced war horse.

Umar Akmal needs to bat at four and no lower. Plus with him cushioned between Younis and Misbah, it might just be the ideal position for him to bat on. He needs to be given more chances to build an innings. He's being wasted at 5 or 6.

The Allrounders

There is no question about Shahid Afridi's position in the team. Besides Hafeez, he is probably the only other player who walks in automatically in my books.

It is high time that Misbah and the Pakistan team management places its trust in the burgeoning talent of Hammad Azam. He has shown glimpses of his promise in the little chances that he has had thus far. Its time to give him an elongated run and allow him to make the position left vacant by Abdul Razzaq, his very own.

He is only 20 and faces a long career ahead of him. There is no point carrying him around in the squad if you are not going to play him. And there is also no point if you are going to play him at number 8 and not trust him with the ball.

Give him a proper run.

The Wicketkeeper

The selectors have entrusted Sarfraz Ahmed the job for the Asia Cup, but have also given him an ultimatum to score runs. I wonder how much pressure that would put on this former U19 captain.

The Bowlers

Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul are sure starters, with the third spot a toss up between Wahab, Cheema, and Rehman.

Playing Rehman won't be a bad ploy considering there will be spinning tracks in Bangladesh, but then just one genuine pacer in Umar Gul might be a risk. If it does happen then we will surely see Hafeez opening the bowling with Gul, and Hammad Azam employing his medium pace in the middle overs.

So here is my Pakistan XI for the Asia Cup. I believe a more balanced team than the one Misbah played during the series against England.

1. Mohammad Hafeez 2. Nasir Jamshed 3. Younis Khan 4. Umar Akmal 5. Misbah Ul Haq 6. Hammad Azam 7. Shahid Afridi 8. Sarfraz Ahmed 9. Umar Gul 10. Saeed Ajmal 11. Abdul Rehman

What is yours?

Asia Cup Squad: Overall positive but why Nasir and no Shehzad?

2012-03-03T12:47:00.007+04:00

When Mohammad Ilyas announced his resignation following the just concluded series between Pakistan and England, I was a content man. Totally satisfied. Not because Mohammad Ilyas was not going to be part of the PCB selection committee going forward, but because his resignation signalled the end of Imran Farhat's career.

It is no secret that Farhat's inclusion in Pakistan's squads has been due to dear daddy in law. And with no daddy in law selecting the team now, Farhat was bound to be dropped.

And that was made official moments ago when Pakistan's new chief selector, Iqbal Qasim, announced Pakistan's squad for the upcoming Asia Cup.

It was double satisfaction for the Pakistan cricket fans as not only Imran Farhat, but even Shoaib Malik, was axed.

No Imran Farhat. No Shoaib Malik.

God I must be dreaming!

When was the last time a Pakistan squad was picked without either of these two?

I really don't remember.

But Good riddance. And finally!

I wouldn't lie, I was expecting this, but I had to see the list of 15 twice to ensure that I was not being deceived.

With both these parchis out of the team, Nasir Jamshed making his comeback, and Adnan Akmal making way for Sarfraz Ahmed for the wicketkeeping duties, I believe Iqbal Qasim and Co. have done a good first job.

All positive changes I believe.

Sarfraz should have always been behind the stumps for the ODIs and I still don't know why he was dropped for the England series when he had a decent outing against the Sri Lankans in December. Adnan is good for the tests no doubt, but for the ODIs, a more aggressive Sarfraz definitely makes more sense.

I don't mind the inclusion of Nasir Jamshed (anyone but Farhat really) considering he provides aggressive starts at the top of the innings.

But I do wonder what the criteria was for his selection.

Considering that the Asia Cup will be played in Bangladesh, the selectors might have given some weight to the performances of the Pakistani players that took part in the recently concluded Bangladesh Premier League.

But then if that was the case, there were three Pakistani openers that did better than Nasir Jamshed did in the BPL.

I will never advocate the inclusion of Kamran Akmal in any Pakistan team. Imran Nazir might be good enough to still play T20s for Pakistan, but I feel he's too unreliable for ODIs. But Ahmed Shehzad is Pakistan's future, and I don't understand how he can continued to be ignored.

His performance in the BPL speaks for itself.

Well alright, maybe the BPL performance is not enough evidence, but someone please tell me what he did wrong to get dropped from the team in the first place.

I heard of some disciplinary issues. So are you telling me that there is no one in the Pakistan team management that can discipline this 20 year old kid? Seriously?

The National One Day Championship in Pakistan hasn't happened yet this season, but one can always compare Nasir and Shehzad's performances in the domestic T20 and first class games.

During the current 2011-12 domestic season, Ahmed Shehzad has outperformed Nasir Jamshed in every competition, besides the Pentangular Cup. If you include the BPL among these, then one can see that Shehzad has done better than Nasir in four domestic tournaments out of five.

Then what made the selectors go for Nasir and not Shehzad?

It is not that Nasir has done badly. He has had a decent season domestically and he is a proven performer at the domestic level. His BPL stint also showed that he is in good form.

It is just that Shehzad has done better.

Why he remains on the sidelines, is anyone's guess.