Loud Thinking

Archive for November, 2018

Today Pakistan scored 207/4 in 90 overs on the first day of 2nd Test vs NZ at Dubai cricket stadium at RR of 2.3 per over, which is one of the lowest score on the first day of a Test match.

Last time when Sami Aslam was dropped for the West Indies tour, despite having an average of 56 runs repeat 56 runs, during the previous tour to England; and instead Shan Masood was selected with an average of 12 runs repeat 12 runs in the same English tour: I asked Mr. Inzamam-ul-Haq the reason for dropping Sami Aslam as an opening batsman, surprisingly, he replied that Sami Aslam was dropped from Test team, because he scores runs very slowly.

Today coach and captain again selected our team with defensive frame of mind by including only 4 bowlers for a 5 day Test match whereas, New Zealand team management entered the field with 3 pacers and 2 spinners.

In cricket, matches are not won by packing maximum number of batsmen. Rather, the team must be balanced and attitude also must be positive and mind set aggressive.

In this regard, we are reminded of a famous quote of Mr. Imran Khan that playing for a draw was a sure recipe for defeat.

As such, it is high time that the PCB must get rid of the entire selection committee, the all coaching team members and the captain, as well, before a debacle hits us in the ongoing series vs NZ and our team is blown to smithereens by the South Africans in the tour starting from next month and we should also not wait for 2015 ICC World Cup like another debacle.

Rather, we must aim, plan and prepare (link:-https://www.snayyar.com/how-to-win-the-icc-odi-world-cup-2019.html#sthash.nwCHp5DB.dpbs ) for winning the 2019 ICC World Cup

Syed Nayyar Uddin Ahmad

If Imam-ul-Haq and Haris Sohail can be included in the ODI squad (as mentioned below) announced for the three match ODI series vs New Zealand, why not include Fawad Alam, Asad Shafiq, and Shan Masood, as well? Particularly, Shan Masood who is the best fielder on the boundary lines.

Squad:

Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Asif Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Usman Shinwari, Shaheen Afridi, Junaid Khan

Our tour team management and entire selection committee is not focussing on the weakest link of the game of our ODI team; and also keeping its eyes shut from the just around the corner ODI World Cup, which is now a matter of weeks rather than months, to be played in England starting from 30 May 2019.

Although, our team’s (101) current ODI ranking is fifth, where England (126) is at the top followed by India (121), New Zealand (112) and South Africa (110); yet, our team’s performances in first 10 power play overs is the worst, the responsibility for which, squarely lies on team’s Head and Batting coaches, Captain and the Selection Committee, who collectively failed to select, groom and prepare our opening and top order batsmen, to provide solid launching pad of a score above 90+ runs in the 1st power play overs (when only two fielders are allowed out side the 30 meters circle) which then allows the middle and lower order batsmen to target a score of 375+ runs.

Nowadays, ODI game is heavily tilted in favour of batsmen, where top teams are constantly scoring above 300 runs and even 350 score is not considered a winning total.

In view of the foregoing, the big wigs of the PCB are requested to immediately consider out of box solutions, to go all out for a kill in ODI World Cup 2019, to win the first World Cup for Pakistan in the 21st century.

In this regard, the following immediate, drastic and surgical steps are suggested, so that our new combinations of players and management gets ample practice during the LAST 18 ODI matches (3 vs NZ, 5 vs SA, 5 Aus and 5 vs Eng) to be played before the start of the WC 2019.

1. Replace the current Head Coach with Aaqib Javed.

2. Replace the current Batting Coach with Javed Miandad or Amir Suhail or Muhammad Yousaf.

3. Replace the current Bowling Coach with Sarfraz Nawaz or Waqar Younis or Shoaib Akhtar.

4. Replace the current captain (who doesn’t look an automatic choice in the ODI team) with Shoaib Malik or Muhammad Hafeez or Junaid Khan or Imad Wasim.

5. The following highly talented players with sky high potential must be included in the preparatory squad for the World Cup and given chances to show their potential against the 18 matches four ODI series to be played against New Zealand, South African, Australian and English teams.

i) Haris Rauf:- He is the only fast bowler capable of bowling at a speed above 150 KMPH. After recognising his talent, Australia has offered him citizenship and he has also received offers to stay and play in South Africa.

ii) Muhammad Abbas:- Talent of this player has been acknowledged by many foreign current and retired players, but our management and selection committee, having a myopic view has restricted him into playing only Test cricket, where he recently single handedly demolished the Australian batting line up, in the series played in the UAE.

iii) Sajjad Ali Hashmi:- He is currently the most hard hitting batsman in the domestic circuit in front of whom even Fakhar Zaman, looks an ordinary folk and possesses ability to single handedly destroy any type of bowling.

iv) Sohail Akhtar:- Extremely talented and hard hitting accomplished batsman, whose abundant talent can be gauged by the fact that recently playing in the UAE for the Lahore Qalanders, he scored a century in a T20 match, against a team of Yorkshire.

v) A new Selection Committee to be headed by former world renowned Test player Mr. Abdul Qadir should replace the current Selection Committee; which will go down in our history to be the most expensively paid Selection Committee of the PCB.