Has Misbah's performance been incredibly disappointing. Yes ,very much so. But it's ridiculous to scapegoat him for the very prevalent deep lying problems that his successor will also face. The problems that [MENTION=93712]MenInG[/MENTION] refers to.
You essentially claim that he could magically make the problems disappear by replace all the oldies with your suggested names. That is what most of us want as well. But it won't change Pakistan's fortunes because those younger lads will occasionally fail on the job, like all young players do. Just look at Shaheen and Naseem as examples.
Right now they have a replacement (say, a ' Zafar Gohar') who may do well in a couple of matches but then gets found soon. That's less likelier to happen if he's played at a level closer to international cricket I.e. A team cricket. This is especially, especially relevant for modern style batting options which we are sorely lacking in .
I appreciate your post, but I cannot really accept a few key points - areas where Misbah has essentially gaslighted us all.
Shaheen and Naseem are not the solution, they are part of the problem.
In that strange, strange place that is Misbah's head, teenagers and grandpas are the only solution. He does not accept that actually the guys who are ready to be selected are aged 21-30.
I'm not advocating for an attack of teenagers. I'm arguing that when you induct someone new it should be someone aged 21-30 unless it is a once in a generation talent in which case you go younger. But you don't ever go OLDER than 30 for new players.
You say that a "
replacement" like Zafar Gohar might be found out at the highest level. Well, maybe, but you are therefore accepting Kashif Bhatti as the incumbent slow left-armer, and he never was until Misbah came along.
This is a perfect example of the sheer madness of Misbah's selections.
Inzamam and Mickey Arthur were grooming Mohammad Asghar as their slow left-armer. He is 22 years old, and he was the FOURTH highest wicket-taker (27 wickets) in last year's QEA.
There is a sound counter-argument for Zafar Gohar - he came THIRD with 38 wickets and can bat, so Zafar Gohar was a fair alternative to Mohammad Asghar.
Instead of this, Misbah selected Kashif Bhatti, who is 34 years old. He was the NINETEENTH highest wicket-taker with 14 wickets at an inferior strike rate.
And this is the problem. Misbah isn't just packing the team with failing geriatrics like Asad Shafiq. He is actually calling up MORE geriatrics, to perform roles which men a decade younger are doing better than Misbah's latest batch of geriatrics are at domestic level.
I could understand if Abid Ali had been called up when he was 27. But he was called up at 32, when he was the THIRTY THIRD highest runscorer in the QEA, while 25 year old Imran Butt was TOP and Sami Aslam was FOURTH highest runscorer.
That is the madness that we are getting accustomed to. Where there is a vacancy - opening batsman or slow left-armer or middle-order bat or fast bowler - Misbah picks a guy well into his thirties when there is a better performing alternative who is a decade younger.
Abid Ali instead of Sami Aslam and Imran Butt
Fawad Alam ahead of Haider Ali or Zeeshan Malik.
Sarfraz Ahmed ahead of Rohail Nazir.
Kashif Bhatti ahead of Zafar Gohar or Mohammad Asghar.
Imran Khan (and Sohail Khan) ahead of Ehsan Adil or Sameen Gul.
These are the selections of an impaired mind. It is literally madness to strip a sports team of its players aged 21-30 and replace them with guys in their mid-30's who weren't ever good enough to select previously.
This is absolute madness. There is no other word for it.
