Absolutely. Technique > slogging. :asadshafiq
Psychology and mental calmness play a huge role in your performances.
Add to it technique, and you get a lethal combo.
Shuffling around has shaken his technique + head!
As usual, people do not do any research before posting.
He has played 23 of his matches at his favourite third position, where he averages a whomping 32.32 with a 69 SR. He has played 48 of those 60 total matches at 3 and 4 where he averages 26 with a 68 SR.
His best year 2011, he had a plethora of matches at number 3, but he was simply too slow for the amount of balls that he faced to merit that position. He just wasn't doing the job. 71 sounds good against WI right? But 102 balls faced?! That is ludicrous for a set batsmen:
And it is the midwicket's coming in that seems to have triggered this wicket. Shafiq seemed to be going over midwicket, but ends up hitting this length delivery just to the right of long-on, who moves well to complete a simple catch
After X amount of balls, the player obviously at the 38th over needs to put the foot on the gas and he simply does not have the ability to do so. Pakistan saw this kept seeing the same trend.
In 2012, his first match for example against a meager Afghanistan he at his favourite number 3 scored 20 runs. In Feb of 2012 they gave him the entire England series at 3, he scored a duck, 18/39 at #4, then 65/78 in the fourth ODI at number 3. So they did keep him out from the odd match here and there, but no more or less than anyone else really. His speed really deterred them away from making him a staple so they kept their options open.
He has played at #3 or 4 pretty much 85% of his career, and he was very slow consistently at those positions, so they had to look for other options, and every time he looked like maybe he would show some prowess, he just disappointed again. The biggest cop out ever is this he didn't get enough run at #3, as though he is going to be sun and moon different coming in at 4.
Did we forget about 2014? How about those three matches against Australia, all three matches at his favourite spot and he had a beautiful: 13/28, 29/35 (where this trend of: 38.6 90.5 kph, can't clear the field this time, gives an easy catch to mid-off! He charged down the track again to clear mid-off but gave an easy catch to Johnson at the edge of the circle 185/5 continued, ie his inability to show he could clear the international boundary line) and finally 50/73. Fifty runs right! Oh wait, 73 deliveries to do it. It is a trend for Shafiq, he is too slow for the modern ODI game. That was a full series at his 3.
Even after those 3, Pakistan took that 50 in Australia, rated it and said, okay, it was slow, but 50 is 50 in Australia, let's give you another series in NZ.
What were those paltry totals? 5, 1, 23, 7. He played the first at 3, Pakistan said, okay this isn't working, we need to try something different, and gave him three matches at 4.
If you do a cross-sectional study of Asad and compare him to any and every Pakistani over the past few years, he has been no more or less favoured.
People will point to Hafeez, or Azhar Ali or whomever they want, but those players have had scores too. Azhar Ali came back with a bang and has fallen off and will whither away with time and is only still there because it would be embarrassing to take the C away so quickly for Pakistani management. Not right mind you.
Hafeez was cast away for years before he worked in Pakistan and became a pretty solid all-rounder. This is the same player who had three consecutive centuries. He scored runs when it counted in his 2011 return.
Shafiq has never really scored runs, and Pakistan had to look elsewhere because of it. He was getting consistent chances early, but about 20-30 matches in, he looked too slow and ate up too many balls to really get any chance of a good ODI total going. These are realities. Every time Shafiq seemed to be ready to now go for big shots because he was now set, he always faltered. Every time Pakistan said, okay, you have a decent foundation, today you are going to be the centerpiece of scoring, he got a very untimely wicket.
No one is to blame for Shafiq's failures but himself. He is 31 years old and still looks brand new out there. For all the talk about Pakistan's domestic scoring being irrelevant, for some reason for Shafiq it is a defence to say he scores in Pakistan in bunches, it will obviously come internationally.
I find it funny that in the warm up match, no pressure, Pakistan said let's try something different, and in a match everyone else played with ease and we had 4/5 top order batsmen (Malik scored 49) scoring at least 50, with the one not being a good score Shafiq with a laughable 4.
Whether it be mental, lack of skill (I really believe he doesn't have the ability to clear the boundary rope from what I have seen), or fear of being dropped is irrelevant, Shafiq cannot and will not be an ODI player at the age of 31, and anyone who thinks it's the management's fault is finding more excuses. Shafiq has never returned managements favour with the amount of matches he has gotten. He has gotten more than a fair shake. We wouldn't give that defence for Akmal or Shehzad either (nor should we) or anyone who has been in and out of the team due to inconsistent performances or shuffling up and down the lineup.
Players who are made to perform, will perform. This is a performance industry, a make or miss league, and Asad Shafiq for whatever reason has never performed really, and anyone who thinks he will is completely biased due to a personal liking, or blind for whatever reason.
