unemployedgm
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Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq are the pillars of Pakistan's batting lineup in Test Cricket. Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez are the pillars of Pakistan's batting lineup in One Day Cricket. They are indispensable.
Offering a General Manager's Perspective, I would begin my job by culling the Pakistan Team of these players. If the goal of our test team is perpetual mediocrity and boring cricket then Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq have a place in the test side. But if the goal is to be the best team in the world and play progressive cricket, then these players must be given the confidence to play with intent. If they can't do that, they must be replaced. To be fair, I think Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq are a by-product of the survivalist style of cricket embraced my Waqar Younis and Misbah ul Haq. Mickey Arthur and Sarfraz Ahmed have done nothing to change that. Mickey in particular has failed to identify or implement a distinct style of cricket. Like those before, Pakistan is playing survivalist cricket completely dependent on fast bowlers making inroads and spinners controlling the game.
The situation in one day cricket is even more dire. There was a time when Pakistan's No. 4 and No. 5 were Mohammad Yusuf and Inzamam ul Haq. Shoaib Malik is a good player of spin but he is in no way shape or form an elite batsman. He's awful against pace and struggles to perform against top opposition outside Asia. Mohammad Hafeez is a bits and pieces player. For a player who has represented Pakistan 200 times mostly as an opener, Mohammad Hafeez averages 32. There is no justification for his continued selection. Significantly, there is not justification for him batting at No. 4.
Why are we arguably one of the worst batting teams in the world? There are many reasons. Here are few:
1. Misbah ul Haq and Shahid Afridi. We are a nation of extremes. As a Cricket Nation we connect attacking and positive batting with Shahid Afridi. Shahid Afridi was a completely irresponsible batsman who swung his bat relentlessly as a defense mechanism for his mental frailties. On the other hand Misbah ul Haq's approach to batting was inspired by fear. Misbah relished the opportunity to dig in when the side was down. Although he was extolled for this quality, he is without a doubt responsible for a generation of negative batsmanship.
2. Coaching in Cricket is Basic. It is a silo full of insignificant platitudes and poorly constructed ideas. Waqar Younis before him and Mickey Arthur now have completely failed to employ a purposeful and progressive style of batting. Our batsman lack the mental fortitude, the technique, the attitude, and the physical strength to take the game to the opposition. Coaches have done nothing to improve those weaknesses. Furthermore, they have never demanded that style of play. Cricket is the only sport where coaches arrange net sessions, sell meaningless platitudes, and are paid to watch games.
3. The art of batsmanship in Pakistan is given little to no importance. Batting requires a certain level of intellectual aptitude, toughness, and freedom as you are one ball away from failure. In an attempt to prevent collapses and bat time, we've restricted batsmanship. Athletes are artists who should be given freedom to explore there true potential.
4. Those responsible for selecting players simply don't understand the mechanics of identifying talent. Simply put, they don't know what a good batsman looks like.
5. Finally, our Sporting Structure as a whole has no concept or understanding of player development. From the age groups up to the senior team batters have either declined (Umar Akmal, Ahmed Shehzad) or never improved (Asad Shafiq). Babar Azam is seemingly the only player who has improved and even his career is to be determined. He's struggled to make an impact in Test Cricket and in Big ODI's specifically against India he's not played one impactful innings.
Offering a General Manager's Perspective, I would begin my job by culling the Pakistan Team of these players. If the goal of our test team is perpetual mediocrity and boring cricket then Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq have a place in the test side. But if the goal is to be the best team in the world and play progressive cricket, then these players must be given the confidence to play with intent. If they can't do that, they must be replaced. To be fair, I think Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq are a by-product of the survivalist style of cricket embraced my Waqar Younis and Misbah ul Haq. Mickey Arthur and Sarfraz Ahmed have done nothing to change that. Mickey in particular has failed to identify or implement a distinct style of cricket. Like those before, Pakistan is playing survivalist cricket completely dependent on fast bowlers making inroads and spinners controlling the game.
The situation in one day cricket is even more dire. There was a time when Pakistan's No. 4 and No. 5 were Mohammad Yusuf and Inzamam ul Haq. Shoaib Malik is a good player of spin but he is in no way shape or form an elite batsman. He's awful against pace and struggles to perform against top opposition outside Asia. Mohammad Hafeez is a bits and pieces player. For a player who has represented Pakistan 200 times mostly as an opener, Mohammad Hafeez averages 32. There is no justification for his continued selection. Significantly, there is not justification for him batting at No. 4.
Why are we arguably one of the worst batting teams in the world? There are many reasons. Here are few:
1. Misbah ul Haq and Shahid Afridi. We are a nation of extremes. As a Cricket Nation we connect attacking and positive batting with Shahid Afridi. Shahid Afridi was a completely irresponsible batsman who swung his bat relentlessly as a defense mechanism for his mental frailties. On the other hand Misbah ul Haq's approach to batting was inspired by fear. Misbah relished the opportunity to dig in when the side was down. Although he was extolled for this quality, he is without a doubt responsible for a generation of negative batsmanship.
2. Coaching in Cricket is Basic. It is a silo full of insignificant platitudes and poorly constructed ideas. Waqar Younis before him and Mickey Arthur now have completely failed to employ a purposeful and progressive style of batting. Our batsman lack the mental fortitude, the technique, the attitude, and the physical strength to take the game to the opposition. Coaches have done nothing to improve those weaknesses. Furthermore, they have never demanded that style of play. Cricket is the only sport where coaches arrange net sessions, sell meaningless platitudes, and are paid to watch games.
3. The art of batsmanship in Pakistan is given little to no importance. Batting requires a certain level of intellectual aptitude, toughness, and freedom as you are one ball away from failure. In an attempt to prevent collapses and bat time, we've restricted batsmanship. Athletes are artists who should be given freedom to explore there true potential.
4. Those responsible for selecting players simply don't understand the mechanics of identifying talent. Simply put, they don't know what a good batsman looks like.
5. Finally, our Sporting Structure as a whole has no concept or understanding of player development. From the age groups up to the senior team batters have either declined (Umar Akmal, Ahmed Shehzad) or never improved (Asad Shafiq). Babar Azam is seemingly the only player who has improved and even his career is to be determined. He's struggled to make an impact in Test Cricket and in Big ODI's specifically against India he's not played one impactful innings.
