Brilliant fifties by Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha take Pakistan to 313/5 on Day 1 of the 1st Test against South Africa

[BouncerGuy]

Spin is there... It will get better for the spinner with each passing minute

 

[tiger_khan]

Can anyone tell me the logic behind selecting Two fast bowlers on this sort of pitch ? plus why would you drop Khuram for no.hopers like Shaheen and Hassan?

Logic here is nepotism

but on this pitch even salman agah will turn the ball

 

[mominsaigol]

Can anyone tell me the logic behind selecting Two fast bowlers on this sort of pitch ? plus why would you drop Khuram for no.hopers like Shaheen and Hassan?

Shaheen makes sense due to recent form. Hasan Ali makes zero sense

 

[Katwalindian]

Guess who he is

His scores in last 10 innings
2
3
0
0
102 ( on multan's flat wicket)
4
7
5*
14
2

Harmer guy is serious turner of the ball

Best action in the world.....

 

[mominsaigol]

Spin is there... It will get better for the spinner with each passing minute

Its fine, Pakistan is winning this test. Their batting first

 

[Katwalindian]

Quota?

Yeah quota...because bavuma and maharaj not playing and they need 4 players in 11.....

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Can anyone tell me the logic behind selecting Two fast bowlers on this sort of pitch ? plus why would you drop Khuram for no.hopers like Shaheen and Hassan?

Two front-line spinners should be enough

Khurram should have played over Hasan Ali

 

[mominsaigol]

Pakistan is lucky that not lose the another wicket

Why? These 2 are batting well? Ik in recent times people have gotten frustrated with Pakistan but give credit where credit is due.

 

[tiger_khan]

Waqar Younis Commentary Watch!!

 

[Aqib_mustafa]

Two front-line spinners should be enough

Khurram should have played over Hasan Ali

Bro pitch is spinning now pakistan would be really happy with sajid and noman on this track now

 

[imshally81]

Shan stucks in 20s

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Harsh call to drop Bedingham for SA and Kamran for Pak.
Shan should be opening.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Harsh call to drop Bedingham for SA and Kamran for Pak.
Shan should be opening.

Yes selecting Brevis over Bedingham is not fair to Bedingham

 

[tiger_khan]

This Harmer guy is a great bowler. Read the length right from the very first over


Our fast bowlers often take half of the innings to learn what should be the right length on the pitch

Sometimes half a match

 

[BouncerGuy]

Lots of spin on offer but the 2 spinners are not utilizing it

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Subrayen bowling horribly. Bowling way too fast

 

[tiger_khan]

Lots of spin on offer but the 2 spinners are not utilizing it

Harmer is pretty good but not the other guy

you need partnership of bowlers on these pitches

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

This Harmer guy is a great bowler. Read the length right from the very first over


Our fast bowlers often take half of the innings to learn what should be the right length on the pitch

Sometimes half a match

Harmer is an experienced campaigner. Coming off a long county campaign, he's probably the most match-ready SOuth Afrcan bowler

 

[BouncerGuy]

Lots of spin on offer but the 2 spinners are not utilizing it

 

[tiger_khan]

i am not happy with Subrayen's bowling action.

I am Ok with bowler pelting every ball. What he is doing is pelting few balls but not others. It throes off the batsmen

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Harmer has looked a class apart so far

 

[tiger_khan]

View attachment 158679

Sometimes the ball spins too much to get an edge or an LBW decisions. Good spinners various degrees of spins in their arsenal.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Maharaj and Harmer make up a fairly good spin attack. But Subrayen and Muthusamy are not good enough for this level

Seen Muthusamy a few times before. If I'm not wrong, he debuted against India in India back in 2019

 

[mango_bite77]

Agreed, since his spin would aid Pakistan on these pitches as well. But I'd rather try farhan atm due to saints form

Yes Farhan can be tried, but we are all aware Farhan is not technically sound for this format. His lack of footwork and playing away from the body will always land him in trouble on a little spicy wicket. He may b successful here and there in home games, but will surely struggle in SENA. So rather go with Saim, who has age on his side and can unlearn-learn things with time.

 

[tiger_khan]

Maharaj and Harmer make up a fairly good spin attack. But Subrayen and Muthusamy are not good enough for this level

Maharaj is even more lethal. He has a very good armer. Harmer has not bowled a single lethal armer yet.

 

[Aqib_mustafa]

Maharaj and Harmer make up a fairly good spin attack. But Subrayen and Muthusamy are not good enough for this level

Seen Muthusamy a few times before. If I'm not wrong, he debuted against India in India back in 2019

How is the pitch it's turning if you put in right place like harmer is doing?

 

[tiger_khan]

Shaun Pollock giving value-added analysis on Imam's head falling on the off-side. Something you can't expect from PAk experts

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Maharaj is even more lethal. He has a very good armer. Harmer has not bowled a single lethal armer yet.

Obviously Maharaj is one of the best spinners in the world, but Harmer is a very different type of bowler.He relies more on accuracy, subtle variation and the stock ball

 

[Nasty Naz]

Don't think we have seen a single sweep from either batter yet.

 

[Ahmed216]

Don't think we have seen a single sweep from either batter yet.

Low bounce surface. Playing straight is much better

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

How is the pitch it's turning if you put in right place like harmer is doing?

Ptch is already offering turn if you bowl in the right areas

 

[BouncerGuy]

Don't think we have seen a single sweep from either batter yet.

TBH, it was not needed... They are pretty relaxed. Handling the spin easily.. Sweep will come if they get stuck.. Shan can play sweeps

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Don't think we have seen a single sweep from either batter yet.

Shan hit that reverse sweep for you

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Imam should be a first choice pick for test matches at home. He knows how to score runs in Pakistan.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Maharaj and Harmer make up a fairly good spin attack. But Subrayen and Muthusamy are not good enough for this level

Seen Muthusamy a few times before. If I'm not wrong, he debuted against India in India back in 2019

The spin trio for them should be Harmer, Maharaj and Linde but that's never gonna happen

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

The spin trio for them should be Harmer, Maharaj and Linde but that's never gonna happen

Yup Linde offers something with the bat too. Im not sure what they see in Muthusamy

 

[Nasty Naz]

Shan hit that reverse sweep for you

Yeah right on queue!

Good reverse sweep there to use the field placement to your advantage and good analysis from the South African commentator there.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Bowling speeds are very important on this surface. Bowl too fast and you're playing into the batsman's hands. Subrayen and Muthusamy have been guilty of that

 

[imshally81]

Shan isn't comfortable on spin...

 

[imshally81]

50 for imam

 

[Ahmed216]

Shan never looks comfortable at the crease. Never

Shan isn't comfortable on spin...

 

[tiger_khan]

Mathusamy looks like a good third and fourth innings bowler in these conditions.

His head remains straight at the time of release and the hand comes from very top. This becomes handy once the bounce becomes unpredictable. And it will definitely become unpredictable on this pitch as the match progresses.

 

[Ahmed216]

Excellent surface prepared. Not too slow or spinning miles from ball 1.
Should be the blueprint going forward.

 

[tiger_khan]

Very well played innings by Imam under pressure and not easy to bat conditions

 

[Energy]

Good 50 for Imam. And looks set for a hundred if the pitch doesn’t deteriorate today.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Bowling speeds are very important on this surface. Bowl too fast and you're playing into the batsman's hands. Subrayen and Muthusamy have been guilty of that

Warrican was bowling as slow as 67 kph in the 2nd Test when WI toured.

Even here , the ball Harmer bowled to Shan was 79 kph.

Slow spin is the way to go on these pitches.

 

[tiger_khan]

I ma should not lose concentration. here he has the opportunity to cement his place in the side for good if he scores a century.

 

[GoUgandaCranes]

Abdullah and Hasan in the team. Day hasn't even started but it already feels like it's ruined.

 

[Ahmed216]

Abdullah and Hasan in the team. Day hasn't even started but it already feels like it's ruined.

Hasan can be a good option on dry pitches that will aid his reverse. He's been bowling at decent pace.

But Abdullah is a such a poor batsman. Doesn't even watch the ball. His only focus is on looking good at crease.

 

[mominsaigol]

Yes Farhan can be tried, but we are all aware Farhan is not technically sound for this format. His lack of footwork and playing away from the body will always land him in trouble on a little spicy wicket. He may b successful here and there in home games, but will surely struggle in SENA. So rather go with Saim, who has age on his side and can unlearn-learn things with time.

He avg 45 in FC as an opener Just saying. Infact records show t20 is his weakest format.

 

[saabir]

I'm surprised Imam looks a different player. He is looking very confident and using his feet against spinners ..

 

[mominsaigol]

Shan never looks comfortable at the crease. Never

Yeah I always get the feeling he'll get out anytime watching him lol. Never gives confidence as a batter even when hes scoring a 100 lol

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Ramiz Raja: "Pakistani team is very good against spin" This guy needs to get his head checked.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Harmer far superior to the other 2.

 

[Human786]

Maharaj and Harmer make up a fairly good spin attack. But Subrayen and Muthusamy are not good enough for this level

Seen Muthusamy a few times before. If I'm not wrong, he debuted against India in India back in 2019

Muthu is a batsmen who bowls bit of spin ...

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Yes selecting Brevis over Bedingham is not fair to Bedingham

Brevis is a trump card and his ballistics can easily set off opposition's bowlers. Zorzi should have been the one to be dropped when Markram and Rickelton were already there for opening.

 

[BouncerGuy]

The 100-run stand comes up between the duo

aaaaand another review but it is not out for me

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Bowling speeds are very important on this surface. Bowl too fast and you're playing into the batsman's hands. Subrayen and Muthusamy have been guilty of that

Forget about SA's selection, what were Pakistan's "think tank" thinking dropping Khurram.

 

[Rana]

Where to watch? In uK

 

[BouncerGuy]

Excellent from umpire

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Forget about SA's selection, what were Pakistan's "think tank" thinking dropping Khurram.

No idea. He has been Pakistan's best test pacer for quite some time now.

 

[Human786]

Pak look good for 400 .. expect variable bounce on day 3 ?

 

[BunnyRabbit]

No idea. He has been Pakistan's best test pacer for quite some time now.

These kind of decisions keep setting our cricket back. Azhar probably still sees Hasan as the 2017 ct version.

 

[mango_bite77]

He avg 45 in FC as an opener Just saying. Infact records show t20 is his weakest format.

As I said, venue matters. His technique may work in flat pitches, but not on moving surface. And you know the pitches in Pakistan are nothing less than a road.

 

[mango_bite77]

Ramiz Raja: "Pakistani team is very good against spin" This guy needs to get his head checked.

Still living in Misbah-Younis-Yousuf-Malik era.

 

[mominsaigol]

Where to watch? In uK

Sports central YT channel

 

[BouncerGuy]

Good session for Pakistan...

107/1 in 28 overs.

 

[mominsaigol]

Excellent from umpire

What excellent? That looked not out considering how far Imam shuffled across the crease.

 

[mango_bite77]

I dont know whether to judge Imam on this innings or not, but one thing is sure, he has improved after playing county. Why doesn't Babar play county to improve his game ? What is stopping him to improve himself?

 

[Human786]

Jansen for Muthu might have been a better option for SAF ...

 

[BouncerGuy]

What excellent? That looked not out considering how far Imam shuffled across the crease.

It was not far away from being an umpires call...

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

These kind of decisions keep setting our cricket back. Azhar probably still sees Hasan as the 2017 ct version.

It's a completely senseless decision. He has played one test match since 2024. And he hasn't been a good test bowler in atleast 4 years. When the last time South Africa toured here ironically enough.

 

[tiger_khan]

I dont know whether to judge Imam on this innings or not, but one thing is sure, he has improved after playing county. Why doesn't Babar play county to improve his game ? What is stopping him to improve himself?

To play county, you have to get an offer from the county

I suspect that he might be asking too much money

 

[RidiculousMan]

Imam is the real King

 

[RidiculousMan]

Hasan Ali playing on last South Africa series quota memory. Lol

Khurram Shehzad should take up the profession of fruit seller.

 

[GoUgandaCranes]

Hasan can be a good option on dry pitches that will aid his reverse. He's been bowling at decent pace.

But Abdullah is a such a poor batsman. Doesn't even watch the ball. His only focus is on looking good at crease.

It's not about performance alone as no one knows about the future, it's more about consistency in selection policy here. Khurram was your number 1 pacer & now he doesn't even make top 2 despite no cricket being played during that period.

 

[Hyder]

Shaheen makes sense due to recent form. Hasan Ali makes zero sense

Hasan ali is there because of reverse swing i assume

 

[RidiculousMan]

Imam should be a first choice pick for test matches at home. He knows how to score runs in Pakistan.

He's a great Test opener from Pakistan standards and Shan is good enough for overseas

 

[pratiktc]

These next 2 sessions are the game. Keep foot on SA bowlers throat and close off game with a big first innings

 

[RidiculousMan]

Hasan ali is there because of reverse swing i assume

Reverse swing at 130?