"By watching TV, it seems that whichever team I've selected has been the wrong one" : Inzamam-ul-Haq

[Abdullah719]

"By watching TV, it seems that whichever team I've selected has been the wrong one" : Inzamam-ul-Haq

Inzamam-ul-Haq quotes from a recent interview:

"I have been on this job for about 2.5 years and it seems, by watching TV, that whichever team I have selected has been the wrong one"

"I was told by Imran Khan in 1992 World Cup that if you think about failure then you will fail"

"When you select players, you must select players who can serve the country for a longer period of time"

"If people make positive criticism, that would be beneficial for us - no one likes too much negative criticism"

"I find selecting players just for the next series a cowardly approach"

"I will not be at this position all my life but I want to leave a team which is good for Pakistan"

"If you look at the performances of the older (tried and tested) players, then you will find that they are not that special"

"Test cricket has changed; Gone are the times when you could play with an average of 2 runs per over, now you need more aggression"

"This is why we have Fakhar Zaman in the squad so that the scoring rate can increase and some aggression come in as well"

"This is also why I sent Sharjeel to Australia"

"In the first half of England summer, we do not need an express fast bowler but we need one who can swing or seam the ball"

"Wahab Riaz's best quality is that he is very strong in the area of revers swing"

"As we know in England, even after 60 overs the ball still appears new"

"If you look at our upcoming schedule, we are going to need fast-bowlers more so no one should think that they have been discarded"

"My problem is that I am based at the NCA and anyone who is dropped comes to see me within minutes!"

"Wahab Riaz came to me as well and I explained the reasons [for his exclusion]"

"I called Fawad Alam and said look there is a lot of stuff being said on TV but please dont take this personally"

"When needed I will make a phone call to the players as well but I am very accessible"

"Fawad Alam must be a good player as any player who comes to the national level is or should be"

"It has been said that he is not suited in terms of technique for playing in England"

"It would be better for him if he is given a chance to play in a series that is held in sub-continent"

"We felt that Saad Ali had done well on tough pitches so we wanted to give him a chance"

"Anyone can score when playing in ground where the stands are empty"

"If you look at the recent Pakistan Cup, I would get up in the morning and look at the newspaper to see people scoring so many runs and the pressure is immediately on me to select one of those players"

"Imran Bhai always said that whoever handles pressure will win"

"Due to PSL, we get to see the players perform in pressure situations that we do not see happen in first-class cricket"

"If a player performs well in front of a crowd of 50,000 and helps his team win, then such a player has a lot of confidence"

"It also makes it easy for selectors as it tells us that such a player has a good temperament"

"PSL is a key event which has made things easy for selectors"

"Imam's selection decision was a tough one; I was afraid that if I didn't select him I would have got it from "ghar" [family]"

"And If I had selected him, other people would pressure me"

"When it comes to decision on Imam's selection, I would take the back seat and be a little quiet"

"I would also ask Grant Flower who he has worked with and also consult with Mickey"

"When Imam was selected for ODIs, there was criticism and then he scored 100"

"I am used to pressure due to the fact that I have played for a long time but I am worried that Imam has pressure on him due to me"

"This is very difficult for a youngster, especially in a tough series like this"

"I enjoy this role more when I am not selecting players"

"I have played bowlers all my life so I know a bit about them [for selection]"

"Temperament is what takes a player to the top"

"I feel that Babar Azam, although he doesn't have that many good performances in Test cricket, can become a world-class player"

"Haris Sohail has the potential to move progress further"

"Our players can become like Zaheer Abbas, Javed Miandad, Mohammad Yousuf and Saeed Anwar as they have the potential but they need the right environment [to grow]"

 

[Sirris]

There are some very open and candid replies in this post. Which isn't a norm for a Pakistani and which makes inzi far more relatable and likeable.

 

[BaankeJi]

He seems to be too anxious about criticism. It is natural to feel pressure from outside world but it shouldn't be allowed to get to nerves.

 

[babajee]

The best selector in the world. Can anyone tell me a better selector?

 

[rhony]

The best selector in the world. Can anyone tell me a better selector?

No arguments there. Very honest and very funny.

 

[carbon11]

Inzi seems a level headed guy and very sincere in his approach

Hope people will lay off him over the selections and continuous criticism

 

[The_Odd_One]

He answered a lot of questions. Like his thought process, easily the best selector in along time.

 

[from_da_lost_dim3nsion]

Man , I wanna hate for not selecting fawad but he is much better than the guys we have had in recent years. Will give him the benefit of doubt !

 

[HuzaifaE]

Brilliant words, have nothing but appreciation for Inzi's work so far, hopefully he keeps his thick skin and continues the good work

 

[Square Drive]

I've been critical of him in the past, but this is actually a very good squad chosen by Inzi. He's putting a lot of faith in youngsters which is great to see.

Keep up the good work, Inzi.

 

[MenInG]

Amazing replies and very entertaining from Inzi.

 

[big_gamer007]

Top birch guy!! People are harsh on him but he’s a doing a great job..

 

[Markhor]

Pretty sincere comments from Inzy. Yes he's made mistakes but his track record is better than any recent chief selector we've had.

 

[Mamoon]

Inzamam cannot be compared to the previous selectors because the PSL has made his job easy - the ODI and T20 squads are largely centered around the PSL.

Every year, 3-4 new faces are brought into the team based on their PSL performances, while the likes of Babar, Hasan, Shadab, Fakhar, Fahim etc. have found their way into the Test squads based on their international performances.

The rest of the squad picks itself. Perhaps the only two players where he deserves some credit are Usman and Saad. However, its not as if the other selectors would have ignored them forever. Apart the retirement of Misbah and Younis, they would have had their opportunity anyway, since no selector in Pakistan has had a liking for Fawad Alam.

As far as dropping Wahab is concerned, we should not forget that no selector ever gave him a consistent run in the side. He was always in and out until the fluke Watson spell at the World Cup, which allowed him to get a free passage for the next two years.

Same Inzamam brought back players that the majority were not in favor of, before dropping them largely due to the recommendations of Mickey.

Anyone who has seen the reign of Inzamam as captain would testify that he was a visionless captain who had his favorites. He barely gave opportunities to young players, and it was a successful era for our youth who won two U-19 World Cups in his captaincy tenure.

He is simply lucky to be in the right place at the right time. He has the PSL to work with, a professional coach like Mickey in his ear, and a captain that does not have a phobia of young players. I wonder if people would still be singing songs in his name if he was the selector in the pre-PSL era, with Waqar and Misbah as coach and captain respectively.

 

[Asif321]

what does he mean anyone can score where stands are empty . our FC matches are played in empty stands
so does it mean no use of scoring in FC? then lets abandoned FC and other local tournaments keep PSL 3 times a year

 

[Saj]

The Chief Selector of the Pakistan cricket team is one of the toughest jobs in cricket and to be fair to Inzi I think he has done a decent job so far and has been one of the better performers in the role to date.

 

[Hasan123]

Inzi has done a good job so far. He makes some weird decisions at times but you can't always be perfect. He has been fortunate to have the PSL during his tenure as CS.

 

[Markhor]

Inzi has done a good job so far. He makes some weird decisions at times but you can't always be perfect. He has been fortunate to have the PSL during his tenure as CS.

It's good that he is rewarding PSL performances though - this is selection by merit and what people have been asking for years from their Chief Selectors. How would people react if he ignored the top performers in what's the biggest domestic competition in the country ?

 

[Hasan123]

It's good that he is rewarding PSL performances though - this is selection by merit and what people have been asking for years from their Chief Selectors. How would people react if he ignored the top performers in what's the biggest domestic competition in the country ?

They would be upset of course but he has been fortunate to have the PSL during his tenure.

If I'm honest I don't think he would have been as bold his selections with no PSL and Waqar and Misbah as captain and coach.

 

[SarfiBabarHaris]

Imo Inzi's biggest breakthrough selection was Faheem Ashraf. The guy is a level below likes of Shadab and Hasan but has potential, is v.hard working and has a great attitude. I don't see a better fast bowling all rounder than Faheem in limited overs in Pakistan right now.

It was a bold decision to include him and almost everyone was against his selection. Kudos to Inzi for that.

 

[babajee]

Imo Inzi's biggest breakthrough selection was Faheem Ashraf. The guy is a level below likes of Shadab and Hasan but has potential, is v.hard working and has a great attitude. I don't see a better fast bowling all rounder than Faheem in limited overs in Pakistan right now.

It was a bold decision to include him and almost everyone was against his selection. Kudos to Inzi for that.

Unkay level pe hai. Bas dekhtay rahein

 

[SarfiBabarHaris]

Unkay level pe hai. Bas dekhtay rahein

I mean right now. IA will soon be there. Have high hopes from him.

One thing though, he should bat more and more in one days (both domestic and internationals). One day batting usay samjh nai aa rahi abhi jis tara Babar ko test mai khelna. The more he bats, the better he will become. Was going well against SL in CT before that unfortunate run out.

 

[babajee]

I mean right now. IA will soon be there. Have high hopes from him.

One thing though, he should bat more and more in one days (both domestic and internationals). One day batting usay samjh nai aa rahi abhi jis tara Babar ko test mai khelna. The more he bats, the better he will become. Was going well against SL in CT before that unfortunate run out.

At the moment he is being played as a slogger

This is just one example of his potential.

 

[SarfiBabarHaris]

At the moment he is being played as a slogger

There was a thread on squad for Pak vs Zimbawe odi series to which I said we shouldn't do many changes before wc, agr kuch change krna he hai to change batting order for Zim series. Give likes of Faheem and Shadab more time for batting. I liked how they promoted Asif in last 2 t20s, its time now they do the same for Faheem and Shady especially Faheem whose batting needs to be polished.

 

[Mamoon]

It's good that he is rewarding PSL performances though - this is selection by merit and what people have been asking for years from their Chief Selectors. How would people react if he ignored the top performers in what's the biggest domestic competition in the country ?

The difference is that it is far easier to make merit-based selections when you are making those selections based on the PSL. The previous Chief Selectors had the QeA, List A and the Faysal Bank T20 tournaments to look up to, because they were the premier domestic tournaments.

However, none of those tournaments had any significant fan following in the country, their was hardly any media and fan pressure to select those players, and it required a great deal of commitment by the selectors who had to watch those tournaments live (most matches are not televised) and select the players.

On the contrary, the PSL has made life easy for the selectors. It is a tournament followed by the whole country, and players who perform in the PSL become stars overnight. Shadab Khan would still be reeling in domestic cricket had he produced the PSL 2017 performances in some other domestic tournament, and no one would have given two hoots about him.

Similarly, there is no way the likes of Sadaf Hussain would have been ignored had he produced those performances in the PSL instead of the QeA and the List A tournaments. The PSL performers pick themselves, regardless of whether Inzamam is in charge or Iqbal Qasim or Haroon Rasheed.

Inzamam visionary leadership and eye for talent was there for everyone to see during his reign as captain. As I said earlier, he is simply in the right place at the right time. The PSL era is the perfect era to be a selector in Pakistan, since the job now is much easier than what it was in the past.

 

[DeadBall]

Yeah, he has admitted so himself.

"PSL is a key event which has made things easy for selectors"

 

[ArsenalFC]

The difference is that it is far easier to make merit-based selections when you are making those selections based on the PSL. The previous Chief Selectors had the QeA, List A and the Faysal Bank T20 tournaments to look up to, because they were the premier domestic tournaments.

However, none of those tournaments had any significant fan following in the country, their was hardly any media and fan pressure to select those players, and it required a great deal of commitment by the selectors who had to watch those tournaments live (most matches are not televised) and select the players.

On the contrary, the PSL has made life easy for the selectors. It is a tournament followed by the whole country, and players who perform in the PSL become stars overnight. Shadab Khan would still be reeling in domestic cricket had he produced the PSL 2017 performances in some other domestic tournament, and no one would have given two hoots about him.

Similarly, there is no way the likes of Sadaf Hussain would have been ignored had he produced those performances in the PSL instead of the QeA and the List A tournaments. The PSL performers pick themselves, regardless of whether Inzamam is in charge or Iqbal Qasim or Haroon Rasheed.

Inzamam visionary leadership and eye for talent was there for everyone to see during his reign as captain. As I said earlier, he is simply in the right place at the right time. The PSL era is the perfect era to be a selector in Pakistan, since the job now is much easier than what it was in the past.

Very well said - POTW for me.

 

[DRsohail]

The best selector in the world. Can anyone tell me a better selector?

i will go an watch scorecards in newspaper and i got worried whom to select..pakistan cup the prestigisous domestic tournament and he is not gonna watch it lolz..best selector..sorry for spell mistekes.

 

[waleed88]

Inzamam has made some very good selections, and we all appreciate him for that. Excluding Fawad might seem like the wrong decision to him, and we fans have a right to disagree with him. It doesn't mean that all his decisions are bad.. It seems Inzi atleast seems apologetic about his decision, which he wasn't when he selected Fawad. This omission comment has made it obvious he will select Fawad soon. Since he has been made to give so many justification on it. The blatant omission felt offensive a 2nd time without even telling the reason why. Which resulted in the news being made.

 

[Bilal7]

The best selector we have ever had. It is very satisfying seeing the usual suspects tripping over each other to make excuses for why he's done such an amazing job.

Inzamam ul Haq is a Pakistani legend.

 

[Bilal7]

They would be upset of course but he has been fortunate to have the PSL during his tenure.

If I'm honest I don't think he would have been as bold his selections with no PSL and Waqar and Misbah as captain and coach.

Inzamam was one of the factors Sarfaraz Ahmed got the captaincy and not Professor so that is a moot point. Also, this PSL excuse is hilarious.

The PSL is a T20 tournament, Inzamam selected a test squad that won the test mace and an ODI squad that won the Champions Trophy. He's yet to produce any significant results in the T20 format, which actually is another tight slap in the collective faces of his haters.

 

[Hasan123]

Inzamam was one of the factors Sarfaraz Ahmed got the captaincy and not Professor so that is a moot point. Also, this PSL excuse is hilarious.

The PSL is a T20 tournament, Inzamam selected a test squad that won the test mace and an ODI squad that won the Champions Trophy. He's yet to produce any significant results in the T20 format, which actually is another tight slap in the collective faces of his haters.

Sarfraz was obviously going to be made captain especially when he was vice captain. He had shown in the T20s he captained in that he was a better captain than Azhar. Half of this forum could have made that decision.

You will always defend Inzi no matter what he does. I don't see any point in debating with you on this topic.

 

[Bilal7]

Sarfraz was obviously going to be made captain especially when he was vice captain. He had shown in the T20s he captained in that he was a better captain than Azhar. Half of this forum could have made that decision.

You will always defend Inzi no matter what he does. I don't see any point in debating with you on this topic.

No, it was not an obvious decision at all. Hafeez and Malik were being touted as the front-runners and even Younis allegedly said that I'll only continue playing if you make me the captain. The fact that Inzamam backed Sarfaraz and not these veterans shows that he definitely is a "Revolutionary".

I'll only defend him on the good things that he's done.

 

[Hasan123]

No, it was not an obvious decision at all. Hafeez and Malik were being touted as the front-runners and even Younis allegedly said that I'll only continue playing if you make me the captain. The fact that Inzamam backed Sarfaraz and not these veterans shows that he definitely is a "Revolutionary".

I'll only defend him on the good things that he's done.

Hafeez and Malik were not front runners stop making things up LOL. It was an obvious choice to make the vice captain the captain. Furthermore Azhar resigned, the revolutionary had nothing to do with changing capataincy.

I have given him credit for some selections.

 

[Mamoon]

It is interesting to see Inzamam defenders blaming Sarfraz and Mickey for selecting Rahat in the playing XI, but have nothing to say about their idol for picking him in the squad in the first place.

His selection of Rahat is yet another indication of the fact that he is no different to the previous selectors, except that he has the PSL to fall back on.

 

[Khan12]

It is interesting to see Inzamam defenders blaming Sarfraz and Mickey for selecting Rahat in the playing XI, but have nothing to say about their idol for picking him in the squad in the first place.

His selection of Rahat is yet another indication of the fact that he is no different to the previous selectors, except that he has the PSL to fall back on.

Yes he shouldn't have been selected.But, Will inzamam haters also give him credit for not selecting the likes of fawad and hafeez etc.

 

[Mamoon]

Yes he shouldn't have been selected.But, Will inzamam haters also give him credit for not selecting the likes of fawad and hafeez etc.

Fawad hasn't been in the plans of any selector, so why give Inzamam credit? As far as Hafeez is concerned, I think it had a lot to do with Mickey.

He was dropped during the 2016 Test series in England, and since Inzamam does not have a say in selecting the playing XI, I don't think he deserves credit for dropping Hafeez from the Test team.

 

[Khan12]

Fawad hasn't been in the plans of any selector, so why give Inzamam credit? As far as Hafeez is concerned, I think it had a lot to do with Mickey.

He was dropped during the 2016 Test series in England, and since Inzamam does not have a say in selecting the playing XI, I don't think he deserves credit for dropping Hafeez from the Test team.

How about wahab? And what about the youngsters he's been selecting. Ooh I forgot it's to do with PSL . I am not a fan of inzamam and I criticize him but I am not a blind hater too.

 

[Mamoon]

How about wahab? And what about the youngsters he's been selecting. Ooh I forgot it's to do with PSL . I am not a fan of inzamam and I criticize him but I am not a blind hater too.

With the exception of Fahim, all the young players coming through have been selected on PSL basis, and its not as if no other selector gave any chances to young players.

As far as Wahab is concerned, no selector had faith in him but he earned a long rope because of the fluke Watson spell at the World Cup. Those useless bouncers earned him a place in the team for 2 years.

Inzamam has not been any better or worse than the previous selectors. He is simply lucky to be operating in the PSL era.

 

[Khan12]

With the exception of Fahim, all the young players coming through have been selected on PSL basis, and its not as if no other selector gave any chances to young players.

As far as Wahab is concerned, no selector had faith in him but he earned a long rope because of the fluke Watson spell at the World Cup. Those useless bouncers earned him a place in the team for 2 years.

Inzamam has not been any better or worse than the previous selectors. He is simply lucky to be operating in the PSL era.

Yeah and Usman and Saad we're scoring tons after tons in PSL and shaheen was the highest wicket taker and asif Ali and Hussain talat as top scorers. I can bet they wouldn't have been selected by other selection committees. I never liked inside as selector but he's doing a much better job then others. But unfortunately you can't see that due to being his hater and also because of other reasons.........

 

[ArsenalFC]

Fawad hasn't been in the plans of any selector, so why give Inzamam credit? As far as Hafeez is concerned, I think it had a lot to do with Mickey.

He was dropped during the 2016 Test series in England, and since Inzamam does not have a say in selecting the playing XI, I don't think he deserves credit for dropping Hafeez from the Test team.

Also remember from Inzy's captaincy he had an extremely strong preference for seniors and familiar names, so therefore you're absolutely correct to dissociate him with Hafeez's exclusion in tests.

 

[ArsenalFC]

Time to expose some myths about Inzy:

1. Sarfraz was chosen as captain from Inzy - nope PCB and Mickey played a big part to this
2. Inzy was behind Shehzad and Hafeez getting dropped - which was not only well overdue but actually a proposition by Mickey.
3. Mickey has a soft touch for Rahat (with the approval of Sarfraz) - no it was Inzy behind his selection in this squad.
4. Wahab's exclusion was Inzy's decision - again also overdue and his axing was dominated by Mickey's call
5. Inzy's selections were instrumental to the CT win - This is the best of the lot! Because Shehzad was opening in accordance to Inzy's instructions. Luckily common sense prevailed and Mickey made the swap to Fakhar.

 

[Mamoon]

Yeah and Usman and Saad we're scoring tons after tons in PSL and shaheen was the highest wicket taker and asif Ali and Hussain talat as top scorers. I can bet they wouldn't have been selected by other selection committees. I never liked inside as selector but he's doing a much better job then others. But unfortunately you can't see that due to being his hater and also because of other reasons.........

Usman and Saad would not have been selected if Younis and Misbah would not have retired. It just so happened that those retired during Inzamam's tenure, so he got the credit for finding their replacements.

Usman, Saad, Fawad, Amin etc. were the obvious candidates to replace those two, and I don't see what the other selectors would have done differently.

No one would have replaced Younis and Misbah with Kamran Akmal and Faisal Iqbal.

Shaheen Afridi, Asif Ali and Hussain Talat were all selected based on their PSL performances this year. It is a fact that is not debatable.

PSL is a big deal in Pakistan and performing in that tournament elevates players to instant stardom, and thus, it is very hard for them to be ignored and neglected.

No selector would ignore PSL performers. Had Sadaf Hussain produced those performers in PSL, he would have been in the team by now.

As I said, Inzamam has done nothing special; he has simply been in the right place at the right time.

The PSL would make any selector look good and 'fair'.

 

[Mamoon]

Also remember from Inzy's captaincy he had an extremely strong preference for seniors and familiar names, so therefore you're absolutely correct to dissociate him with Hafeez's exclusion in tests.

Pakistan won two U-19 World Cups during his reign. How many of these young players got a chance under him? As captain he showed no vision at all, and nothing has changed. The only difference now is that the PSL hands him players on a platter for which he takes credit.

 

[Mamoon]

Time to expose some myths about Inzy:

1. Sarfraz was chosen as captain from Inzy - nope PCB and Mickey played a big part to this
2. Inzy was behind Shehzad and Hafeez getting dropped - which was not only well overdue but actually a proposition by Mickey.
3. Mickey has a soft touch for Rahat (with the approval of Sarfraz) - no it was Inzy behind his selection in this squad.
4. Wahab's exclusion was Inzy's decision - again also overdue and his axing was dominated by Mickey's call
5. Inzy's selections were instrumental to the CT win - This is the best of the lot! Because Shehzad was opening in accordance to Inzy's instructions. Luckily common sense prevailed and Mickey made the swap to Fakhar.

Sarfraz was appointed as vice-captain to Azhar Ali in 2015, a year before Inzamam took over. It was obvious that if the Azhar experiment failed, Sarfraz would be next in line.

The likes of Hafeez etc. have not been in contention since 2012-2013. Hafeez was touted as a captain early in the Misbah era because no one thought Misbah would stay till 2017. However, after failing as a T20 captain, Hafeez was not in contention anymore.

Shehzad also had an outside chance until 2014, but he blew it with his attitude problem. Sarfraz was the obvious candidate to take over from Azhar.

 

[mohnip]

To all those critisizing inzamam for imam,

This guy looks extremely confident and playing for purpose.

Not timid like so many other Pakistani batsman.

 

[mohnip]

Expert comment is required?

Personally i think he is proving to be fine selector.

 

[Muhammad Saad]

Jinx thread , (just kidding)

 

[ManFan]

He has not been under the tutelage of the “Old School” of PAK cricket of the last decade.

He scores at a 80+ SR and looks assured.

Far more than “established” seniors like Shafiq and Azhar.

 

[wasimjunior]

Haters talk nah. Rated him since day one...

Please assemble here and apologise

 

[mohnip]

for me, he resembles mix of yuvraj and Anwar..

 

[Red Devil]

Time to expose some myths about Inzy:

1. Sarfraz was chosen as captain from Inzy - nope PCB and Mickey played a big part to this
2. Inzy was behind Shehzad and Hafeez getting dropped - which was not only well overdue but actually a proposition by Mickey.
3. Mickey has a soft touch for Rahat (with the approval of Sarfraz) - no it was Inzy behind his selection in this squad.
4. Wahab's exclusion was Inzy's decision - again also overdue and his axing was dominated by Mickey's call
5. Inzy's selections were instrumental to the CT win - This is the best of the lot! Because Shehzad was opening in accordance to Inzy's instructions. Luckily common sense prevailed and Mickey made the swap to Fakhar.

How do you know what was Mickey's call and what decisions were made by Inzi lmao? Your myth busting is more like a bunch of random assumptions tbh.

Fact is both Mickey and Inzi have a really good working relation and they are clearly on the same page. Inzi has mentioned this quite a few times in his interviews too.

 

[ArsenalFC]

Inzy isn't what he's made out to be on PakPassion seriously give it as rest.

 

[ArsenalFC]

How do you know what was Mickey's call and what decisions were made by Inzi lmao? Your myth busting is more like a bunch of random assumptions tbh.

Fact is both Mickey and Inzi have a really good working relation and they are clearly on the same page. Inzi has mentioned this quite a few times in his interviews too.

Inzy himself said he likes what he saw of Rahat in PSL - his selection was based on the performances of a T20 tournament which is deplorable really especially when he was the selector during the England series in 2016, so it should be fresh in his memory that this joke of a bowler averaged 50 in 2016. Rahat shouldn't even be in the squad or for the A side for that matter.

I don't know if you watched cricket in the 2000s but what you have to realise is Inzy ever since he was a skipper (03-07) has always had a phobia of picking younger players and has always taken the route of picking familiar names without the basis of merit. This practice has continued as coach when he went on to recall Gul during the 2016 England ODI series when there was no basis for him to be in internationals. Sticking to this theme it's the same reason why he has recalled Shehzad and given him an unwarranted number of squad selections. Not to forget he's also a fan of selfie.

Mickey dropped Hafeez during the England series and he was never picked again in tests because he was a poor test bat. As for Wahab there is no doubt that Mickey doesn't approve of him with his blunt reply to the media about his exclusion. There are no assumptions here.

Without PSL Inzy would have been a hopeless selector and along with Gul another example of this is when he picked Sami Aslam for the England ODIs 2 years ago on the basis of a good test at Edgbaston.

 

[Raf Pragmatic]

Support Inzi...

 

[Saj]

"I called Fawad Alam and said look there is a lot of stuff being said on TV but please dont take this personally"

I have it on good authority that this conversation did not take place and there was no phone call from Inzi.

 

[Deewana Mastana]

I have it on good authority that this conversation did not take place and there was no phone call from Inzi.

Anyone with a bit of common sense would have known this anyway as it's not new.

 

[New Yorker]

Inzy himself said he likes what he saw of Rahat in PSL - his selection was based on the performances of a T20 tournament which is deplorable really especially when he was the selector during the England series in 2016, so it should be fresh in his memory that this joke of a bowler averaged 50 in 2016. Rahat shouldn't even be in the squad or for the A side for that matter.

I don't know if you watched cricket in the 2000s but what you have to realise is Inzy ever since he was a skipper (03-07) has always had a phobia of picking younger players and has always taken the route of picking familiar names without the basis of merit. This practice has continued as coach when he went on to recall Gul during the 2016 England ODI series when there was no basis for him to be in internationals. Sticking to this theme it's the same reason why he has recalled Shehzad and given him an unwarranted number of squad selections. Not to forget he's also a fan of selfie.

Mickey dropped Hafeez during the England series and he was never picked again in tests because he was a poor test bat. As for Wahab there is no doubt that Mickey doesn't approve of him with his blunt reply to the media about his exclusion. There are no assumptions here.

Without PSL Inzy would have been a hopeless selector and along with Gul another example of this is when he picked Sami Aslam for the England ODIs 2 years ago on the basis of a good test at Edgbaston.

I agree with you on Inzi, more or less completely, but as the saying goes, even a stopped clock tells the time correctly at least twice a day. Sami has always been better in limited overs than in FC cricket. So his selection for the England Tests was against the grain of his domestic credentials. When Inzi picked him for ODIs on the basis of his Test success he had gotten it the wrong way around, twice. Which means the right way around. I still like Sami as an opener and thinks he deserves more chances, after his first exploits in England. So I don't know yet know whether to chalk this one up in the positives or negatives column for Inzi. But overall i don't see him making any brave or inspired calls.

 

[ArsenalFC]

I agree with you on Inzi, more or less completely, but as the saying goes, even a stopped clock tells the time correctly at least twice a day. Sami has always been better in limited overs than in FC cricket. So his selection for the England Tests was against the grain of his domestic credentials. When Inzi picked him for ODIs on the basis of his Test success he had gotten it the wrong way around, twice. Which means the right way around. I still like Sami as an opener and thinks he deserves more chances, after his first exploits in England. So I don't know yet know whether to chalk this one up in the positives or negatives column for Inzi. But overall i don't see him making any brave or inspired calls.

His List A stats are very impressive however we must acknowledge it is a lower standard of cricket compared to PSL let alone ODIs. This is primarily because there are more teams and with lack of foreign players this dilutes the homegrown talent pool, so we end up seeing more medicore, older uncle chachas, 70mph trundlers and etc who can be exploited by lesser players such as Shehzad, who this season got found out. I also blame the coaches, diets, routines and etc that are given to these players at List A.

Now I'm not writing off Sahibzada Farhan because I actually like him and feel if he works on his game could be a prospect but notice he wasn't anywhere near as dominant and fluent in the few PSL games he played as he was in list A? His technical flaws were far more noticeable. Also note Asad Shafiq has a very good list A record but in PSL and ODIs we know it's been another story to put it mildly.

For these reasons Sami Aslam cannot be picked purely on the basis of List A form. He needs a PSL contract and prove his quality in the shorter form of the game. As for the longer format it's a sorry state of affairs because he doesn't look to take the game forward at all. His average and SR in both FC + test appearances prove that he isn't close to test match standard. Needs at least 2-3 years in QeA.

 

[New Yorker]

His List A stats are very impressive however we must acknowledge it is a lower standard of cricket compared to PSL let alone ODIs. This is primarily because there are more teams and with lack of foreign players this dilutes the homegrown talent pool, so we end up seeing more medicore, older uncle chachas, 70mph trundlers and etc who can be exploited by lesser players such as Shehzad, who this season got found out. I also blame the coaches, diets, routines and etc that are given to these players at List A.

Now I'm not writing off Sahibzada Farhan because I actually like him and feel if he works on his game could be a prospect but notice he wasn't anywhere near as dominant and fluent in the few PSL games he played as he was in list A? His technical flaws were far more noticeable. Also note Asad Shafiq has a very good list A record but in PSL and ODIs we know it's been another story to put it mildly.

For these reasons Sami Aslam cannot be picked purely on the basis of List A form. He needs a PSL contract and prove his quality in the shorter form of the game. As for the longer format it's a sorry state of affairs because he doesn't look to take the game forward at all. His average and SR in both FC + test appearances prove that he isn't close to test match standard. Needs at least 2-3 years in QeA.

No I don't buy this at all. Whatever the standard of domestic cricket - and if it is so easy to bat now, we must give all the more credit to bowlers who still manage to average in the 20s - all players play the same conditions. Selection should be based not on absolute numbers but relative performance, compared to other players. And if Aslam is doing well comparatively then it is good policy to select him at some point. There is no better way to pick players, no other indicator of quality which is more foolproof than domestic performance. All you end up with if you try to look first at their technique, or speed, or whatever it is, is a Rahat. So I think Aslam earned his ODI call up, just not the way the selectors may have imagined it.

 

[New Yorker]

His List A stats are very impressive however we must acknowledge it is a lower standard of cricket compared to PSL let alone ODIs. This is primarily because there are more teams and with lack of foreign players this dilutes the homegrown talent pool, so we end up seeing more medicore, older uncle chachas, 70mph trundlers and etc who can be exploited by lesser players such as Shehzad, who this season got found out. I also blame the coaches, diets, routines and etc that are given to these players at List A.

Now I'm not writing off Sahibzada Farhan because I actually like him and feel if he works on his game could be a prospect but notice he wasn't anywhere near as dominant and fluent in the few PSL games he played as he was in list A? His technical flaws were far more noticeable. Also note Asad Shafiq has a very good list A record but in PSL and ODIs we know it's been another story to put it mildly.

For these reasons Sami Aslam cannot be picked purely on the basis of List A form. He needs a PSL contract and prove his quality in the shorter form of the game. As for the longer format it's a sorry state of affairs because he doesn't look to take the game forward at all. His average and SR in both FC + test appearances prove that he isn't close to test match standard. Needs at least 2-3 years in QeA.

I don't see that the standard of bowling in the PSL is necessarily higher than domestic ODI tourneys; the batting may be, but not the bowling, because the best bowlers in the PSL are generally Pakistani bowlers.

 

[ArsenalFC]

No I don't buy this at all. Whatever the standard of domestic cricket - and if it is so easy to bat now, we must give all the more credit to bowlers who still manage to average in the 20s - all players play the same conditions. Selection should be based not on absolute numbers but relative performance, compared to other players. And if Aslam is doing well comparatively then it is good policy to select him at some point. There is no better way to pick players, no other indicator of quality which is more foolproof than domestic performance. All you end up with if you try to look first at their technique, or speed, or whatever it is, is a Rahat. So I think Aslam earned his ODI call up, just not the way the selectors may have imagined it.

If we take this argument then unfortunately Shan Masood becomes an automatic selection to open with Fakhar for the national team since he holds the highest List A average in world cricket. Do you see where the argument for this breaks down? - especially when you consider Shan Masood isn't even good enough to play first team at PSL and rightly so because he would get exposed. Sami Aslam's performances aren't as good as Shan's in List A performances so on what basis does he deserve an international call up if he can't even get a pick from PSL which holds the best Pakistani LOI players.

Likewise with Asad Shafiq who's been pathetic in PSL but who had a prolific list A season towards the end of 2017.

I agree that domestics should form the basis of selection in LOIs but it should be entirely focused on PSL because otherwise it becomes very difficult (especially for someone like Inzy) to distinguish the PSL finds such as Sharjeel, Fakhar, Hasan Ali, Talat, Shadab and etc from the likes of Shafiq, Masood, Shehzad,, Awais Zia and etc etc.

 

[ArsenalFC]

I don't see that the standard of bowling in the PSL is necessarily higher than domestic ODI tourneys; the batting may be, but not the bowling, because the best bowlers in the PSL are generally Pakistani bowlers.

The PSL has the best bowlers in Pakistan, so the standard is always to going to be lower in other domestic LOI competitions where you'll see far more lesser bowlers whether it be due to mediocrity, lack of fitness, age or a combination of one or more of these. The problem with these competitions are there are just too many teams, effectively decreasing the talent pool.

 

[New Yorker]

If we take this argument then unfortunately Shan Masood becomes an automatic selection to open with Fakhar for the national team since he holds the highest List A average in world cricket. Do you see where the argument for this breaks down? - especially when you consider Shan Masood isn't even good enough to play first team at PSL and rightly so because he would get exposed. Sami Aslam's performances aren't as good as Shan's in List A performances so on what basis does he deserve an international call up if he can't even get a pick from PSL which holds the best Pakistani LOI players.

Likewise with Asad Shafiq who's been pathetic in PSL but who had a prolific list A season towards the end of 2017.

I agree that domestics should form the basis of selection in LOIs but it should be entirely focused on PSL because otherwise it becomes very difficult (especially for someone like Inzy) to distinguish the PSL finds such as Sharjeel, Fakhar, Hasan Ali, Talat, Shadab and etc from the likes of Shafiq, Masood, Shehzad,, Awais Zia and etc etc.

No, I don't see anything wrong at all in selecting Shan for the ODI team if he tops the domestic rankings. That he has failed in Tests does not mean that he will fail in ODIs. They are different formats. Just as T20 is different from ODIs. What information do we get from the fact that he was not selected for a PSL team? To me no information at all. How can tell how good someone is in a format if they have NOT been tested in that format? How can we know that he will get exposed? I don't know how to argue with someone who believes they know the future. If you do have this special power we should just make selection recommendations based on your opinions. In general, pointing to a strong List A performer who then fails in internationals is neither here nor there. You have show that other criteria of evaluating players, including PSL performance, are MORE consistent and reliable than domestic performance, OVERALL.

 

[ArsenalFC]

No, I don't see anything wrong at all in selecting Shan for the ODI team if he tops the domestic rankings. That he has failed in Tests does not mean that he will fail in ODIs. They are different formats. Just as T20 is different from ODIs. What information do we get from the fact that he was not selected for a PSL team? To me no information at all. How can tell how good someone is in a format if they have NOT been tested in that format? How can we know that he will get exposed? I don't know how to argue with someone who believes they know the future. If you do have this special power we should just make selection recommendations based on your opinions. In general, pointing to a strong List A performer who then fails in internationals is neither here nor there. You have show that other criteria of evaluating players, including PSL performance, are MORE consistent and reliable than domestic performance, OVERALL.

No need for the sarcastic tone. This is just a cricket discussion.

You ought to be corrected because Shan Masood was picked for Multan Sultans this year but couldn't make the first XI because literally everyone (except you) knows he isn't good enough to play first team PSL let alone LOIs from a technical standpoint

With all due respect if you think Shan Masood should be picked for Pakistan LOIs and feel the basis of selection for LOIs should primarily be from List A cricket then I don't know how to argue with your uninformed views.