Consequences of losing to Australia at home

[Savak]

I can definitely see an argument being made to move on from the likes of Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan.

Is Pakistan really benefiting by playing Azhar Ali and Fawad Alam at their advanced age of 37? When are we going to give a chance to likes of Saud Shakeel, Kamran Ghulam and co?

Shouldn't the selectors also be concerned by the one dimensional nature of the batting line up where every batsman from top to bottom plays in the slow, grinding survival mode. Shouldn't our team have at least 2-3 counter attackers who can attack the bowlers and try to put them off their settled line and length?

Most importantly, the PCB needs to understand that by preparing flat, benign pitches they are neutering their own bowlers against quality batting line up's early in the test match and they are not going to get lucky with the toss by batting first on day one.

This historical series has now turned into a nightmare

 

[AamchiMumbaikar]

Your test team is poor, if pitch is flat, you are also expected to put up at least 350 not 148.

Just accept that and move on.

 

[Major]

As alwaysz the ones at bench are deemed as the saviours.

Why is it that whenevr we lose the blame is on the likes of azhar and fawad when every single batter failed?.

It was rameez rajas mistake, accept it.

 

[Savak]

As alwaysz the ones at bench are deemed as the saviours.

Why is it that whenevr we lose the blame is on the likes of azhar and fawad when every single batter failed?.

It was rameez rajas mistake, accept it.

Because the wealth of experience that Azhar Ali, Fawad Alam possess and the age they are in means a lot more is expected from them against quality opposition at home.

 

[Savak]

Your test team is poor, if pitch is flat, you are also expected to put up at least 350 not 148.

Just accept that and move on.

The pitch aided reverse swing and Starc, Cummins exploited it beautifully

 

[Buffet]

The pitch aided reverse swing and Starc, Cummins exploited it beautifully

Pitch is not 140 all-out kind of pitch. Pakistan batted poorly in their first inning. If they bat well in 2nd inning, it's possible for them to get a draw here.

 

[Kianig89]

Team require only one or two changes alarming thing is no captaincy material heck follow Australia and hand captaincy to SSA

 

[Kianig89]

The pitch aided reverse swing and Starc, Cummins exploited it beautifully

Pakistani pitches always aid reverse swing 2Ws Akhtar lived all their careers on it its the inability of bowlers and lack of leadership which is a hindrance bowlers are half fit overcooked after PSL

 

[jnaveen1980]

Not seen the match. Given that Australia is batting well with no issues It is possible scoreboard pressure got to them. They are wearing Pakistan attack down for the rest of the series by batting on. Pakistan still has a chance to save this test.

 

[Cover Drive Six]

Pakistan need someone like Rishab Pant at lower order to counter attack.
All batters are in tuk tuk mode even on batting friendly pitch.

 

[Major]

Because the wealth of experience that Azhar Ali, Fawad Alam possess and the age they are in means a lot more is expected from them against quality opposition at home.

Azhar got a century, babar is yet to even get a 50.

Batting is not the issue. The pitch is the issue here. The batsmen chosen are our best lot. There is no one better in the country in terms of test batting than these guys.

Had we msde a pitch that assisted our bowlers we would had been just fine.

If you are to get all out for less than 150 on a batting pitch and on a bowling pitch than might aswell make a bowling pitch to get the opposition under pressure atleast

 

[Saurav]

The pitch aided reverse swing and Starc, Cummins exploited it beautifully

nothing alarming.Its still a patta.

Pak can draw it considering Aus for some reason has decided to bat again

 

[Justcrazy]

Pakistan is a mid tier team in Test cricket , you cannot change it ina day and two .

Pakistan is playing very less Test cricket, that is one of the reasons why they are playing poorly, they need to be playing 10 - 12 Tests every year, PCB needs to prioritize tests more.

 

[SM1989]

Test cricket is boring. Just play ODIs and T20s.

 

[sweep_shot]

Pakistan lost to Australia at home in 1998. That Pakistani team had big names like Saeed Anwar, Inzamam, Wasim, Saqlain etc.

Losing to Australia is not unthinkable. They are a heavyweight team.

This Australia team can probably win anywhere (including India). They have all bases covered.

 

[TeamPak95]

Pakistan losing this series has to lead to at least some level of change in the XI. Forget about whether they're saviors or not, you can only keep Saud and Kamran on the bench for so long; at some point, sooner rather than later, they're gonna need chances to prove themselves.

For me, I'm particularly looking at Azhar, Fawad, and Nauman for this current series primarily because of their longevity. Yes Azhar scored 180-something, yes Fawad, minus his first-ball duck, has been in solid run-scoring form in tests, and Nauman is an experienced campaigner with the ball. However, if for the rest of this series these 3 don't put up the goods, then what does that say about their much-needed experience against teams like Australia? Azhar for now gets a pass as at least he scored heavy in the first test (albeit on a dead pitch where pretty much everyone scored).

If you ask me, if things turn sour when this series ends and whether or not its harsh, potentially one of Fawad and Azhar needs to be replaced with one of Ghulam and Saud and be given a proper run in the team. Nothing against Nauman, but Mohammad Nawaz is a massive upgrade over him. Will this lead to a change of fortunes for Pak? Maybe, maybe not but if Pakistan do end up losing this series and the team stays the same then one shouldn't expect much moving forward vs the Australias and the Englands of the world.

 

[Savak]

Pakistan losing this series has to lead to at least some level of change in the XI. Forget about whether they're saviors or not, you can only keep Saud and Kamran on the bench for so long; at some point, sooner rather than later, they're gonna need chances to prove themselves.

For me, I'm particularly looking at Azhar, Fawad, and Nauman for this current series primarily because of their longevity. Yes Azhar scored 180-something, yes Fawad, minus his first-ball duck, has been in solid run-scoring form in tests, and Nauman is an experienced campaigner with the ball. However, if for the rest of this series these 3 don't put up the goods, then what does that say about their much-needed experience against teams like Australia? Azhar for now gets a pass as at least he scored heavy in the first test (albeit on a dead pitch where pretty much everyone scored).

If you ask me, if things turn sour when this series ends and whether or not its harsh, potentially one of Fawad and Azhar needs to be replaced with one of Ghulam and Saud and be given a proper run in the team. Nothing against Nauman, but Mohammad Nawaz is a massive upgrade over him. Will this lead to a change of fortunes for Pak? Maybe, maybe not but if Pakistan do end up losing this series and the team stays the same then one shouldn't expect much moving forward vs the Australias and the Englands of the world.

How long can Azhar and Fawad play for? Another year, maybe two if lucky? Yes Fawad has been badly treated where he was discarded in his prime while scoring runs but he is 36-37 now.

Should Pakistan not look to build a batting line up for the future by selecting younger players who have performed in domestic cricket? More importantly what kind of batting line up do we want to build for the next 5-10 years? Is it wise to have all batsmen from top to bottom as accumulaters, grinders?

It is the job of the selection committee, captain and coach to have a vision and to build the team accordingly

 

[TeamPak95]

How long can Azhar and Fawad play for? Another year, maybe two if lucky? Yes Fawad has been badly treated where he was discarded in his prime while scoring runs but he is 36-37 now.

Should Pakistan not look to build a batting line up for the future by selecting younger players who have performed in domestic cricket? More importantly what kind of batting line up do we want to build for the next 5-10 years? Is it wise to have all batsmen from top to bottom as accumulaters, grinders?

It is the job of the selection committee, captain and coach to have a vision and to build the team accordingly

Forgot to mention in my post regarding the longevity of Azhar and Fawad. Even if they go bonkers for the rest of this series and Pakistan somehow win 1-0, moving forward, how long would that form last? If their form ends up lasting for the whole of this WTC cycle, then great. Obviously as a fan, Azhar and Fawad scoring leading to Pak winning the series 1-0 would make me very happy but from a longevity stand-point alone, Pakistan need to invest more in guys like Kamran and Saud. And this is coming from a Fawad fan.

This is the problem with Pakistan cricket - only when they lose badly is when they make any sort of changes. And then when they do make changes, more times than not, they don't do that right. Hence, like you said, where the lack of vision comes in.

 

[Cric_lover4487]

I feel sorry for Fawad. Fielding for 7 days and then getting a golden duck. Cricket is a cruel sport sometimes. I hope he scores century in second innings. I like his approach to life.

 

[ssuhaide]

No consequences at all.

Australia is ranked 1. And even if you don't agree with that ranking (I personally have India at 1) they are a side packed with proven performers with bat and ball.

Pakistan are ranked at 6 and don't have much in any department. Babar is out best bat but hasn't scored heavily in tests for a while and his average does not match the hype that his reputation gets.

Likely Azhar Ali will be allowed to complete his 100 tests he won't be dropped. Fawad Alam won't be dropped if he fails in the entire series. Hassan Ali and Faheem will be perserved with as they have some all-round ability.

At risk are the two spinners especially Sajid. Expect Yasir to be waiting in the wings for a recall. Bar that I don't expect any wholesale changes. Its not as if there are talented bowlers or spinning options coming through.

 

[TheNeutralist]

Pakistan lost to Australia at home in 1998. That Pakistani team had big names like Saeed Anwar, Inzamam, Wasim, Saqlain etc.

Losing to Australia is not unthinkable. They are a heavyweight team.

This Australia team can probably win anywhere (including India). They have all bases covered.

Seriously? India can sleep walk and beat any team at home, even though it's batting is weakest in many years.

Didn't India beat the same Aussies at home?

 

[iniqbal223]

At least sarfaraz the captain did not lose to Australia in UAE

 

[shamaan]

I can definitely see some changes if Pakistan lose the series.

 

[Savak]

At least sarfaraz the captain did not lose to Australia in UAE

Sarfaraz got lucky with Mohd Abbass novelty factor. You take Abbas out from that series and Australia had countered Yasir Shah pretty well. Remember they drew the first test miraculously and Sarfaraz's impatient, clueless captaincy was held responsible.

 

[iniqbal223]

Sarfaraz got lucky with Mohd Abbass novelty factor. You take Abbas out from that series and Australia had countered Yasir Shah pretty well. Remember they drew the first test miraculously and Sarfaraz's impatient, clueless captaincy was held responsible.

Isn't that captain supposed to do? Utilize his resources to their best?

 

[Savak]

Isn't that captain supposed to do? Utilize his resources to their best?

What was there to utilize? Any sane captain would have bowled Abbass given the form he was in

 

[sweep_shot]

Didn't India beat the same Aussies at home?

That was quite a while ago.

This Aussie team is much more settled and experienced. Also, India have regressed.

 

[PakPremi]

I feel sorry for Fawad. Fielding for 7 days and then getting a golden duck. Cricket is a cruel sport sometimes. I hope he scores century in second innings. I like his approach to life.

It did not help his cause by not batting him last match. Paksitan do not play many tests as it is and then when they do play you do not allow him to bat. Had he batted last match he could have been in some form.

 

[Energy]

There may be a couple of changes for the next test but they'll be replaced by Iftikhar, Zahid, Abbas so not expecting much hope.

The right time to groom guys like Saud, Kamran, even Nawaz, is now. Only if Babar had the balls, he's always been one of those who likes senior cushion that's why he vouched for Malik, Hafeez to be part of LOIs for as long as they have been.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Sarfaraz got lucky with Mohd Abbass novelty factor. You take Abbas out from that series and Australia had countered Yasir Shah pretty well. Remember they drew the first test miraculously and Sarfaraz's impatient, clueless captaincy was held responsible.

The 1st test was drawn due to Azhar Alis snail batting after pakistan were 200/0 after 2 sessions. Also the go slow batting on day 2. That was nothing to do with sarfaraz's captaincy it was inept batting.

 

[BreadPakoda]

That was quite a while ago.

This Aussie team is much more settled and experienced. Also, India have regressed.

How has India regressed? Just defeated SL under 3 days. SL didn’t win even a single session.

India now has a third outstanding spinner / all rounder in Axar Patel, a solid middle order batsman in Iyer, and has got rid of deadweights Pujara and Rahane.

 

[Amjid Javed]

How has India regressed? Just defeated SL under 3 days. SL didn’t win even a single session.

India now has a third outstanding spinner / all rounder in Axar Patel, a solid middle order batsman in Iyer, and has got rid of deadweights Pujara and Rahane.

India will continue to batter all comers in home tests, the batting conveyer belt keeps on rolling.

 

[sweep_shot]

How has India regressed? Just defeated SL under 3 days. SL didn’t win even a single session.

India now has a third outstanding spinner / all rounder in Axar Patel, a solid middle order batsman in Iyer, and has got rid of deadweights Pujara and Rahane.

Sri Lanka are a terrible team currently.

I think upcoming Australia-India series should give us a clear picture. I expect Aussies to win it 2-1 (just like they did in 2004).

 

[BreadPakoda]

Sri Lanka are a terrible team currently.

I think upcoming Australia-India series should give us a clear picture. I expect Aussies to win it 2-1 (just like they did in 2004).

Gotcha. India will indeed find it difficult to defeat “this” Australia….similar to what happened nearly two decades ago. This reinvigorated Australia is something else, especially with a back-in-form Warner and prime Khawaja.

 

[iniqbal223]

What was there to utilize? Any sane captain would have bowled Abbass given the form he was in

Are you serious?

Yes that's what Babar did in this game; when there was a reverse swing , he removed Shaheen, Hasan from attack and asked our spinners to bowl negative line to save runs
On the opposite when Cummins saw even the slightest hint of reverse , he bring Starc immediately to wreak havoc

If someone is a captain of International team then the minimum ask is he should be match aware and know when to utilize his players. If players are not used properly then even the bowler in his prime would not be able to do anything

This is what even Misbah did , in UAE he used to go all out with spin attacks after knowing the behavior of the pitch.. This is common sense.