How Misbah-ul-Haq dismantled and destroyed the team which did well in England in 2018

[Junaids]

Well, the chickens have come home to roost.

Mickey Arthur and Inzamam-ul Haq drew Test series in England in 2016 and 2018.

Now the team with Misbah as Chief Selector and Misbah as Head Coach has been humiliated upon its return to England.

The new system of a single person as Chief Selector and Head Coach gave Misbah total accountability - and he is totally responsible.

But how did such a young team as the 2018 tourists turn bad so quickly.

The answers, unfortunately, are glaringly obvious.

1. Misbah threw out the youngsters and replaced them with inferior seniors
The Inzamam team had the following ages: (Bold denotes the same players as in the other series)
Batsmen: 22, 33, 23, 32, 29
Keeper: 30
Leg-spinner: 19
Quicks: 23, 24, 26, 28

The Misbah team is as follows:
Batsmen: 30, 32, 35, 25, 34, 34
Keeper: 28
Leg-spinner: 34
Quicks: 19, 20, 30

If we band the ages of the players:

34 and above:
Misbah 4
Inzamam 0

31-33:
Misbah 3
Inzamam 2

21-30:
Misbah 2
Inzamam 8

Under 21:
Misbah 2
Inzamam 1

Inzamam and Arthur had a team in which 8 players aged 21 to 30 did most of the work. Misbah almost completely discarded that generation of players with Babar Azam and Mohammad Abbas the only players of that generation - out of EIGHT - whom he retained.

2. Misbah lengthened the tail
Mickey Arthur made no secret of the fact that in England in 2016 he was appalled by the length of the tail, and that 5 out swiftly became all out.

Arthur and Inzamam crafted a lower order of:

7. Shadab Khan
8. Faheem Ashraf
9. Mohammad Amir
10. Hasan Ali

....to ensure that Mohammad Abbas was the only bona fide Number 11. In 2 of the 3 Tests, it was the batting of Faheem Ashraf and Shadab Khan which turned defeat into victory.

Misbah immediately returned to having 3 Number 11's.

3. Misbah reduced from 4 quicks to 3
The Inzamam/Arthur team conceded the following scores in the 3 Tests in 2018:

130 and 339
184 and 242
363

I like many others am unconvinced about the quality of what Faheem and Hasan Ali deliver. But what they did do was:

1. Shorten the spells of Amir and Abbas, who were sharper as a result.
2. Reduce the use of the leg-spinner, given that even Yasir Shah averages 38 with the ball in England, with a strike rate of 67, which is worse than any prospective fourth seamer.

4. Misbah did away with homework and plans
Mickey Arthur was always a stickler for having individualised plans for every opposing batsman and bowler.

It was Arthur who worked out the notorious James Vince weakness outside off-stump, for example.

Misbah and Waqar have no such ideas. They don't appear to do any research at all, given how they failed to bounce Woakes as he led England home at Old Trafford.

All in all, it's astonishing how one man can dismantle a young team and discard the structure and tactics which made it successful.

And in the space of 2 years turn a young and successful team into an old and failing team.

 

[iniqbal223]

Actually, discarding Mickey was itself a big blunder. There were some faults of him like :

1) Expecting too much from pseudo AR like Faheem and Shadab and thinking they would become next Klusner/Steve Smith

2) Too much reliance on fast bowling in UAE (same South African mindset came, as when he was the coach of SA and Aus, they had 5/6 fast bowling options in playing 11) As a result relied only on Yasir and completely ignored the need for second spinner. This leads to us loosing test series against SL



3) We also lost series against NZ at home. But I won't blame him if your main batsman Azhar Ali had brain **** . And Asad Shafiq was passenger after his Brisbane innings. Its also because of these pseudo-seniors (Azhar and Asad) that we lost the chance of winning test series in England in 2018..
Instead after, SA series in 2019, he himself said if Azhar and Sad don't improve , he is ready to axe them.. But then our Misbah came and we were back to mediocrity


People would blame Wasim Khan and Ehsan Mani for all this mess. But in fact, show is run by our PM, IK.. And that is what Wasim/Ehsan are hired for to execute whatever IK says.. Also, if it was not for IK, there is no way Misbah can suddenly become all important partner of Pakistan Cricket.. Misbah (some relative of IK)
Not blaming IK, he can chose his team,, but his decisions are not working and it is better if he realize this soon

 

[Junaids]

I fully recognise that Arthur erred by only playing one spinner in the UAE.

But the key point in THIS failure is what Misbah has done to the team.

He took a team with EIGHT players aged 21-30.

And he systematically discarded all of them except for Babar Azam and Mohammad Abbas, and replaced them with geriatric has-beens and kids.

And he destroyed the balance of the team on every level:

The balance of experience and youth.

The balance of the bowling attack.

The length of the tail.

You can’t play 5 batsmen the wrong side of 30 and then have 3 Number Elevens as well.

Inzamam showed a surprising amount of skill in the balance of his squads and starting elevens.

Whereas Misbah doesn’t even seem to consider balance at all.

A team with 8 players aged 21-30 didn’t have to become geriatrics and kids only. That was Misbah’s choice, and now he needs to be relieved of his Chief Selector role.

Consider too that he got to take 29 players to England.

And managed NOT to include the batsman who:

1. Topped the averages in England in 2016 (averaging 14 higher than Misbah).

2. Topped the QEA runscorer list last domestic First Class season.

3. Is only 24 years old.

Yet Misbah excluded him from the 29 man squad.

He is grossly, monumentally incompetent, and he has dismantled and destroyed a young and successful team.

 

[iniqbal223]

I don't know why PCB thinks Misbah has all the answers. In fact he has none.. During his captaincy , it was Saeed Ajmal that won him games, plus from 2010 - 2016 except for SA series in 2013, most of the series were in Asia, Dubai. Which completely overshadowed his incompetence as captain, and people started to believe it was Fortress of some kind..
Pakistan never got to play India in that fortress which Misbah claimed..I was once watching Rashid Latif's comment and he was right during 90s and early 2000 , performance against India was so important that it could make or break your career..And here in this case , people were appointed captains after Mohali 2011 debacle.

Misbah should feel lucky that during his captaincy Pakistan did not face the strongest (best Asian performer side), side that included : Sehwag, Gambhir, VVS, Kohli, MSD, Ashwin, Jadeja, Bumrah, Pujara, Rahane, etc..

 

[iniqbal223]

First there was Akmal gang (Akmals + shehzad)
But I think Misbah gang (Malik, hafeez, Azhar, asad, Imran khan sr, Misbah, Waqar) will hurt Pakistan cricket the most

 

[Energy]

It's always been a pattern with the spin, right from the time playing Abdul Rehman, to Zulfiqar Babar, to Saeed Ajmal, and now Bilal Asif. Hard to fault Misbah though - he's been stubborn all through his career.

Wasim Khan and the PCB are the ones to answer.

 

[Abdullah]

Said it at the time Mickey was the right man, I don't know why they got rid of him?!
It was only the senior batsman that were the problem and pulling the whole team down ( hafeez Malik sarfaraz odis, Azhar and Asad sarfaraz tests) everyone else was finding there feet ok.
He was putting in place structure and process that should have been given the opportunity to reap rewards

 

[Mamoon]

Not this again.

The 2018 side was bog average as well, and they escaped with a 1-1 draw because it was only a 2 match series and England had a weaker side.

That would have fared no better than the current again England this time.

 

[Hasan123]

Junaids you live in a fantasy world. We were a rubbish test team under Mickey. Your boys Shadab and Faheem were involved against South Africa and we got beaten black and blue.

I don't get why you think Shadab would have made a difference.

Yasir conceded over 200 runs, imagine how many Shadab would have conceded. He gets 2 tail enders out and you talk as if he is dismissing elite level players. Also he bowls about 10 overs which is something you don't mention.

 

[AamchiMumbaikar]

not this again.

The 2018 side was bog average as well, and they escaped with a 1-1 draw because it was only a 2 match series and england had a weaker side.

That would have fared no better than the current again england this time.

this

 

[iniqbal223]

Shadab has improved, while Yasir is nothing bowler (except 1/2 innings) outside Asia

 

[zarak]

biggest mistake is to select teams on reputation. Yasir is a bad choice overseas. Granted he did well in the first test but looking at the conditions we should have opted for an extra seamer and played shadab. We would have had a much fresher bowling attack. It is quite evident that our bowlers are getting tired which is why we cant clean up the lower order

 

[Titan24]

We still werent any world beater in tests under Mickey. Yes Pak was able to draw couple of series in Eng but, elsewhere especially post Misbah and Younis exit from the middle order we were even struggling in UAE. We lost one sided series in Aus, SA and NZ along with loosing home series against Srl and NZ.

We could have created a thread after Pak loss vs Srl and NZ at home that how Mickey destroyed Waqar’s team which was unbeaten in UAE.

That being said Misbah has made number of blunders but lets not deny Mickey’s team was pretty ordinary as well. Drawing couple of series in Eng is no way an indication of a world beater team especially when we were even loosing home series as well. Having some experienced pacers in Amir and Wahab supported the cause better.

Misbah turning out to be a pretty poor coach/selector till now doesnt mean Mickey was some cricketing genius in my opinion.

 

[Titan24]

Misbah has been horrible till now on number of fronts and deserves all the criticism without a doubt but the way we make Mickey some sort of Messiah is definitely an illusion as he was also pretty poor. Yes we can argue one was bit better or not but, thats serves no purpose.

 

[tyron_woodley]

Well, the chickens have come home to roost.

Mickey Arthur and Inzamam-ul Haq drew Test series in England in 2016 and 2018.

Now the team with Misbah as Chief Selector and Misbah as Head Coach has been humiliated upon its return to England.

The new system of a single person as Chief Selector and Head Coach gave Misbah total accountability - and he is totally responsible.

But how did such a young team as the 2018 tourists turn bad so quickly.

The answers, unfortunately, are glaringly obvious.

1. Misbah threw out the youngsters and replaced them with inferior seniors
The Inzamam team had the following ages: (Bold denotes the same players as in the other series)
Batsmen: 22, 33, 23, 32, 29
Keeper: 30
Leg-spinner: 19
Quicks: 23, 24, 26, 28

The Misbah team is as follows:
Batsmen: 30, 32, 35, 25, 34, 34
Keeper: 28
Leg-spinner: 34
Quicks: 19, 20, 30

If we band the ages of the players:

34 and above:
Misbah 4
Inzamam 0

31-33:
Misbah 3
Inzamam 2

21-30:
Misbah 2
Inzamam 8

Under 21:
Misbah 2
Inzamam 1

Inzamam and Arthur had a team in which 8 players aged 21 to 30 did most of the work. Misbah almost completely discarded that generation of players with Babar Azam and Mohammad Abbas the only players of that generation - out of EIGHT - whom he retained.

2. Misbah lengthened the tail
Mickey Arthur made no secret of the fact that in England in 2016 he was appalled by the length of the tail, and that 5 out swiftly became all out.

Arthur and Inzamam crafted a lower order of:

7. Shadab Khan
8. Faheem Ashraf
9. Mohammad Amir
10. Hasan Ali

....to ensure that Mohammad Abbas was the only bona fide Number 11. In 2 of the 3 Tests, it was the batting of Faheem Ashraf and Shadab Khan which turned defeat into victory.

Misbah immediately returned to having 3 Number 11's.

3. Misbah reduced from 4 quicks to 3
The Inzamam/Arthur team conceded the following scores in the 3 Tests in 2018:

130 and 339
184 and 242
363

I like many others am unconvinced about the quality of what Faheem and Hasan Ali deliver. But what they did do was:

1. Shorten the spells of Amir and Abbas, who were sharper as a result.
2. Reduce the use of the leg-spinner, given that even Yasir Shah averages 38 with the ball in England, with a strike rate of 67, which is worse than any prospective fourth seamer.

4. Misbah did away with homework and plans
Mickey Arthur was always a stickler for having individualised plans for every opposing batsman and bowler.

It was Arthur who worked out the notorious James Vince weakness outside off-stump, for example.

Misbah and Waqar have no such ideas. They don't appear to do any research at all, given how they failed to bounce Woakes as he led England home at Old Trafford.

All in all, it's astonishing how one man can dismantle a young team and discard the structure and tactics which made it successful.

And in the space of 2 years turn a young and successful team into an old and failing team.

misbah height- 180 cm
younis height - 180 cm


current team have too many midgets.

I think you need a balance. Serious question to you junaids. I think you always need the right balance in terms of batting composition. You need a mix of both short and tall batsmen. Pakistan had that balance in 2018 and 2016. You need a bit of height to counter short balls and utilize your leverage vs certain type of balls.

I believe it makes a huge difference. Also the left right combination matters as it can disrupt a bowler's rythym. Some top bowlers can be very effective vs a particular quality batsman, conversely a much poorer batsmen with an inferior technique can still be handy vs that exact same bowler due to his batting style alone.

 

[Junaids]

Junaids you live in a fantasy world. We were a rubbish test team under Mickey. Your boys Shadab and Faheem were involved against South Africa and we got beaten black and blue..

Get your story straight!

In South Africa in 2019-20
Yasir Shah took 1 wicket in 2 Tests, average 123.00

(Shadab and Faheem only played in the Third Test)

Shadab Khan took 4 wickets in 1 Test, average 20.00.

Faheem Ashraf played 1 Test, and took 6 wickets for 99 runs.

Mohammad Abbas in the same match took 3 wickets for 117 runs.

 

[Junaids]

misbah height- 180 cm
younis height - 180 cm


current team have too many midgets.

I think you need a balance. Serious question to you junaids. I think you always need the right balance in terms of batting composition. You need a mix of both short and tall batsmen. Pakistan had that balance in 2018 and 2016. You need a bit of height to counter short balls and utilize your leverage vs certain type of balls.

I believe it makes a huge difference. Also the left right combination matters as it can disrupt a bowler's rythym. Some top bowlers can be very effective vs a particular quality batsman, conversely a much poorer batsmen with an inferior technique can still be handy vs that exact same bowler due to his batting style alone.

Actually you make a very good point!

 

[Hasan123]

Get your story straight!

In South Africa in 2019-20
Yasir Shah took 1 wicket in 2 Tests, average 123.00

(Shadab and Faheem only played in the Third Test)

Shadab Khan took 4 wickets in 1 Test, average 20.00.

Faheem Ashraf played 1 Test, and took 6 wickets for 99 runs.

Mohammad Abbas in the same match took 3 wickets for 117 runs.

They played and we still lost comfortably.

 

[Syed1]

Even ATG Aussie and Windies teams would struggle to compete if they had a shameless person like Misbah as coach.

What's worse is that Wasim fully backs him

 

[tyron_woodley]

Actually you make a very good point!

like seriously. I think it really matters. You need 2 or 3 batsmen with an above average height of atleast 180 plus cm. Factor in the left right combo and it makes it a lot more difficult to disrupt the batsmen rhythm.

All of the top 6 batsmen in Pakistan are short except masood who is 6 foot.

India dominated away in England during the 2000 period when they had 3 batsmen above 179 cm aka dravid, laxman and ganguly. They were all fairly tall.

under virat, we only have pujara who is 6 foot. rest are all midgets or average in height. Unless we add Rahul who isn't a regular. I would like to see Rahul in the middle order instead of rahane. vihari must play too. We would then have 3 batsmen over 5'11.

 

[ritzy_123]

Even when Mickey was sacked you still had the chance to hire proven brain of Dean Jones but we opted for the worst in the world Misbah Ul Haq.. We deserve this

 

[iniqbal223]

Seniority culture hurted Pakistan the most in every decade..And Misbah is the prophet of having seniors in the team while Mickey was for less and less seniors (that's why entire journos went against Mickey) Journalists don't even credit CT win, #1 T20 rankings to Mickey as if we have won CT 10 times. Even these were fluke , but victory is victory..

Again, problem for Mickey is not able to understand what works in UAE and too much reliance on Yasir, Azhar, Hafeez, Malik and Asad.. He thought just like Kallis, Smith, amla, Steyn takes reponsibilities so do these seniors will. In all these big losses under Mickey, seniors (who are playing for over a decade, some even 2 decades) underperformed

SL UAE series : Azhar + Asad
Aus series : misbah + Yasir + Wahab + Younis (except last innings)
NZ series : Younis + Wahab + Azhar + Asad
Nz UAE series : Azhar + Asad + Hafeez + Sarfaraz
WC 2019 : Malik + Hafeez + Sarfaraz

While Sarfaraz, got his punishment, others kept on sticking around because being part of more powerful Misbah gang

 

[tyron_woodley]

Seniority culture hurted Pakistan the most in every decade..And Misbah is the prophet of having seniors in the team while Mickey was for less and less seniors (that's why entire journos went against Mickey) Journalists don't even credit CT win, #1 T20 rankings to Mickey as if we have won CT 10 times. Even these were fluke , but victory is victory..

Again, problem for Mickey is not able to understand what works in UAE and too much reliance on Yasir, Azhar, Hafeez, Malik and Asad.. He thought just like Kallis, Smith, amla, Steyn takes reponsibilities so do these seniors will. In all these big losses under Mickey, seniors (who are playing for over a decade, some even 2 decades) underperformed

SL UAE series : Azhar + Asad
Aus series : misbah + Yasir + Wahab + Younis (except last innings)
NZ series : Younis + Wahab + Azhar + Asad
Nz UAE series : Azhar + Asad + Hafeez + Sarfaraz
WC 2019 : Malik + Hafeez + Sarfaraz

While Sarfaraz, got his punishment, others kept on sticking around because being part of more powerful Misbah gang

this is very true but the issue is that talents from pakistan haven't exactly lit the world on fire either.

 

[iniqbal223]

this is very true but the issue is that talents from pakistan haven't exactly lit the world on fire either.

Actually youngsters of Pakistan are at par with youngsters of other countries..
But with so many seniors coming in and out based on 0 performances, its the youngsters who get the slack and get sacrificed..Naseem and shaheen are okay, and will learn more, but we needed to have one bowling leader, Yasir has no leadership qualities. Abbas himself is like youngsters have played very limited Tests as well. I think main idea was, that Waqar & Misbah will control everything from the outside. That strategy has FLOPPED big time. Azhar is no leader, he might have saved himself for another year, but all in all he has been liability as a batsman and nothing in captaincy

 

[tyron_woodley]

Actually youngsters of Pakistan are at par with youngsters of other countries..
But with so many seniors coming in and out based on 0 performances, its the youngsters who get the slack and get sacrificed..Naseem and shaheen are okay, and will learn more, but we needed to have one bowling leader, Yasir has no leadership qualities. Abbas himself is like youngsters have played very limited Tests as well. I think main idea was, that Waqar & Misbah will control everything from the outside. That strategy has FLOPPED big time. Azhar is no leader, he might have saved himself for another year, but all in all he has been liability as a batsman and nothing in captaincy

who from the ranks or first class setup is ready to play for pakistan though? batting wise. The Bowling stock is the best they can put out tbh and so far it's been poor albeit in difficult conditions. Who are the talented batsmen sitting out? I don't recall any to be fair.

I am all for change and we will always feel like batsmen who dint get picked probably would have fared better until.they flop when the opportunity presents itself. If there were young talents who are doing well in first class then I believe misbah has actually offered them chances? right?

 

[iniqbal223]

who from the ranks or first class setup is ready to play for pakistan though? batting wise. The Bowling stock is the best they can put out tbh and so far it's been poor albeit in difficult conditions. Who are the talented batsmen sitting out? I don't recall any to be fair.

I am all for change and we will always feel like batsmen who dint get picked probably would have fared better until.they flop when the opportunity presents itself. If there were young talents who are doing well in first class then I believe misbah has actually offered them chances? right?

Then let the grand fathers play...Sometimes, we fans are blinded by some of the journalists commentary that there are no good batsmen in domestic.. There possibly are, but the think is don't give them enough chances while we keep on recycle rubbish like Malik, Hafeez, etc.

 

[shamaan]

who from the ranks or first class setup is ready to play for pakistan though? batting wise. The Bowling stock is the best they can put out tbh and so far it's been poor albeit in difficult conditions. Who are the talented batsmen sitting out? I don't recall any to be fair.

I am all for change and we will always feel like batsmen who dint get picked probably would have fared better until.they flop when the opportunity presents itself. If there were young talents who are doing well in first class then I believe misbah has actually offered them chances? right?

Just a few who can be brought into the team haider ali,usman salahddin,omair bin yousuf,imran butt,zeeshan Malik some of then have played only couple games

 

[shamaan]

Then let the grand fathers play...Sometimes, we fans are blinded by some of the journalists commentary that there are no good batsmen in domestic.. There possibly are, but the think is don't give them enough chances while we keep on recycle rubbish like Malik, Hafeez, etc.

Agreed for example usman saladin I belive he played 1 game and then got dropped against south Africa

 

[tyron_woodley]

Agreed for example usman saladin I belive he played 1 game and then got dropped against south Africa

cant have too many youngsters man.

 

[shamaan]

cant have too many youngsters man.

So you want the likes of shafiq and fawad to continue to play til 40?

 

[BreadPakoda]

You just had the most successful tour to England as per the other thread. If I were you, I would hope the team remains the same with Azhar as captain for next 5 years, with Misbah’s blessings.

 

[tyron_woodley]

So you want the likes of shafiq and fawad to continue to play til 40?

I don't say that. You need the right mixture
I prefer in prime players. 24-29 year olds

 

[shamaan]

I don't say that. You need the right mixture
I prefer in prime players. 24-29 year olds

So who ?

 

[Buffet]

Are you talking about this team? How can you destroy this team?
.

 

[Buffet]

Are you talking about this team? How can you destroy this team?
.

View attachment 102925

10 test victories had 4 against WI and 1 against Ire.

W/L for Pakistan's world-class team of 2018, which Misbah destroyed, will be around 0.3 against teams ranked in top 6-7.

Misbah is not great, but he hardly destroyed anything great.

 

[RyanRyan10]

Are you talking about this team? How can you destroy this team?
.

View attachment 102925

Under Mickey & Inzi, Pak played 2 tests in SA in Jan 2019. Include that and the ratio becomes 0.58. If WI & Ire are excluded then the W/L ratio would be 0.33

 

[ahmedzee]

10 test victories had 4 against WI and 1 against Ire.

W/L for Pakistan's world-class team of 2018, which Misbah destroyed, will be around 0.3 against teams ranked in top 6-7.

Misbah is not great, but he hardly destroyed anything great.

Under Mickey & Inzi, Pak played 2 tests in SA in Jan 2019. Include that and the ratio becomes 0.58. If WI & Ire are excluded then the W/L ratio would be 0.33

Can someone do T20I analysis under Misbah and Mickey...i bet there would be a start contrast.

 

[coy0607]

Let's be honest here, the PCT weren't any world beaters before Misbah took over as selector / coach.

The case against him isn't that the team worsened with Misbah, it more so about the total lack of improvement and the investment in older players who won't provide a return in the investment.

 

[Buffet]

Let's be honest here, the PCT weren't any world beaters before Misbah took over as selector / coach.

The case against him isn't that the team worsened with Misbah, it more so about the total lack of improvement and the investment in older players who won't provide a return in the investment.

Agree with the bold point.

 

[Buffet]

Can someone do T20I analysis under Misbah and Mickey...i bet there would be a start contrast.

What was the date for Mickey? Roughly?

 

[Pacy with wisdom]

Unlike in the last 10 years, now there is enough raw material going around in terms of the talent that is available.
However for that to come into use, we need a new professional management, and my vision tells me that there is going to be an upheaval once Misbah and co are sacked. InshaAllah!

 

[Junaids]

Unlike in the last 10 years, now there is enough raw material going around in terms of the talent that is available.
However for that to come into use, we need a new professional management, and my vision tells me that there is going to be an upheaval once Misbah and co are sacked. InshaAllah!

Absolutely!

There is the raw material now in terms of the talent required and at a good age.

I always tell people that in international sport - football or cricket - I believe in the THREE PLUS model.

A team will do well if it has:

1. THREE top players, PLUS 8 average players currently playing at their personal peak.
2. THREE overage (31-33) or underage (18-20) players, PLUS 8 aged 21-30.

So, from my point of view, Pakistan select any 3 from the following:

Shan Masood
Abid Ali
Azhar Ali
Asad Shafiq
Fawad Alam
Yasir Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Naseem Shah

Unfortunately that means that a competent selector has to discard 5 of those 8 players now, and keep the three whose performances remain at a consistently high level, or whose role can't be undertaken competently by anyone else.

I do believe that Pakistan has a core of players who can perform to the same (or a higher) level.

Sami Aslam
Imran Butt

.........can do the same role as any of Shan Masood, Azhar Ali or Abid Ali.

Abdullah Shafique,
Saud Shakeel

.....can do the same role as Asad Shafiq or Fawad Alam.

Shadab Khan can do an adapted role similar to Yasir Shah.

I don't understand why the T20 team contains Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan, when those little bite-sized matches could be used to develop Haider Ali, Zeeshan Malik, Rohail Nazir, et al.

If I were made Chief Selector tomorrow, this would be my first Test squad to go to New Zealand in January:

Shan Masood 31(captain, and sole overage player)
Sami Aslam 25
Imran Butt 25
Babar Azam 26
Saud Shakeel 25
Mohammad Rizwan 28
Shadab Khan 22
Faheem Ashraf 27
Hasan Ali 26
Shaheen Shah Afridi 20 (underage player)
Naseem Shah 19 (underage player)

Reserves:
Abdullah Shafique 21
Haider Ali 20 (underage player)
Rohail Nazir 19 (underage player)
Zeeshan Malik 24
Zafar Gohar 25
Sajid Khan 27
Ehsan Adil 27
Sameen Gul 21

That gets rid of a lot of the dead wood, while giving opportunities to people who could still improve.

 

[gazza619]

The best to happen to Pakistan cricket would be if Misbah launches an unchanged XI for the Third T20 and Pakistan gets smashed again.

The worse thing would be if the match gets rained off.

 

[gazza619]

Absolutely!

There is the raw material now in terms of the talent required and at a good age.

I always tell people that in international sport - football or cricket - I believe in the THREE PLUS model.

A team will do well if it has:

1. THREE top players, PLUS 8 average players currently playing at their personal peak.
2. THREE overage (31-33) or underage (18-20) players, PLUS 8 aged 21-30.

So, from my point of view, Pakistan select any 3 from the following:

Shan Masood
Abid Ali
Azhar Ali
Asad Shafiq
Fawad Alam
Yasir Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Naseem Shah

Unfortunately that means that a competent selector has to discard 5 of those 8 players now, and keep the three whose performances remain at a consistently high level, or whose role can't be undertaken competently by anyone else.

I do believe that Pakistan has a core of players who can perform to the same (or a higher) level.

Sami Aslam
Imran Butt

.........can do the same role as any of Shan Masood, Azhar Ali or Abid Ali.

Abdullah Shafique,
Saud Shakeel

.....can do the same role as Asad Shafiq or Fawad Alam.

Shadab Khan can do an adapted role similar to Yasir Shah.

I don't understand why the T20 team contains Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan, when those little bite-sized matches could be used to develop Haider Ali, Zeeshan Malik, Rohail Nazir, et al.

If I were made Chief Selector tomorrow, this would be my first Test squad to go to New Zealand in January:

Shan Masood 31(captain, and sole overage player)
Sami Aslam 25
Imran Butt 25
Babar Azam 26
Saud Shakeel 25
Mohammad Rizwan 28
Shadab Khan 22
Faheem Ashraf 27
Hasan Ali 26
Shaheen Shah Afridi 20 (underage player)
Naseem Shah 19 (underage player)

Reserves:
Abdullah Shafique 21
Haider Ali 20 (underage player)
Rohail Nazir 19 (underage player)
Zeeshan Malik 24
Zafar Gohar 25
Sajid Khan 27
Ehsan Adil 27
Sameen Gul 21

That gets rid of a lot of the dead wood, while giving opportunities to people who could still improve.

I dont recognise most of the players in your squad but thats probably a good thing.
No chance in hell for this kind of squad until Misbah’s leadership.

 

[Junaids]

I dont recognise most of the players in your squad but thats probably a good thing.
No chance in hell for this kind of squad until Misbah’s leadership.

Look at the ages of my players:

Shan Masood 31(sole overage player)
Sami Aslam 25
Imran Butt 25
Babar Azam 26
Saud Shakeel 25
Mohammad Rizwan 28
Shadab Khan 22
Faheem Ashraf 27
Hasan Ali 26
Shaheen Shah Afridi 20 (underage player)
Naseem Shah 19 (underage player)

Abdullah Shafique 21
Haider Ali 20
Rohail Nazir 19
Zeeshan Malik 24
Zafar Gohar 25
Sajid Khan 27
Ehsan Adil 27
Sameen Gul 21

These guys are on the way up, while Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Yasir Shah and even Abid Ali are on the way down.

I'd rather select a 24 year old batsman who will average 35 now rather than a 34 year old batsman who might briefly average 38.

 

[Junaids]

I dont recognise most of the players in your squad but thats probably a good thing.
No chance in hell for this kind of squad until Misbah’s leadership.

Consider what just happened in England:

Yasir Shah:
11 wickets in 3 Tests
Average 33.45
Strike Rate 53.4
Economy rate 3.75

63 runs in 4 innings, average 15.75

Shadab Khan:
2 wickets in 1 Test
Average 23.50
Strike Rate 34.5
Economy Rate 4.08

60 runs in 2 innings, average 30.00

Misbah will always pick the older "more experienced" player, even when the younger man can do a better job.

Yasir Shah performed an unnecessary role - specialist spinner bowling huge spells.

But Shadab can do a better job: score lots of runs, do a bit of spin bowling, and allow you to pick a fourth seamer who will do a better job than Yasir Shah.

 

[sweep_shot]

Pakistan have indeed regressed under Misbah. Their only victories came against SL and Bangladesh.

 

[Mamoon]

Unlike in the last 10 years, now there is enough raw material going around in terms of the talent that is available.
However for that to come into use, we need a new professional management, and my vision tells me that there is going to be an upheaval once Misbah and co are sacked. InshaAllah!

Your vision is because of the green-tinted glasses that you are wearing.

Nothing is going to happen or change when a “professional management” is in place and your preferred coach gets the job.

But if you want to be disappointed then sure you can wait for the golden days once Misbah is gone.

 

[gazza619]

Consider what just happened in England:

Yasir Shah:
11 wickets in 3 Tests
Average 33.45
Strike Rate 53.4
Economy rate 3.75

63 runs in 4 innings, average 15.75

Shadab Khan:
2 wickets in 1 Test
Average 23.50
Strike Rate 34.5
Economy Rate 4.08

60 runs in 2 innings, average 30.00

Misbah will always pick the older "more experienced" player, even when the younger man can do a better job.

Yasir Shah performed an unnecessary role - specialist spinner bowling huge spells.

But Shadab can do a better job: score lots of runs, do a bit of spin bowling, and allow you to pick a fourth seamer who will do a better job than Yasir Shah.

Fair points, we do need that 4th seamer we dearly missed in England. As much as I have hated Faheem Ashraf, I guess he is that option? Do we not have any better bowling allrounders in domestic circuit? My main issue with Faheem is that he bats like a number 11.

 

[Junaids]

Fair points, we do need that 4th seamer we dearly missed in England. As much as I have hated Faheem Ashraf, I guess he is that option? Do we not have any better bowling allrounders in domestic circuit? My main issue with Faheem is that he bats like a number 11.

I would argue that Amad Butt should be inducted into all the squads, even though he isn't good enough yet with bat or ball. Let him bowl at the best batsmen in the nets every day and bat against the best bowlers.

 

[gazza619]

I would argue that Amad Butt should be inducted into all the squads, even though he isn't good enough yet with bat or ball. Let him bowl at the best batsmen in the nets every day and bat against the best bowlers.

I agree, loved Amad in the PSL. He is unusually tall which is also big plus.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

I am onboard with OP on how Misbah has destroyed Pakistan cricket.

Not onboard with OP that Pakistan had a great team under Inzi and Arthur.

In all cases, I feel Pakistan have been punching way below their weight. For the last 10 years, I have seen them always carry passengers, nearly always collapse under pressure, rarely play enterprising cricket and generally learn to play better and find the right combinations when the series is lost.

Even with the limited talent Pakistan has, they perform 5/10 when they can perform a 7.

SENA record of Pakistan's is terrible for as long as I remember. No series wins for decades except for NZ.

 

[hitthestump]

Look at the ages of my players:

Shan Masood 31(sole overage player)
Sami Aslam 25
Imran Butt 25
Babar Azam 26
Saud Shakeel 25
Mohammad Rizwan 28
Shadab Khan 22
Faheem Ashraf 27
Hasan Ali 26
Shaheen Shah Afridi 20 (underage player)
Naseem Shah 19 (underage player)

Abdullah Shafique 21
Haider Ali 20
Rohail Nazir 19
Zeeshan Malik 24
Zafar Gohar 25
Sajid Khan 27
Ehsan Adil 27
Sameen Gul 21

These guys are on the way up, while Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Yasir Shah and even Abid Ali are on the way down.

I'd rather select a 24 year old batsman who will average 35 now rather than a 34 year old batsman who might briefly average 38.

There you have it. A team that will not compete any worse than our current clowns but with far more potential for positives. Apart from including Abbas I wouldn't change a thing about your team and i'd have them all in the next series in the UAE.

 

[ahmedzee]

What was the date for Mickey? Roughly?

I think he entered the Pakistan set up in May 2016 and left by WC 2019.

 

[Bullet Drive]

Absolutely!

There is the raw material now in terms of the talent required and at a good age.

I always tell people that in international sport - football or cricket - I believe in the THREE PLUS model.

A team will do well if it has:

1. THREE top players, PLUS 8 average players currently playing at their personal peak.
2. THREE overage (31-33) or underage (18-20) players, PLUS 8 aged 21-30.

So, from my point of view, Pakistan select any 3 from the following:

Shan Masood
Abid Ali
Azhar Ali
Asad Shafiq
Fawad Alam
Yasir Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Naseem Shah

Unfortunately that means that a competent selector has to discard 5 of those 8 players now, and keep the three whose performances remain at a consistently high level, or whose role can't be undertaken competently by anyone else.

I do believe that Pakistan has a core of players who can perform to the same (or a higher) level.

Sami Aslam
Imran Butt

.........can do the same role as any of Shan Masood, Azhar Ali or Abid Ali.

Abdullah Shafique,
Saud Shakeel

.....can do the same role as Asad Shafiq or Fawad Alam.

Shadab Khan can do an adapted role similar to Yasir Shah.

I don't understand why the T20 team contains Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan, when those little bite-sized matches could be used to develop Haider Ali, Zeeshan Malik, Rohail Nazir, et al.

If I were made Chief Selector tomorrow, this would be my first Test squad to go to New Zealand in January:

Shan Masood 31(captain, and sole overage player)
Sami Aslam 25
Imran Butt 25
Babar Azam 26
Saud Shakeel 25
Mohammad Rizwan 28
Shadab Khan 22
Faheem Ashraf 27
Hasan Ali 26
Shaheen Shah Afridi 20 (underage player)
Naseem Shah 19 (underage player)

Reserves:
Abdullah Shafique 21
Haider Ali 20 (underage player)
Rohail Nazir 19 (underage player)
Zeeshan Malik 24
Zafar Gohar 25
Sajid Khan 27
Ehsan Adil 27
Sameen Gul 21

That gets rid of a lot of the dead wood, while giving opportunities to people who could still improve.

Two players in this list will go on to be great.

Abdullah Shafique(will be number 1 bat in the world)

And Saud Shakeel.

But Misbah will select them when they're 33+

 

[Buffet]

I think he entered the Pakistan set up in May 2016 and left by WC 2019.

May 2016 - 2019: Pakistan had W/L ratio of 5 in T-20. ( Won 30 out of 36 games)


June 2019 - till now: Pakistan has W/L ratio of 0.5 in T-20 ( Won 3 out of 11 games)

 

[shamaan]

Two players in this list will go on to be great.

Abdullah Shafique(will be number 1 bat in the world)

And Saud Shakeel.

But Misbah will select them when they're 33+

What about omair bin yousuf

 

[usman.sandhu]

Your vision is because of the green-tinted glasses that you are wearing.

Nothing is going to happen or change when a “professional management” is in place and your preferred coach gets the job.

But if you want to be disappointed then sure you can wait for the golden days once Misbah is gone.

While the players have their own flaws, Misbah's job is to ensure that he plays the best 11 for the conditions and enables players to perform at their best.

He has failed at both these things miserably.

He was uninspiring as a captain and is worse as a coach, which is quite a hard feat in itself to accomplish. Our team can play much better cricket if Misbah can be kept away from the team.

 

[ZamanFan]

Not Misbah, its Pcb and Wasim Khan who dismantled the national team sacked Mickey Arthur, forced captain Sarfaraz to resign. When he refused to resign he was sacked as captain from all 3 formats.

Mr Wasim Khan then ignores better coaches willing to work like Dean Jones and appointed Misbah as head coach and chief selector something even goofballs like Ijaz Butt never did.

People tend to forget Misbah ul Haq is an employee bound by Pcb contract. If the Pcb wants they can fire him tomorrow and abort his contract . What Wasim Khan did to domestic players how his departments failed to give funds to cricket associations is another story.

 

[ads101]

In 2018 over more than 2 tests, I'm pretty sure we would have lost rather than drew. We got absolutely annihilated the next test. The series before that, we should have won that series, and were helped by the fact we had both Misbah and YK in the side with a capable captain.

In 2018 while no YK and Misbah we had a more experienced bowling side with Amir, Hasan, Abbas. We nearly won the 1st test this time in 2020, and with that slightly more experienced bowling line up, we probably wouldn't have bottled it against Woakes and Butler. Sarfraz also is just a far better more experienced captain than Azhar, even though as a test captain he might be worse than Misbah.

We played more youngsters arguably, with Shadab, Naseem, Shaheen all playing. If we had Amir arguably instead of Naseem I think we would have won the first test, but Amir retired himself.

Misbah also brought in Rizwan who's younger than sarfraz. At that proved to be a good move.

In the first test where it would have made a difference picking an extra bowler, Misbah did, and picked Shadab which worked. Yasir also did well. Had he picked Faheem over wither Shadab or Yasir, it wouldn't have been the right decision and we'd be worse off.

Misbah's worst mistake was not including a decently young middle order batsmen in the squad who could have got some experience given Haris was missing. Though of course if Haris was available, he would have been in the team anyway.

The second worst mistake is making Azhar captain. I would have almost gone with anyone else. But there is a lack of choices.

The 2016 was a good team. The 2018 team wasn't, and I'm pretty sure over 3 or 4 tests we would have lost.

 

[Junaids]

While the players have their own flaws, Misbah's job is to ensure that he plays the best 11 for the conditions and enables players to perform at their best.

He has failed at both these things miserably.

He was uninspiring as a captain and is worse as a coach, which is quite a hard feat in itself to accomplish. Our team can play much better cricket if Misbah can be kept away from the team.

Actually, I disagree (only with the best 11 part).

This is why the Chief Selector and Head Coach roles are incompatible.

The Captain and Head Coach need to select the best eleven from the actual squad.

But the Chief Selector should not just pick the strongest squad, but rather pick the strongest squad which is going to allow continuity over the next five years.

A case in point is the Test squad in terms of the Second Opener and Number 6.


When Misbah took over, he already had:

1. Shan Masood, now aged 31
2. VACANT after Imam struggled
3. Azhar Ali, now 35
4. Babar Azam, now 26
5. Asad Shafiq, now 34
6. VACANT

The Chief Selector needs to pick a squad which will endure for the next half-decade.

So for the second openers slot, the choice was probably:

Option A - pick 32 year old Abid Ali, who might average 40 tomorrow but will retire/age at the same time as all the other batsmen, potentially leaving a mess a year or two from now even if he succeeds now.

Option B - pick 25 year old Sami Aslam, who may only average 35 tomorrow, but is only 25 and is not going to age or retire at the same time as the other 4 incumbent batsmen.

A competent Chief Selector blends ages and skill sets, rather than picking the people who may perform better immediately. He should pick an improving 21 year old who can average 35 on his way up ahead of a deteriorating 35 year old who can average 38 on his way down.

He should have picked Sami Aslam over Abid Ali (whose chance should have been years earlier).

He should have picked Haider Ali (or even Shadab Khan) over Fawad Alam (who delivered scores of 0, 21 and 0 not out).

Misbah does not accept this fundamental idea of selection - that you are blending a team with a view to long-term continuity.

He also does not accept this with his bowlers: to him you don't pick all-rounders unless they can bat or bowl to specialist level, and you just pick your best 4 bowlers. So he ends up having to sacrifice a fourth quick to accommodate Yasir Shah.

Compare the following:

Inzamam/Arthur 2018 - drew 1-1- in England:
7. Shadab Khan aged 19
8. Faheem Ashraf aged 24
9. Mohammad Amir aged 28 (probably)
10. Hasan Ali aged 24
11. Mohammad Abbas aged 29

Misbah/Misbah 2020 - lost 1-0 in England
8. Yasir Shah aged 34
9. Mohammad Abbas aged 30
10. Shaheen Shah Afridi aged 20
11. Naseem Shah aged 19 (probably)

The 2018 attack had a blend of skills sets and ages. It didn't matter that Shadab Khan is incapable of bowling long spells like Yasir Shah, because that role wasn't required with 4 quicks in the team.

The 2018 attack had more depth than the very shallow 2020 attack.

But in 2018 the attack was 4 guys aged 24-29, plus a teenager.

Whereas in 2020 it was 2 guys in their thirties, a teenager and a 20 year old.

 

[ahmedzee]

May 2016 - 2019: Pakistan had W/L ratio of 5 in T-20. ( Won 30 out of 36 games)


June 2019 - till now: Pakistan has W/L ratio of 0.5 in T-20 ( Won 3 out of 11 games)

Night and Day difference between the two eras (mind you more or less the squad is still the same, just captain/coach changed).

 

[moghul]

What else you expect from Misbah ? can't wait for this guy to be kicked out of any role in cricket.