How Pakistan got it so very wrong: comparing the early careers of Babar Azam and Umar Akmal

[Junaids]

I am increasingly certain that when Misbah took over the Pakistan team a decade ago he invested in the wrong middle-order batsmen to support himself and Younis Khan.

He picked Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq over Umar Akmal and Fawad Alam.

Big, big mistake!

I don't want Umar Akmal back now - that ship has sailed. When his ban ends he will be too old. But we can all see how much better he would have done when Asad Shafiq and Azhar Ali were busy scoring 7 runs between them in the First Innings of the First Test in England.

Mickey Arthur and Inzamam persisted with Babar Azam after a much weaker start to his Test career than Umar Akmal had. And Pakistan is reaping the benefits now. But let's just study that comparison...…

After 5 Tests
Umar Akmal: 457 runs at 57.12
Babar Azam: 291 runs at 32.22

After 10 Tests
Umar Akmal: 679 runs at 33.95
Babar Azam: 467 runs at 25.94

After 16 Tests (end of Umar Akmal's career)
Umar Akmal: 1003 runs at 35.82
Babar Azam: 822 runs at 30.44

After 20 Tests
Babar Azam: 1165 runs at 35.30

After 25 Tests
Babar Azam: 1707 runs at 42.67

What makes this even worse is that when Umar Akmal was dropped he was only 21 years old. He was never given the chance to mature in the team, he was simply discarded in favour of inferior batsmen.

And, of course, even now, his red ball centuries have won the last two Quaid E Azam finals.

 

[sweep_shot]

Interesting.

To be fair, Babar is a more likable bloke than Umar Akmal. I think Umar wasn't very popular as he had an attitude problem. That probably played a factor.

Also, Umar exactly didn't set the world on fire in LOI formats but Babar did. Babar was more consistent.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

Why is everyone saying Azhar was a failed investment and lumping him in with Shafiq? Azhar was excellent and world class from 2011-17. Yes he's been bad since then, but he was once really good. Shafiq on the other hand has ALWAYS been mediocre.

Azhar was a worthy investment who should have been dropped some time ago, Shafiq was a failed investment. There's a difference, and people on PP can't seem to tell the difference.

 

[Invincible Gujjar]

Umar akmal might have had many flaws but he would have been much better than these two losers Azhar and asad.umar played all those matches outside Asia.He was never given a chance to play in asia.he would have been much better investment than these two especially asad loser shafiq.

 

[PakPremi]

Azhar only became liability after his knee problems and due to getting old.

 

[Slog]

You are being disingenuous here.

Umar Akmal was not pulling any trees even at domestic level. From 2011 to 2017 he scored ONE (yes not a typo), just one century at first class level despite playing majority of most seasons.

Also what you are failing to recognise is that even while failing (if that’s the word) in Tests, Babar Azam was killing it in ODIs. He was showing the aptitude and the talent to succeed in international cricket and averaging 50+ In 2 formats. Umar Akmal on the other hand was struggling with an average in the low to mid 30s.

Most importantly; umar akmal’s dismissals in international cricket (Tests and also ODIs) were almost always brain fades and stupid senseless shots. He was not improving or learning so there was literally no reason to reward him with a recall in Tests. At the same time even when babar was not doing well in tests; he was killing it in ODIs and improving his game every series and trying to cut out his weaknesses.

There is no comparison between the career trajectory of these two batsmen and considering his work ethic and victim mentality, Umar Akmal’s test career would have been terrible.

To top it off. Umar Akmal’s whole Test career record (which ain’t great anyway with a test average of 30) is dependent on his debut test where he scored a century and 70 odd. That increasingly looks like beginners luck and just not being researched on enough. Take that out and his average drops to mid 20s. His highest scores apart from his debut test were in the infamous spot fixing Lords test where no one was interested in the last day and he hoiked his way to a 70 sth.

Anyways your post is a perfect example of why numbers without context do not tell even half the story and how it gives an opportunity to manipulate facts and create a story line.

 

[Slog]

Umar akmal might have had many flaws but he would have been much better than these two losers Azhar and asad.umar played all those matches outside Asia.He was never given a chance to play in asia.he would have been much better investment than these two especially asad loser shafiq.

Yea Umar Akmal who’s concentration levels don’t allow him to score more than 30s before he has the inevitable brain fade and plays a stupid shot.

Same Umar Akmal who scored 1 FC century in seven years at one point? He literally made no claim to be called up to the test squad.

He has mental issues at this point anyway

 

[Slog]

People who act as if Azhar Ali has had a failed test career either don’t understand cricket or have a very short term memory.

Azhar was hugely important in our proud home record between 2010 and 2017. He did well overseas too to some extent especially in Australia’s around 2016 he would arguably have gotten in a world eleven.

Asad shafiq never kicked on but even then the claim that Umar Akmal would have bettered his record is a big claim. Akmal didnt have the patience or concentration to bat long innings.

And he had beginners luck for sure. 3 of his highest 4 scores are from his debut series. Take that out and his average drops to 20s

 

[ManFan]

People who act as if Azhar Ali has had a failed test career either don’t understand cricket or have a very short term memory.

Azhar was hugely important in our proud home record between 2010 and 2017. He did well overseas too to some extent especially in Australia’s around 2016 he would arguably have gotten in a world eleven.

Asad shafiq never kicked on but even then the claim that Umar Akmal would have bettered his record is a big claim. Akmal didnt have the patience or concentration to bat long innings.

And he had beginners luck for sure. 3 of his highest 4 scores are from his debut series. Take that out and his average drops to 20s

Remind me besides the AUS tour of 2017 and the ONE hundred against ENG in 2016 (where he lost us the momentum and match by getting out on the last ball of Day 3), when Azhar Ali scored overseas?

Please do the same for Shafiq.

 

[Junaids]

Yea Umar Akmal who’s concentration levels don’t allow him to score more than 30s before he has the inevitable brain fade and plays a stupid shot.

Same Umar Akmal who scored 1 FC century in seven years at one point? He literally made no claim to be called up to the test squad.

He has mental issues at this point anyway

Are you referring to the Umar Akmal who scored 2 centuries in the 2018 QEA Final and a double century in the 2019 QEA Final?

Is he the one whose concentration levels don’t let him score more than 30?

 

[Slog]

Are you referring to the Umar Akmal who scored 2 centuries in the 2018 QEA Final and a double century in the 2019 QEA Final?

Is he the one whose concentration levels don’t let him score more than 30?

Yea I’m referring to the same one who scored one FC century in a seven year period and who averages 27 in Test cricket if you take out his debut series. He certainly gave no reason whatsoever to be made part of the test squad.

Lmao you can’t use Umar Akmal FC performances for 2018 and 2019 to make a case for him to be part of the test team between 2011 and 2017 especially when he was absolutely atrocious in Domestic FC cricket in the same period and averages 20s in tests in 2010 and 2011 )

 

[Slog]

Remind me besides the AUS tour of 2017 and the ONE hundred against ENG in 2016 (where he lost us the momentum and match by getting out on the last ball of Day 3), when Azhar Ali scored overseas?
.

And you think Umar Akmal would have replicated even these performances? If you think yes then you have other issues to fix.

 

[Slog]

Are you referring to the Umar Akmal who scored 2 centuries in the 2018 QEA Final and a double century in the 2019 QEA Final?

Is he the one whose concentration levels don’t let him score more than 30?

Yea I’m referring to the same one who scored one FC century in a seven year period and who averages 27 in Test cricket if you take out his debut series. He certainly gave no reason whatsoever to be made part of the test squad.

Lmao you can’t use Umar Akmal FC performances for 2018 and 2019 to make a case for him to be part of the test team between 2011 and 2017 especially when he was absolutely atrocious in Domestic FC cricket in the same period and averages 20s in tests in 2010 and 2011 )

[MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] logic really is special.

He essentially wants to use future performances (delivered through some crystal ball) as a reason to select a player today

 

[Snowflake]

There's no denying that Umar Akmal's test career was cut short solely because he didn't play THE WAY Misbah wanted him to play. If Umar was scoring these runs at half the strike rate, he would've lasted much longer!

Less talented and poorer performers have been given longer ropes just because they looked a certain way that the captain approved of.

 

[ammar_merry]

There's no denying that Umar Akmal's test career was cut short solely because he didn't play THE WAY Misbah wanted him to play. If Umar was scoring these runs at half the strike rate, he would've lasted much longer!

Less talented and poorer performers have been given longer ropes just because they looked a certain way that the captain approved of.

Leave attitude problems and cross batted shorts.He was very poor against spin.

 

[Slog]

Leave attitude problems and cross batted shorts.He was very poor against spin.

Yup. Apart from his concentration issues, brain fades and lack of ability to play long innings at the time; he was actually poor player of spin and would definitely have struggled from technical aspect on UAE pitches. He plays better when ball comes onto the bat

 

[Snowflake]

Leave attitude problems and cross batted shorts.He was very poor against spin.

Not the point. He was posting better numbers than several of his teammates yet he got dropped.

 

[Snowflake]

Yup. Apart from his concentration issues, brain fades and lack of ability to play long innings at the time; he was actually poor player of spin and would definitely have struggled from technical aspect on UAE pitches. He plays better when ball comes onto the bat

The barometer needs to be same for all. If Umar akmal scores 40 from 35 odd and gives his wicket away recklessly, he still did a better job than someone who scored 20 from 100 balls playing "proper" cricket.

Unfortunately, it's the "impression" that matters more in Pakistan than substance. Again, not saying UA had a lot of substance, but in Test cricket strictly, he was superior to many of his teammates in terms of numbers but got dropped.

 

[Zaz]

The barometer needs to be same for all. If Umar akmal scores 40 from 35 odd and gives his wicket away recklessly, he still did a better job than someone who scored 20 from 100 balls playing "proper" cricket.

Unfortunately, it's the "impression" that matters more in Pakistan than substance. Again, not saying UA had a lot of substance, but in Test cricket strictly, he was superior to many of his teammates in terms of numbers but got dropped.

Thats not correct Someone who plays out more deliveries for the same runs is doing a better job because your tiring the bowlers down and taking the shine off the ball for other players and making it easier for them

Impression does matter The ability to learn not make the same mistakes repeatedly shows the player has an upward curve and will improve

Most people would genuinely back someone who listens goes about his business quietly and his scores improve game by game rather than the opposite

 

[Slog]

The barometer needs to be same for all. If Umar akmal scores 40 from 35 odd and gives his wicket away recklessly, he still did a better job than someone who scored 20 from 100 balls playing "proper" cricket.

Unfortunately, it's the "impression" that matters more in Pakistan than substance. Again, not saying UA had a lot of substance, but in Test cricket strictly, he was superior to many of his teammates in terms of numbers but got dropped.

Firstly. Umar Akmal was scoring 25-30 off 40 off balls

so in that respect Asad Shafiq (avg. 40+ till 2016-17) and Azhar Ali were def doing better

 

[Major]

Oh bhai.

Azhar ali and asad shafiq were good investments.
Azhar used to perform. He came into the team and wasnt being focused. It was unar amin who was being focused upon.

Yet azhar got that score of 90with yousuf and after that they started to develop him.
In the past azhar had a good conversion rate aswell of his centuries.

Asad shafiq wqs okish in odis till 2011, but he was a very good test batsmen. Many times he saved pakistan from a total collapse and was a great lower order batsmen. the guy has runs in australia for gods sake.


Plz do not compare umar akmal with babar azam. Babar azam was a prodigy even before he was being added to the national team. If he was not good in test, he was doing great in odis. Plus, babar was working on improving himself.

What was the first thing umar akmal did? Remember?
He faked a freaken injury to get his brother in the team.

Umar akmal had a great start, but by the 2010 england tour he was losing support and fans. He was being kept as a keeper but he pulled of that injury drama.

Azhar and asad have score 100s they have played innings where they saved pakistan many times.
Umar akmal doesnt even know how to bat in test.

And for the same old bull crap about misbah having some vendetta against umar akmal.
Umar akmal in his junior years attracted misbah to get him into his sngpl team. Misbah only offers sngpl contracts to the best of domestic and umar akmal was one of them

All umar needed to do was perform for sngpl and he was in the team. But the guy didnt. The guy was a joke. Umar akmal got his chances, no cricketer in pakistan was more privledged as umar akmal.

Umar akmals career should had been ended by afridi when he was seen crying to imran khan infront of everyone kay plz force afridi to play me at top. That was embarrasing.

Anyways, the guy couldnt even report advances of bookies, got ban. Good riddance. Who knows what he was upto next. Thank god he was caught

 

[Major]

The barometer needs to be same for all. If Umar akmal scores 40 from 35 odd and gives his wicket away recklessly, he still did a better job than someone who scored 20 from 100 balls playing "proper" cricket.

Unfortunately, it's the "impression" that matters more in Pakistan than substance. Again, not saying UA had a lot of substance, but in Test cricket strictly, he was superior to many of his teammates in terms of numbers but got dropped.

Doesnt work that way.
If we go by statistics. Than yasir hameed should still be opening for pakistan. Or shahid afridi was amongest the great est player of test in terms of batting

It is about the impact and the way you play. One of the issues i have when discussing cricket is stats. Stats dont tell the full picture, they are just manipulated. To get a full picture you have to watch the game.

Shan masood got 150 yesterday. Why? It was because of the psrtnerships of babar azam than shadab.
When shan was batting with rizwan, shan got stuck couldnt score. Shadab came and stole singles. That way pressure was placed on england, and shan was also scoring.

Coming on to the pitch and smacking a 20 ball 40 doesnt help that much. You are supposed to make partnerships and help the other player score runs in test. Rotate strike.

Why did shahid afridi retire, cause he didnt have the patience to do that.

And no, you cannot have the same standard for everyone. Standard for top three is different as there first job is to play off the new ball.

 

[Major]

There's no denying that Umar Akmal's test career was cut short solely because he didn't play THE WAY Misbah wanted him to play. If Umar was scoring these runs at half the strike rate, he would've lasted much longer!

Less talented and poorer performers have been given longer ropes just because they looked a certain way that the captain approved of.

For gods sake. Umar akmla was psrt of misbahs sngpl.

Where the hell do you guys come up with these theories that he didnt play the way misbah wanted him?

The guy was part of misbahs sngpl,

 

[ammar_merry]

ammar_merry

Not the point. He was posting better numbers than several of his teammates yet he got dropped.

Posted good numbers before england tour of 2010 then he resorted to flukes and cross batted shots over mid wickets.He lost his place in 2010 when played rash shots in england and vs southafrica.
azhar, asad played crucial knocks since start of uae era in 2010 and against swann and penesar where as he was a walking wicket against a decent spinner.
It was hard to get into UAE misbah team, all were UAE masters.:
Shehzad
Hafeez
Azhar
younis
misbah
asad
sarfraz
Umer would have played sarfraz role in UAE if he had spin playing ability and some brain

 

[Slog]

Not the point. He was posting better numbers than several of his teammates yet he got dropped.

He was not posting Better numbers.

Please stop blatantly lying

His average after his debut series was 28 and even that was cropped up due to a 79 not out in the last innings of the 2010 Lords Test marred by spot fixing when nobody wanted to be on the ground. If you take that out his average drops to low 20s.

So by no metric was he posting better numbers than several of his teammmates.

In fact due to Umar Akmal's terrible numbers did Asad Shafiq have to be given a chance where he averaged 61 in his debut Test against South African bowling attack of Steyn, Morkel, Harris and Botha.

 

[Junaids]

Yea Umar Akmal who’s concentration levels don’t allow him to score more than 30s before he has the inevitable brain fade and plays a stupid shot.

Same Umar Akmal who scored 1 FC century in seven years at one point? He literally made no claim to be called up to the test squad.

He has mental issues at this point anyway

[MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] logic really is special.

He essentially wants to use future performances (delivered through some crystal ball) as a reason to select a player today

????

I’m pretty sure that the first post showed that at EVERY point in his Test career, Umar Akmal had a superior record to Babar Azam at the same number of Tests.

 

[ElRaja]

babar only got leeway in tests cos he was bossing it in odis. if umar akmal was averaging 50 in odis he would have got more chances too

but he regressed in all formats of the game. why that is, is up for debate. for some reason he went from an aggresive all round batsmen to a cross the line hack specialist.

umar was definitely a better batter than asad shafiq, but up until 2013, 14 most fans were hoping shafiq would up gears and become a proper reliable batsmen, but he didnt, and by that point akmal was out of favour with most people.

 

[Zaz]

This is a nonsense thread

Any coach captain will stick with a player who showing an upward trajectory rather than a downward one

Thats what the likes of babar azhar and shafiq initially did They showed promise and initially improved series by series

Masood is doing the same at the moment

The likes of sami and akmal went the other way And deteriorated year after year They only have themselves to blame for not working hard enough and having the intelligence to iron out their mistakes

 

[Slog]

????

I’m pretty sure that the first post showed that at EVERY point in his Test career, Umar Akmal had a superior record to Babar Azam at the same number of Tests.

Yes and every progressive match of his career, Umar Akmal’s career got worse and worse. 20s average over two series after debut series’s is ground for being dropped

 

[Syed1]

Akmal lacks a brain.


/thread.

 

[Barragan]

Akmal would have easily averaged between 43-48 in Tests.

He played all his games outside Asia, but still averaged 36 and if you compare that to others outside Asia since his debut, you'll find him in the top 3 amongst Pak batsmen which tells you how brilliant he has done.

Some say he achieved nothing in ODI's, but he broke into the top 10 rankings and that too batting at no. 6, which makes it even more impressive and how many Pak batsmen have broke into the top 10 rankings ODI's?

He was still not given a chance up the order and was batting below guys who weren't even in the top 30!

He was also averaging 47 or so in FC and still maintains a very healthy 45 which is significantly more than shafiq has ever averaged in FC. He had the pedigree for the longest format and needed a chance, but was never given it.

Basically, you have a guy in his early 20's, top 10 ODI batsman and averaging 47 or so in FC with a an average of 36 outside Asia, but gets dropped from the Test side and never gets a proper chance up the order in LOI.

You could say he was troublesome, but why was he kept in the LOI teams for so long if he was such a troublemaker?

Great injustice and Pak are suffering right now, with no dependable senior batsman in the middle order.

As for Fawad, the greatest injustice to have happened in any sport and he would have been the guy Pak would have looked up to as a senior batsman - great shame.

 

[Chokli]

Umar already over achieved. When he burst onto the scene he played very well and that deceived a lot of people. His mental issues were going to catch up to him and they did

It's unfortunate that he had mental issues but it is what it is.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

Oh bhai.

Azhar ali and asad shafiq were good investments.
Azhar used to perform. He came into the team and wasnt being focused. It was unar amin who was being focused upon.

Yet azhar got that score of 90with yousuf and after that they started to develop him.
In the past azhar had a good conversion rate aswell of his centuries.

Asad shafiq wqs okish in odis till 2011, but he was a very good test batsmen. Many times he saved pakistan from a total collapse and was a great lower order batsmen. the guy has runs in australia for gods sake.


Plz do not compare umar akmal with babar azam. Babar azam was a prodigy even before he was being added to the national team. If he was not good in test, he was doing great in odis. Plus, babar was working on improving himself.

What was the first thing umar akmal did? Remember?
He faked a freaken injury to get his brother in the team.

Umar akmal had a great start, but by the 2010 england tour he was losing support and fans. He was being kept as a keeper but he pulled of that injury drama.

Azhar and asad have score 100s they have played innings where they saved pakistan many times.
Umar akmal doesnt even know how to bat in test.

And for the same old bull crap about misbah having some vendetta against umar akmal.
Umar akmal in his junior years attracted misbah to get him into his sngpl team. Misbah only offers sngpl contracts to the best of domestic and umar akmal was one of them

All umar needed to do was perform for sngpl and he was in the team. But the guy didnt. The guy was a joke. Umar akmal got his chances, no cricketer in pakistan was more privledged as umar akmal.

Umar akmals career should had been ended by afridi when he was seen crying to imran khan infront of everyone kay plz force afridi to play me at top. That was embarrasing.

Anyways, the guy couldnt even report advances of bookies, got ban. Good riddance. Who knows what he was upto next. Thank god he was caught

And it wasn't even Misbah who kicked him out of the test squad. It was Mohsin Khan who thought you can't have a player in the test team who doesn't apply himself and chooses to play aerial shots early on. U. Akmal was even dropped after a good test series in the West Indies if I am correct.

You can watch old videos on YT and will see that it was Mohsin Khan who couldn't bear Umar Akmal's way of managing his test innings. Misbah has never said anything about it infact he supported him a lot during his ODI reign.

So some people are blaming the wrong guy for U.Akmal's test exit!

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

Umar Akmal played the majority of his test matches in England, Australia, and New Zealand.

he only had one match in UAE. He should have been given a longer run.

 

[Buffet]

????

I’m pretty sure that the first post showed that at EVERY point in his Test career, Umar Akmal had a superior record to Babar Azam at the same number of Tests.

A debutant scoring triple centrury and then scoring lots of 20s is not going to get a long rope just because his career average is still good due to high first score.


Akmal's commulative career avg,

102
75
63
57
55
48
..
..
..
35

-----------------

Akmal had problem with not able to focus and go for shots he did not need to go. Otherwise he could have had a good career.

 

[Slog]

Akmal would have easily averaged between 43-48 in Tests.

He played all his games outside Asia, but still averaged 36 and if you compare that to others outside Asia since his debut, you'll find him in the top 3 amongst Pak batsmen which tells you how brilliant he has done.

Some say he achieved nothing in ODI's, but he broke into the top 10 rankings and that too batting at no. 6, which makes it even more impressive and how many Pak batsmen have broke into the top 10 rankings ODI's?

He was still not given a chance up the order and was batting below guys who weren't even in the top 30!

He was also averaging 47 or so in FC and still maintains a very healthy 45 which is significantly more than shafiq has ever averaged in FC. He had the pedigree for the longest format and needed a chance, but was never given it.

Basically, you have a guy in his early 20's, top 10 ODI batsman and averaging 47 or so in FC with a an average of 36 outside Asia, but gets dropped from the Test side and never gets a proper chance up the order in LOI.

You could say he was troublesome, but why was he kept in the LOI teams for so long if he was such a troublemaker?

Great injustice and Pak are suffering right now, with no dependable senior batsman in the middle order.

I hope you’re being sarcastic.

Umar Akmal got his average upto 45 in domestic FC in recent years.

If you take out his debut series he was averaging a pathetic 27-28 in test cricket

 

[Bullet Drive]

HE was also our best ODI batsman for a long period!

He was selected in the 2012 ENG vs PAK test series in UAE. Then dropped without getting a game.

In ODI's at one point he averaged 38 SR of 85. Which was one of the best records ever for a Pakistani

At this point, he had 2 50's in his last 3 innings and was then dropped for the Champions Trophy in 2013.

Umar Akmal is the most unlucky mismanaged cricketer ever.

Thanks [MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] for pointing this out.

I was the ONLY one who was there at the time this was happening saying it, and everyone used to make fun of me.

Now people are realising!

 

[Slog]

Umar Akmal played the majority of his test matches in England, Australia, and New Zealand.

he only had one match in UAE. He should have been given a longer run.

When he was dropped he had been averaging 27-28 in tests cricket for 2 years.

And when he was dropped he failed consistently in domestic FC cricket too giving the selectors no reason to award him a recall. He made a grand total of 1 FC century in 6-7 years at one point meaning his return was never on the cards.

And unlike babar he didn’t do great in one days either.

Besides Asad shafiq till 2015-16 was racking up the record for the most successful #6 in history of test cricket so there really was ko case for Umar Akmal getting a look in.

 

[GreenKhan]

When Umar Akmal got dropped from the test side he had scored 1 50 in his last 24 test innings . So he deserved to be dropped .

On top of that his one day form was very patchy and he kept giving his wicket at stupid times and never showed he can construct an innings in the one day format , which may have helped his test recall .

Akmal won’t have averaged more than 35 in test cricket and most probably would have done worse than Asad shafiq . Who has a decent record.

No way he would have outdone Azhar Ali . He was a solid player for Pakistan who’s form has miserably tailed off in the last 2-3 years . Even still he averages 42 which are heights Akmal would never have reached .

 

[GreenKhan]

When Umar Akmal got dropped from the test side he had scored 1 50 in his last 24 test innings . So he deserved to be dropped .

On top of that his one day form was very patchy and he kept giving his wicket at stupid times and never showed he can construct an innings in the one day format , which may have helped his test recall .

Akmal won’t have averaged more than 35 in test cricket and most probably would have done worse than Asad shafiq . Who has a decent record.

No way he would have outdone Azhar Ali . He was a solid player for Pakistan who’s form has miserably tailed off in the last 2-3 years . Even still he averages 42 which are heights Akmal would never have reached .

 

[Slog]

When Umar Akmal got dropped from the test side he had scored 1 50 in his last 24 test innings . So he deserved to be dropped .

On top of that his one day form was very patchy and he kept giving his wicket at stupid times and never showed he can construct an innings in the one day format , which may have helped his test recall .

Akmal won’t have averaged more than 35 in test cricket and most probably would have done worse than Asad shafiq . Who has a decent record.

No way he would have outdone Azhar Ali . He was a solid player for Pakistan who’s form has miserably tailed off in the last 2-3 years . Even still he averages 42 which are heights Akmal would never have reached .

This.

The best thing that was done for Umar Akmal’s test career was to be dropped because that leaves some room for ‘what ifs’ if you are willing to ignore the data and his performances.

Also that one 50 you mentioned came in the last day of the infamous lords test marred by spot fixing when nobody wanted to play and Umar Akmal hacked his way to a 79* not out.

 

[DeadlyVenom]

Umar just didn't have the IQ for a long career. We can blame the setup, the coach and captain all we want but unfortunately he just wasn't a bright enough boy to succeed at the highest level.

Successful batting in cricket is made up of three elements - IQ, Talent and Hardwork. If you have all three you get players like Smith and Kohli for example.

If you have just IQ and hardwork you can still rise to the top - see players like Nasser Hussain, Athers etc. They got to the top through sheer bloody mindedness and incredible effort.

If you don't have IQ or want to put in the hardwork then no matter what talent you have then it is highly unlike you will have a long term career.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

Umar just didn't have the IQ for a long career. We can blame the setup, the coach and captain all we want but unfortunately he just wasn't a bright enough boy to succeed at the highest level.

Successful batting in cricket is made up of three elements - IQ, Talent and Hardwork. If you have all three you get players like Smith and Kohli for example.

If you have just IQ and hardwork you can still rise to the top - see players like Nasser Hussain, Athers etc. They got to the top through sheer bloody mindedness and incredible effort.

If you don't have IQ or want to put in the hardwork then no matter what talent you have then it is highly unlike you will have a long term career.

Well said.

You have summed it up perfectly. This is why guys like Shehzad, U. Akmal and some Phaaastt bowlers will never make it at international level.

 

[Junaids]

Umar just didn't have the IQ for a long career. We can blame the setup, the coach and captain all we want but unfortunately he just wasn't a bright enough boy to succeed at the highest level.

Successful batting in cricket is made up of three elements - IQ, Talent and Hardwork. If you have all three you get players like Smith and Kohli for example.

If you have just IQ and hardwork you can still rise to the top - see players like Nasser Hussain, Athers etc. They got to the top through sheer bloody mindedness and incredible effort.

If you don't have IQ or want to put in the hardwork then no matter what talent you have then it is highly unlike you will have a long term career.

I totally dispute this.

What is the difference between Umar Akmal and Dave Warner in terms of both IQ and personality? Almost nothing when you allow for cultural variation.

How smart was Mike Gatting? How smart is Mark Waugh (he’s basically what you get when you are twice as gifted as Steve Waugh and half as intelligent!)

Have you ever listened to an interview with Allan Lamb? Have you ever asked what the IQ of Sachin Tendulkar is?

And your comment about Steve Smith is very strange. He was a much worse skipper than Michael Clarke in spite of having a less offensive personality because he has the intellect of a a cabbage. Smith is close to being intellectually subnormal, he just is a cricket tragic who practices even when he goes to the toilet at night because his brain is completely empty of any normal thought.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

Umar just didn't have the IQ for a long career. We can blame the setup, the coach and captain all we want but unfortunately he just wasn't a bright enough boy to succeed at the highest level.

Successful batting in cricket is made up of three elements - IQ, Talent and Hardwork. If you have all three you get players like Smith and Kohli for example.

If you have just IQ and hardwork you can still rise to the top - see players like Nasser Hussain, Athers etc. They got to the top through sheer bloody mindedness and incredible effort.

If you don't have IQ or want to put in the hardwork then no matter what talent you have then it is highly unlike you will have a long term career.

Well said.

You have summed it up perfectly. This is why guys like Shehzad, U. Akmal and some Phaaastt bowlers will never make it at international level.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

I totally dispute this.

What is the difference between Umar Akmal and Dave Warner in terms of both IQ and personality? Almost nothing when you allow for cultural variation.

How smart was Mike Gatting? How smart is Mark Waugh (he’s basically what you get when you are twice as gifted as Steve Waugh and half as intelligent!)

Have you ever listened to an interview with Allan Lamb? Have you ever asked what the IQ of Sachin Tendulkar is?

And your comment about Steve Smith is very strange. He was a much worse skipper than Michael Clarke in spite of having a less offensive personality because he has the intellect of a a cabbage. Smith is close to being intellectually subnormal, he just is a cricket tragic who practices even when he goes to the toilet at night because his brain is completely empty of any normal thought.

Is that the reason he can't sleep at night when he has to bat the following morning? I thought it was anxiety related.

Also why would Cricket Australia appoint someone like that as their skipper/leader/representative? It just doesn't make sense if you think about it.

 

[ManFan]

Is that the reason he can't sleep at night when he has to bat the following morning? I thought it was anxiety related.

Also why would Cricket Australia appoint someone like that as their skipper/leader/representative? It just doesn't make sense if you think about it.

Who else would they appoint? Warner?

Smith was the perfect heir to Border, Taylor, Waugh, Ponting, and Clarke.

An outstanding batsman who was non-controversial.

The ACB had no choice.

 

[Slog]

I totally dispute this.

What is the difference between Umar Akmal and Dave Warner in terms of both IQ and personality? Almost nothing when you allow for cultural variation.

How smart was Mike Gatting? How smart is Mark Waugh (he’s basically what you get when you are twice as gifted as Steve Waugh and half as intelligent!)

Have you ever listened to an interview with Allan Lamb? Have you ever asked what the IQ of Sachin Tendulkar is?

And your comment about Steve Smith is very strange. He was a much worse skipper than Michael Clarke in spite of having a less offensive personality because he has the intellect of a a cabbage. Smith is close to being intellectually subnormal, he just is a cricket tragic who practices even when he goes to the toilet at night because his brain is completely empty of any normal thought.

Umar Akmal is a problem child. Surely when pretty much everyone who has had to ever deal with him (the list includes among others: Waqar Younis, Mickey Arthur, Brendon Mccullum, Misbah ul Haq, Mudassar Nazar, Intikhab Alam, Dav Whatmore) has had problems with him you have to realize that maybe it’s Umar Akmal at fault and surely everyone else can’t be in the wrong or conspiring against him. Whether it’s Under 19 level, international, franchise T20s, SNGPL at domestic level, PCB or heck even the Lahore traffic police and the Hyderabad police; Umar Akmal has gotten in trouble with ALL of them. Surely something is wrong with Umar Akmal than everyone else.

As for his IQ, All you need to do is peruse through Umar Akmal’s twitter and Instagram feeds and compare them to a normal persons. He’s put half naked pictures of him eating grapes, literally kissing goats and whatnot. There genuinely is some issue and I am not even making fun of him but am saying out of concern if anything.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

Who else would they appoint? Warner?

Smith was the perfect heir to Border, Taylor, Waugh, Ponting, and Clarke.

An outstanding batsman who was non-controversial.

The ACB had no choice.

If Junaids is right and he has an intellect of a 'cabbage' then how is he supposed to take decisions during crunch moments? They would lose many close games.

 

[ManFan]

If Junaids is right and he has an intellect of a 'cabbage' then how is he supposed to take decisions during crunch moments? They would lose many close games.

I can’t measure his intellect but he certainly seemed obtuse and unimaginative.

We all saw that he had no command of the locker room and it was really Lehman who ruled the roost.

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

When he was dropped he had been averaging 27-28 in tests cricket for 2 years.

Yes, but given that he was at that time a promising young batsman, and that his overall record was still decent, and that he played only one match in the UAE, i think he should have not been dropped at that time.

And when he was dropped he failed consistently in domestic FC cricket too giving the selectors no reason to award him a recall. He made a grand total of 1 FC century in 6-7 years at one point meaning his return was never on the cards.

And unlike babar he didn’t do great in one days either.

Besides Asad shafiq till 2015-16 was racking up the record for the most successful #6 in history of test cricket so there really was ko case for Umar Akmal getting a look in.

Yes thats true. I guess too much pani

 

[ChTab]

All the people who are saying Azhar Ali is failed investment are stupid, he has a triple century to his name he has played same number of games in Australia as Babar & he has a double hundred over there that too as an opener I don't recall any other pakistani opener who had done that. With that being said I think Azhar should've retired after bangladesh test. It could've been a great thing for him. He has tarnished his legacy by staying in the team for far too long.

 

[ChTab]

Umar akmal might have had many flaws but he would have been much better than these two losers Azhar and asad.umar played all those matches outside Asia.He was never given a chance to play in asia.he would have been much better investment than these two especially asad loser shafiq.

Probably the most stupidest commet I've ever seen on any forum.
There is nothing good about Umar Akmal now. At the start of his career he was going through a purple patch & when that ended his downfall started, he had temperament issues. Although he never played a test in Asia but he played in WI & also he played quite alot in ODI's where he didn't set the world on fire.

 

[GreenKhan]

People moaning about Umar only having played one test in UAE. Get this odi stats out in the UAE , they are poor. Much lower than his career average of 35.

Umar Akmal would have not averaged more than 30 in UAE. The slow , spin friendly wickets were his Achilles heel, coupled that with his impatient batting style that he displayed it was a recipe for mediocrity .

Umar Akmal fans are just as delusional as him . I can say with 80% confidence that his test career would have been worse than Asad Shafiqs.

He got dropped at the age of 22, he had a chance to work on his game and show in the limited format of the game that he has the hunger to improve. His one day career nosedived despite him playing over 100 matches . He would throw away his wicket so many times and never showed an iota of improvement .

People really need to stop talking about him like he was mistreated. He played for Pakistan over 200 times in all formats .
His average is about 32 and he has mustered only 3 hundreds.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

You are being disingenuous here.

Umar Akmal was not pulling any trees even at domestic level. From 2011 to 2017 he scored ONE (yes not a typo), just one century at first class level despite playing majority of most seasons.

Also what you are failing to recognise is that even while failing (if that’s the word) in Tests, Babar Azam was killing it in ODIs. He was showing the aptitude and the talent to succeed in international cricket and averaging 50+ In 2 formats. Umar Akmal on the other hand was struggling with an average in the low to mid 30s.

Most importantly; umar akmal’s dismissals in international cricket (Tests and also ODIs) were almost always brain fades and stupid senseless shots. He was not improving or learning so there was literally no reason to reward him with a recall in Tests. At the same time even when babar was not doing well in tests; he was killing it in ODIs and improving his game every series and trying to cut out his weaknesses.

There is no comparison between the career trajectory of these two batsmen and considering his work ethic and victim mentality, Umar Akmal’s test career would have been terrible.

To top it off. Umar Akmal’s whole Test career record (which ain’t great anyway with a test average of 30) is dependent on his debut test where he scored a century and 70 odd. That increasingly looks like beginners luck and just not being researched on enough. Take that out and his average drops to mid 20s. His highest scores apart from his debut test were in the infamous spot fixing Lords test where no one was interested in the last day and he hoiked his way to a 70 sth.

Anyways your post is a perfect example of why numbers without context do not tell even half the story and how it gives an opportunity to manipulate facts and create a story line.

Excellent write up to prove why UA was dropped and never got a chance to make a comeback...

 

[Barragan]

I hope you’re being sarcastic.

Umar Akmal got his average upto 45 in domestic FC in recent years.

If you take out his debut series he was averaging a pathetic 27-28 in test cricket

Do you know Test runs are counted as FC?

His FC average is 47 without his Test scores!

If you are new to cricket then fair play, otherwise learn the basics.

Lastly, why would you take away his debut Test series scores? He was the highest run scorer among both teams and that too being only 20 or so - absolutely daft to say something like that.

 

[Slog]

Do you know Test runs are counted as FC?

His FC average is 47 without his Test scores!

If you are new to cricket then fair play, otherwise learn the basics.

Lastly, why would you take away his debut Test series scores? He was the highest run scorer among both teams and that too being only 20 or so - absolutely daft to say something like that.

Do you know his 47 average in FC domestics is due to his runs in 2017 to 2019 period. Seems like you are new to cricket and maths.

I am not taking out his debut series. I am just showing how mediocre he has been throughout his short Test career and how he got successively worse every series.

Hope you learn something from this.

 

[Slog]

Do you know his 47 average in FC domestics is due to his runs in 2017 to 2019 period. Seems like you are new to cricket and maths.

I am not taking out his debut series. I am just showing how mediocre he has been throughout his short Test career and how he got successively worse every series.

Hope you learn something from this.

Besides a mid 40s average in domestics isnt anything special to begin with lmao

 

[Barragan]

Do you know his 47 average in FC domestics is due to his runs in 2017 to 2019 period. Seems like you are new to cricket and maths.

I am not taking out his debut series. I am just showing how mediocre he has been throughout his short Test career and how he got successively worse every series.

Hope you learn something from this.

No, his FC average got lower because he was playing 1 or 2 games, then going off to play ODI's and T20's for Pak - meaning he hardly got a full fledged FC season under his belt and when he did in the last two, the results are right infront of you and he has regained a healthy FC average again.

As for him getting worse in Tests, he was the 2nd highest run scorer in Aus and the highest in Eng - did he get worse or the team?

How did guys who were below him, survive being in the Test team?

Highest scorer in Eng and NZ, 2nd highest in Aus - a 20 Yr old putting the others to shame, but gets dropped!!

 

[Slog]

No, his FC average got lower because he was playing 1 or 2 games, then going off to play ODI's and T20's for Pak - meaning he hardly got a full fledged FC season under his belt and when he did in the last two, the results are right infront of you and he has regained a healthy FC average again.

As for him getting worse in Tests, he was the 2nd highest run scorer in Aus and the highest in Eng - did he get worse or the team?

How did guys who were below him, survive being in the Test team?

Highest scorer in Eng and NZ, 2nd highest in Aus - a 20 Yr old putting the others to shame, but gets dropped!!

You are putting so much spin on the numbers that you should work for Trump's campaign

So his average got lower because he was playing 1 or 2 games? How does that work out? Average doesnt impact games.

Umar Akmal averaged 33 in the Australia tour you talk about.

Then he averaged 14 against Australia in the UK Tests

Then averaged 30 against England in England with only ONE fifty in EIGHT innings. And even that unbeaten fifty was just wild swings on the last day of the Lords test when the spot fixing scandal had already broken out and no one wanted to play. Without it his series average was low 20s.

Umar Akmal then averaged 4 versus South Africa in UAE and 15 versus Zimbabwe.

Apart from his debut series he failed pretty much in every series.

And he got out to stupid shot.

Umar Amin also had a bad time and got dropped even quicker. Shoaib Malik also got dropped after those failures. Azhar Ali was given longer rope coz he won us a Test in England and then also performed in UAE against South Africa averaging almost 80 in a series Akmal averaged 9.

Umar Akmal was dropped fairly. He got a long rope due to his beginners luck debut NZ series. His domestic record at the time was mediocre and ODIs he was largely poor too.

 

[Slog]

If Umar Akmal really wanted to be part of the Test side then in many of the years when he was dropped he wouldve played FC cricket rather than BPL type T20 leagues. Theres some seasons where he isnt even in both top 50 run scorers and top 50 batting averages of QeA season. I hope that is due to no matches played

 

[Giannis]

Akmal had impulsivity problems, he was gifted but his issues prevented him from achieving his full potential. I blame the PCB and their medical staff for not being able the manage his ADHD. He could've been turned into a world class sportsman much like Michael Phelps and Simone Bile who also have ADHD. That said Babar Azam is the far superior batsman in terms on of talent and temperment.

Also [MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] as a psychiatrist would you agree with my assessment that Akmal seems to have ADD?

 

[RyanRyan10]

Umar Akmal played most of his tests in very tough conditions for batting. Stats also prove that. No batsman who played more than 2 tests in which UA featured, averaged more than 40. Only batsmen who performed better than him were Misbah(39 in 8 tests)and Hafeez(37 in 4 tests) . You can check the stats here -> https://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/e...ve=53546;team=7;template=results;type=batting

Umar Akmal was the top scorer for Pakistan in NZ and Eng. He finished as 2nd highest run-getter in WI & Aus. Only places he failed was in UAE & Zim where he played just one inning each.

 

[RyanRyan10]

^ just a small correction. He also failed in the Aus series played in England . Still a good performance overall. He was among top two run getters in 4 tough series.

 

[Barragan]

You are putting so much spin on the numbers that you should work for Trump's campaign

So his average got lower because he was playing 1 or 2 games? How does that work out? Average doesnt impact games.

Umar Akmal averaged 33 in the Australia tour you talk about.

Then he averaged 14 against Australia in the UK Tests

Then averaged 30 against England in England with only ONE fifty in EIGHT innings. And even that unbeaten fifty was just wild swings on the last day of the Lords test when the spot fixing scandal had already broken out and no one wanted to play. Without it his series average was low 20s.

Umar Akmal then averaged 4 versus South Africa in UAE and 15 versus Zimbabwe.

Apart from his debut series he failed pretty much in every series.

And he got out to stupid shot.

Umar Amin also had a bad time and got dropped even quicker. Shoaib Malik also got dropped after those failures. Azhar Ali was given longer rope coz he won us a Test in England and then also performed in UAE against South Africa averaging almost 80 in a series Akmal averaged 9.

Umar Akmal was dropped fairly. He got a long rope due to his beginners luck debut NZ series. His domestic record at the time was mediocre and ODIs he was largely poor too.

What spin did I put on it?

Is it not a fact, he was the highest run scorer in the Eng and NZ series?

2nd highest in Aus?

He was around 20 yrs old?

Averaging around 47 in FC is mediocre? When did that happen?

Being a top 10 ODI batsman is mediocre? When did that happen?

Yeah, played 1 innings in the UAE - well done you get a bonus point for that one!

 

[Thunderbolt14]

I suspect he was dropped for other reasons more than his performances. His attitude of course, and there have been stories of groupings within the Pakistan team during this time period.

The first reason groupings are important is that it means Umar Akmal was very likely on the wrong side of certain people. The other reason is that these groups (and particularly the Akmals) have been known to deal with shady characters — bookies, rumors of fixing, suspicious performances.

He is also the brother of Kamran Akmal - with such a close association, his failures were even more prominent due to his brother’s failures.

In the end, it’s better for the Pakistan team that we’ve let go of emptyheaded folks like the two Akmals and Shehzad. Time to move on.

 

[Slog]

What spin did I put on it?

Is it not a fact, he was the highest run scorer in the Eng and NZ series?

2nd highest in Aus?

He was around 20 yrs old?

Averaging around 47 in FC is mediocre? When did that happen?

Being a top 10 ODI batsman is mediocre? When did that happen?

Yeah, played 1 innings in the UAE - well done you get a bonus point for that one!

If you are doing best in a terrible bunch you are still doing bad. Umar Akmal onky has one good series in his career and that was the debut NZ series. Thats a fact.

Quoting FC average of 47 has no value since it was high 30s when he was dropped.

His FC average over last few seasons has been 65+ which has pushed his average to a respectable but still mediocre 47 at domestic level. You are incorrectly trying to give out the impression that it was 47 when he was dropped.

 

[Slog]

I suspect he was dropped for other reasons more than his performances. His attitude of course, and there have been stories of groupings within the Pakistan team during this time period.

There were enough performance based reasons to drop him from test cricket. And he was definitely given a longer rope than others.

As I mentioned; after his debut series he averaged 28 or so in test cricket with the best score an unbeaten 50 in the spot fixing infested infamous Lords Test last day which no one wanted to play.

The other batsmen who performed in poorly in this period were dropped too and some fairly harshly for example Fawad Alam after one test in NZ. Khurram Manzoor, Umar Amin, Malik and a few others were also dropped.

Azhar Ali saved himself from the chop after England series to get another series because of his match winning 92 to win the Oval 2010 Test. And then he averaged almost 80 in the subsequent South African series to make his place and then didn’t look back for a few years.

Umar Akmal on the other hand averaged in 20s on the England Tests tour (14 against Australia, 30 against England) and then 4 against South Africa and also failed in Zimbabwe and was ok in West Indies.

So he definitely got a very long rope and for almost three years had an automatic uncontested spot in the team despite consistent failures post debut series. He only got a free ride due to the ‘talented’ tag whilst others were dropped after much fewer games

 

[Barragan]

If you are doing best in a terrible bunch you are still doing bad. Umar Akmal onky has one good series in his career and that was the debut NZ series. Thats a fact.

Quoting FC average of 47 has no value since it was high 30s when he was dropped.

His FC average over last few seasons has been 65+ which has pushed his average to a respectable but still mediocre 47 at domestic level. You are incorrectly trying to give out the impression that it was 47 when he was dropped.

He wasn't doing bad for a 20 yr old, that's for sure!

Do you know his FC average before his debut? It was comfortably 45-47 and it is definitely not mediocre!

How many batsmen have a 45+ FC average?

If it is so mediocre, then every batsman would have been averaging that high.

Also, he was playing at the highest level of FC.

 

[Thunderbolt14]

He wasn't doing bad for a 20 yr old, that's for sure!

Do you know his FC average before his debut? It was comfortably 45-47 and it is definitely not mediocre!

How many batsmen have a 45+ FC average?

If it is so mediocre, then every batsman would have been averaging that high.

Also, he was playing at the highest level of FC.

Highest level of departmental 20 team first class in one of the worst eras for Pak cricket?

 

[Barragan]

Highest level of departmental 20 team first class in one of the worst eras for Pak cricket?

If it was so bad, then how many got an average of 45+?

Go on, let us know of these names.

The way you have spoken, I'm expecting at least 20 or so names!

Btw, it was split between regional and departmental - he played in departmental which was more competitive and stronger.

 

[adzzy786]

I am increasingly certain that when Misbah took over the Pakistan team a decade ago he invested in the wrong middle-order batsmen to support himself and Younis Khan.

He picked Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq over Umar Akmal and Fawad Alam.

Big, big mistake!

I don't want Umar Akmal back now - that ship has sailed. When his ban ends he will be too old. But we can all see how much better he would have done when Asad Shafiq and Azhar Ali were busy scoring 7 runs between them in the First Innings of the First Test in England.

Mickey Arthur and Inzamam persisted with Babar Azam after a much weaker start to his Test career than Umar Akmal had. And Pakistan is reaping the benefits now. But let's just study that comparison...…

After 5 Tests
Umar Akmal: 457 runs at 57.12
Babar Azam: 291 runs at 32.22

After 10 Tests
Umar Akmal: 679 runs at 33.95
Babar Azam: 467 runs at 25.94

After 16 Tests (end of Umar Akmal's career)
Umar Akmal: 1003 runs at 35.82
Babar Azam: 822 runs at 30.44

After 20 Tests
Babar Azam: 1165 runs at 35.30

After 25 Tests
Babar Azam: 1707 runs at 42.67

What makes this even worse is that when Umar Akmal was dropped he was only 21 years old. He was never given the chance to mature in the team, he was simply discarded in favour of inferior batsmen.

And, of course, even now, his red ball centuries have won the last two Quaid E Azam finals.

To compare, what was Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq averages after 5,10,15 and 20 test.

Also with Umar Akmal it was never just his talent that was in question it was his attitude

 

[Slog]

Umar Akmal fanbois are making a losing argument because the numbers and fact just don’t support their claims.

A player who averaged 28 after his debut series and failed in several consecutive series really has no excuses.

 

[Varun]

Umar Akmal fanbois are making a losing argument because the numbers and fact just don’t support their claims.

A player who averaged 28 after his debut series and failed in several consecutive series really has no excuses.

I don't think you understand.

After Pakistan loses a game, everybody outside the team automatically gets +15 added to their average. If the player in question can slog a few pretty boundaries, he gets an additional +5.