I’m not the only factor behind Pakistan team's bad performance : Misbah-ul-Haq

[Thunderbolt14]

PCB & PAKPassion needs to go a little soft on Misbah - the team is not that good as the popular belief. But, in their josh, if PCB decides to sacrifice Misbah, it won’t convey confidence to next incumbent - appointing coach will become costlier for PCB and

The big decision- chief selector- has already been taken. It’s the more important position between coach and selector as there is greater margin for error.

Rest of the development we need to improve on a grassroots level, otherwise only so much Misbah can do. I am in favor of him being sacked as coach too, because I get the feeling he contributes to a very depressing dressing room environment. I hold him responsible for not using data in his tactics, but then I must also hold Wasim Khan responsible for not appointing a competent data team.

Decisions such as the recall of Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Irfan, kicking out Rohail Nazir and Zafar Gohar from the biosecure bubble, not calling up Saud Shakeel for Pakistan A, giving Musa Khan a Test debut, these are absolutely idiotic decisions that all arise from the selection policy.

 

[unemployedgm]

PCB & PAKPassion needs to go a little soft on Misbah - the team is not that good as the popular belief. But, in their josh, if PCB decides to sacrifice Misbah, it won’t convey confidence to next incumbent - appointing coach will become costlier for PCB and

We are a country where for the vast majority of our history we have voted into power people whose lack of empathy for the 99% is for everyone to see. So why do we vote for people who have no empathy for our plight? Pakistan like so many third world countries has a messiah complex. It has become a part of our culture, our way of life, and our general expectations. We expect every coach, chief selector, and captain to be a messiah. When they fall below our expectations we skewer them not realizing or understanding where the flaws lie.

With everything that is going on, it is easy to criticize Misbah ul Haq. I agree, a better Manager(I use this term broadly) would do better and in fact should do better. There is enough talent in Pakistan to win both home and away in all formats. That said, the talent pool for Head Coaches, Chief Selectors, and Captains is very small to the point that it's non-existent.

There are maybe 5 people in Pakistan that are qualified to become a Chief Selector. There are even fewer people qualified to a be a Head Coach. There are maybe 1 or 2 players in Pakistan qualified to be a captain. Has anyone asked the question why?

There is a dearth of qualified individuals for these roles because over the last 30 years we have accepted the reality of Pakistan. How many people in Pakistan are raising their voice against basic injustices? Few or none. Those who are seem to have a misplaced agenda. Generally speaking no one is willing to raise their voices outside the confines of their Twitter Account or Living Rooms. Not because they are scared, but because know one wants to take the responsibility of Leadership(Moral or Thought). The result of this is a society of sycophants not leaders.

There are no captains because there is no current player that would ever speak out against wrongdoing. They will accept everything both good and bad, because survival lives in silence. If Fawad Alam spoke out against his non-selection would he ever have made a comeback. I think the answer to this question is no. And so every single person in Pakistan doing one thing and one thing only. Survive!!!

The culture of self-preservation is so ingrained in our psychology that we are not willing to stand up for what is right. As a result there are no leaders and there is little to no progress. Misbah was wrongly not selected in the prime of his career. Of course he was not alone. So what did he do? For the most part he stayed quiet and eventually he got an opportunity. He grabbed that opportunity with both hands. He is surviving. I don't blame him. It is what Shan Masood does when he bats in test cricket. It is what Imam ul Haq does in ODI cricket. And it is what Babar Azam does in T20 Cricket. Stand Up!!!

 

[Shazzam]

Misbah has just stopped short of saying "This team is talent-less and has a ton of skill deficit".

Misbah is probably the only one in Pakistani cricket circles who is neither in denial nor delusional about the ability of these players and Pakistan cricket in general.

Than why does he have this job?

 

[TheSultan]

I think a better and more experienced coach would improve Pakistan, but I don't believe that any coach in the world can take Pakistan to the top at the moment.

The simple reason is that the players are simply not good enough, technically not good enough and mentally weak and lack self-belief.

Exactly, and isn’t that the point of looking elsewhere. You may not be able to do anything about the players not being good enough, you could make minor changes to the technical aspect, but most importantly another coach can do a lot about making the players mentally stronger and giving them self belief.

No one is under any illusions that a new person is going to take us to the top, but we need some progress.

The players look mentally shot with the current management. We definitely need a change.

There are plenty of players throughout history who have made up for their lack of talent and technical limitations through their strength of character and self belief.

We can’t just sit there and say, “hey we’re rubbish no point doing anything about it”

 

[TheSultan]

We are a country where for the vast majority of our history we have voted into power people whose lack of empathy for the 99% is for everyone to see. So why do we vote for people who have no empathy for our plight? Pakistan like so many third world countries has a messiah complex. It has become a part of our culture, our way of life, and our general expectations. We expect every coach, chief selector, and captain to be a messiah. When they fall below our expectations we skewer them not realizing or understanding where the flaws lie.

With everything that is going on, it is easy to criticize Misbah ul Haq. I agree, a better Manager(I use this term broadly) would do better and in fact should do better. There is enough talent in Pakistan to win both home and away in all formats. That said, the talent pool for Head Coaches, Chief Selectors, and Captains is very small to the point that it's non-existent.

There are maybe 5 people in Pakistan that are qualified to become a Chief Selector. There are even fewer people qualified to a be a Head Coach. There are maybe 1 or 2 players in Pakistan qualified to be a captain. Has anyone asked the question why?

There is a dearth of qualified individuals for these roles because over the last 30 years we have accepted the reality of Pakistan. How many people in Pakistan are raising their voice against basic injustices? Few or none. Those who are seem to have a misplaced agenda. Generally speaking no one is willing to raise their voices outside the confines of their Twitter Account or Living Rooms. Not because they are scared, but because know one wants to take the responsibility of Leadership(Moral or Thought). The result of this is a society of sycophants not leaders.

There are no captains because there is no current player that would ever speak out against wrongdoing. They will accept everything both good and bad, because survival lives in silence. If Fawad Alam spoke out against his non-selection would he ever have made a comeback. I think the answer to this question is no. And so every single person in Pakistan doing one thing and one thing only. Survive!!!

The culture of self-preservation is so ingrained in our psychology that we are not willing to stand up for what is right. As a result there are no leaders and there is little to no progress. Misbah was wrongly not selected in the prime of his career. Of course he was not alone. So what did he do? For the most part he stayed quiet and eventually he got an opportunity. He grabbed that opportunity with both hands. He is surviving. I don't blame him. It is what Shan Masood does when he bats in test cricket. It is what Imam ul Haq does in ODI cricket. And it is what Babar Azam does in T20 Cricket. Stand Up!!!

Great post and pretty much sums it up.

I don’t necessarily agree that Misbah was hard done by by not being selected earlier. Who would he replace in an ATG middle order? But regardless, that’s not the point of your post and the rest of it still stands and great summary of the attitude of our players

 

[Ami]

i think people need to understand fans are fans, regardless of their team's talent pool.

I've not come across a fan, ever, who even though sometimes berating his/her own team, has not wished the best for them and thought of them as the 'best thing since slice bread'....why shouldn't they?
Why shouldn't we?

By just saying, Pakistan Cricket Team, is utter garbage is not going to help anyone...even the most ardent Indian or Aussie fans would not wanna come on this forum expecting every Pak fan to be slitting their wrists.
Where is the fun or purpose in that?

We, as fans are not here to pack up and move onto another team like some people do or may be want us to...

We're here to stay as Pak fans, enjoy the odd glory days and get over the bad ones; hoping for another shot at the belt, hoping for another almighty roar, hoping for another opportunity to stick two fingers!

Pakistan Zindabad...come what may!

 

[mazkhan]

Misbah and waqar don't care about the team or performance they are only there for their salary and to have job with good pay and perks , its this sort of entitlement culture the reason pakistan is a failed state.

Misbah and waqar want to milk the cow (system) as long at its possible.
And they know they can dissappear for 2 yrs and then use influence to worm they way back in its same tried tested failed recycled process

Why waqar is near any role is beyond me after what happened in 2010 right under his nose , how can pcb even bring him back .

Apart from m asif casual racism towards pathans and his trashy way of speaking. Asif was spot on in that interview.

 

[Savak]

PCB & PAKPassion needs to go a little soft on Misbah - the team is not that good as the popular belief. But, in their josh, if PCB decides to sacrifice Misbah, it won’t convey confidence to next incumbent - appointing coach will become costlier for PCB and

It's funny how Mickey Arthur with the same set of players that Misbah has is able to help the team win the CT trophy in 2017 and bring about marginal improvements to our ODI, T20 team but when Misbah comes everything goes further into the gutter.

We know where the team stands but only people happy with the status quo and mediocrity will make a case for Misbah staying

 

[Hasan123]

Misbah needs to go but there are some fans who think by him being sacked we will turn into world beaters. That won't happen and this is what our fanbase need to understand. The way it come across on PP is that a lot of fans think getting rid of Misbah will turn Pakistan fortunes. It won't.

 

[Savak]

Misbah has just stopped short of saying "This team is talent-less and has a ton of skill deficit".

Misbah is probably the only one in Pakistani cricket circles who is neither in denial nor delusional about the ability of these players and Pakistan cricket in general.

Lol you give Misbah a side of Miandad, Hanif Mohammad, Zaheer Abbas, Majid Khan, Asif Iqbal, Mudassar Nazar, Imran Khan, Salim Malik, Inzamam Ul Haq, Yousaf, Younis, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq, Mushtaq Ahmed, Abdul Qadir. Trust me he will find a way to make kittens out of them and to lose with them

That is how contagious his entire being permeates and how panoti he is

 

[ads101]

If Misbah would have dropped Naseem after England tour, delusional cheerleaders would have blasted him for destroying his confidence.

Now that he picked him and Naseem “zero talent” Shah failed, he is getting blasted for destroying his confidence.

He made the wrong decision selecting so many youngsters. Fans always like to hype up youngsters, predict they'll save our fortunes, seniors are taking their spaces etc.

Usually coaches just ignore the calls for youngsters, as from experience they are wise enough to know relying on youngsters isn't going to win you games. Even in domestic, the senior players will smash these guys and work them out. And yet they are somehow automatically ready for internationals where standard is far higher.

Misbah instead just did something to try and appease fans. Which backfired on him. Maybe he'd thought he'd be praised for it. He also may have thought playing youngsters gave him an excuse of not winning. If he's going to lose, might as well try the youngsters. I'd rather he be braver and actually go for the win and play the seniors even if fans moan about not enough youngsters.

Getting rid of Amir was a disastrous decision for him. He was probably our only fast bowler with good control. Never mind if he's that good or not. Even Shaheen, if he's not taking wickets, he's expensive. Guys like Hasan, Riaz, expensive bowlers again. Having Amir just even in the squad gives us that option. Now we don't have him in LOI either. Even him just in LOI is an asset to Pakistan. A good coach might even persuade him to play in certain test series too, if they try to work with him around his injuries. Unfortunately in sport a lot of the good players can be difficult to deal with, you want a good coach who has good man management skills that can get these guys to perform with the team regardless.

 

[Savak]

Misbah needs to go but there are some fans who think by him being sacked we will turn into world beaters. That won't happen and this is what our fanbase need to understand. The way it come across on PP is that a lot of fans think getting rid of Misbah will turn Pakistan fortunes. It won't.

We were fed the same garbage during Misbah's ODI captaincy period lol be grateful for the 230's-240's you are reaching, his slow inconsequential fifties as without him you won't reach 150. Lol two years later we won the 2017 CT

 

[TheSultan]

We were fed the same garbage during Misbah's ODI captaincy period lol be grateful for the 230's-240's you are reaching, his slow inconsequential fifties as without him you won't reach 150. Lol two years later we won the 2017 CT

Well said - this is Misbah all over - try and convince everyone he’s the one who’s keeping the team afloat and they will fall flat when he leaves. But when he does. Hey hold on, we can make over 300 and we can actually win something

 

[Hasan123]

We were fed the same garbage during Misbah's ODI captaincy period lol be grateful for the 230's-240's you are reaching, his slow inconsequential fifties as without him you won't reach 150. Lol two years later we won the 2017 CT

The champions trophy was great. But is just covered up cracks, we were an average LO team and the results after that tournament proved that.

There is no champions trophy tournament anymore I think. So when Misbah goes, I don’t know what your hoping for because to win the World Cup and be in the test championship final your will need quality,skill, and consistency. Pakistan are very very far behind in these departments in all facets of the game.

 

[Hasan123]

We were setting all these 300 scores yet we were still losing games. You wanna credit Mickey for the batting, then you have to look at the bowling . Have your cake and eat it

 

[ads101]

We were fed the same garbage during Misbah's ODI captaincy period lol be grateful for the 230's-240's you are reaching, his slow inconsequential fifties as without him you won't reach 150. Lol two years later we won the 2017 CT

I honestly think Misbah was a good batsman for our side, he performed against tougher opposition than most even if he was a bit slow (which isn't the fault of the team that was his fault). However I don't see how Misbah fans can even defend ODI captaincy. The mentality we'll lose anyway was awful. We could not get any worse under Misbah ODI captaincy. Try someone else. Just because it was Misbah it was suddenly ok for a captain to lose series after series (and tournaments). Even forget tactics or anything, maybe another captain could have inspired the players to do better, or a fresh change of breath could have achieved something you never know. We went through years of this non-accountability, just resigned to our fate in ODIs.

 

[Rana]

We are a country where for the vast majority of our history we have voted into power people whose lack of empathy for the 99% is for everyone to see. So why do we vote for people who have no empathy for our plight? Pakistan like so many third world countries has a messiah complex. It has become a part of our culture, our way of life, and our general expectations. We expect every coach, chief selector, and captain to be a messiah. When they fall below our expectations we skewer them not realizing or understanding where the flaws lie.

With everything that is going on, it is easy to criticize Misbah ul Haq. I agree, a better Manager(I use this term broadly) would do better and in fact should do better. There is enough talent in Pakistan to win both home and away in all formats. That said, the talent pool for Head Coaches, Chief Selectors, and Captains is very small to the point that it's non-existent.

There are maybe 5 people in Pakistan that are qualified to become a Chief Selector. There are even fewer people qualified to a be a Head Coach. There are maybe 1 or 2 players in Pakistan qualified to be a captain. Has anyone asked the question why?

There is a dearth of qualified individuals for these roles because over the last 30 years we have accepted the reality of Pakistan. How many people in Pakistan are raising their voice against basic injustices? Few or none. Those who are seem to have a misplaced agenda. Generally speaking no one is willing to raise their voices outside the confines of their Twitter Account or Living Rooms. Not because they are scared, but because know one wants to take the responsibility of Leadership(Moral or Thought). The result of this is a society of sycophants not leaders.

There are no captains because there is no current player that would ever speak out against wrongdoing. They will accept everything both good and bad, because survival lives in silence. If Fawad Alam spoke out against his non-selection would he ever have made a comeback. I think the answer to this question is no. And so every single person in Pakistan doing one thing and one thing only. Survive!!!

The culture of self-preservation is so ingrained in our psychology that we are not willing to stand up for what is right. As a result there are no leaders and there is little to no progress. Misbah was wrongly not selected in the prime of his career. Of course he was not alone. So what did he do? For the most part he stayed quiet and eventually he got an opportunity. He grabbed that opportunity with both hands. He is surviving. I don't blame him. It is what Shan Masood does when he bats in test cricket. It is what Imam ul Haq does in ODI cricket. And it is what Babar Azam does in T20 Cricket. Stand Up!!!

We can’t go on the streets to fight for justice in Pakistan. But you can use your voice on the platforms available to you. Here on this forum, you have a platform. Use it! If you truly believe in something, go ahead and say it!

But I feel there needs to be a lot of educating and uniting of fans before we endeavour on this revolution of standing for justice. In my Voice for Abdullah Shafique thread, a random bloke mentioned that no one is speaking of the injustice that has happened to Kamran Ghulam who also wasn’t picked in the draft because he is from KPK....whilst Kamran played his last T20 in 2018.

Then you have some people who think standing up against out of his depth T20 batsman Mohammad Rizwan is pro Sarfaraz. How can you stand for justice with all of these ridiculous factions in play? Then we also have a group that is hell bent on abusing under 18s, as if this is a weird culture in Places. How can you stand for justice with all of this division and confusion in the fans/players/admin?

 

[Thunderbolt14]

i think people need to understand fans are fans, regardless of their team's talent pool.

I've not come across a fan, ever, who even though sometimes berating his/her own team, has not wished the best for them and thought of them as the 'best thing since slice bread'....why shouldn't they?
Why shouldn't we?

By just saying, Pakistan Cricket Team, is utter garbage is not going to help anyone...even the most ardent Indian or Aussie fans would not wanna come on this forum expecting every Pak fan to be slitting their wrists.
Where is the fun or purpose in that?

We, as fans are not here to pack up and move onto another team like some people do or may be want us to...

We're here to stay as Pak fans, enjoy the odd glory days and get over the bad ones; hoping for another shot at the belt, hoping for another almighty roar, hoping for another opportunity to stick two fingers!

Pakistan Zindabad...come what may!

Beautifully written

 

[Kroll]

He made the wrong decision selecting so many youngsters. Fans always like to hype up youngsters, predict they'll save our fortunes, seniors are taking their spaces etc.

Usually coaches just ignore the calls for youngsters, as from experience they are wise enough to know relying on youngsters isn't going to win you games. Even in domestic, the senior players will smash these guys and work them out. And yet they are somehow automatically ready for internationals where standard is far higher.

Misbah instead just did something to try and appease fans. Which backfired on him. Maybe he'd thought he'd be praised for it. He also may have thought playing youngsters gave him an excuse of not winning. If he's going to lose, might as well try the youngsters. I'd rather he be braver and actually go for the win and play the seniors even if fans moan about not enough youngsters.

Getting rid of Amir was a disastrous decision for him. He was probably our only fast bowler with good control. Never mind if he's that good or not. Even Shaheen, if he's not taking wickets, he's expensive. Guys like Hasan, Riaz, expensive bowlers again. Having Amir just even in the squad gives us that option. Now we don't have him in LOI either. Even him just in LOI is an asset to Pakistan. A good coach might even persuade him to play in certain test series too, if they try to work with him around his injuries. Unfortunately in sport a lot of the good players can be difficult to deal with, you want a good coach who has good man management skills that can get these guys to perform with the team regardless.

This is a misconception which has been debunked numerous times. Yes, fans have been asking for youngsters and younger players but not mere school kids in the case of Musa, Naseem etc then throwing them in at the deep end so they can get ridiculed in the forums.

And where are all these young batsmen? Last time I looked, the test batting was made up of Dad's Army. The selections are so skewed we only seem to have around three or four players in their prime.

 

[ads101]

This is a misconception which has been debunked numerous times. Yes, fans have been asking for youngsters and younger players but not mere school kids in the case of Musa, Naseem etc then throwing them in at the deep end so they can get ridiculed in the forums.

And where are all these young batsmen? Last time I looked, the test batting was made up of Dad's Army. The selections are so skewed we only seem to have around three or four players in their prime.

I misworded it, I mean these young players who have virtually no games under their belt e.g. Musa, Naseem, even Abdullah. People do ask for these sort of players, and claim they should be selected before "domestic ruins them"

I have no problem with young batsmen coming into the team at around age 24/25 with decent number of domestic games under their belt. Sami, Imam, Saud Shakeel etc. 24/25 with good experience is actually the ideal age to debut/blood in these guys.

What we are getting is a mix of older guys far too old to start cementing their place, or extreme youngsters with no experience. What we need is in the middle. But by the term senior it's less to with age, more experience in internationals, which is hopefully high given that they debuted a long time ago. Guys who are 35 just trying to break into the team, that's not really a Senior in the sense I meant it, they are severely lacking in international experience.

 

[Junaids]

There is a major problem here: the appointment process was wrong and the contract for Misbah was deficient.

A. THE APPOINTMENT PROCESS
Chief Selector and Head Coach are highly complex roles, and different roles. Each needs to have:

1. A detailed job description.
2. Specified Selection Criteria that the applicants must write short essays to outline how they meet those criteria.
3. A formal interview process, in which the questions are marked against a marking scheme.

Examples of Interview Questions for Head Coach in mid-2019 might have included:

Question 1:
Two players, let's call them UA and AS, are recent internationals whose behaviour has led to their ouster from the team.

Please outline:
1. What cricket performances they would have to have for you to consider selecting them.
2. What steps you would take to ensure their appropriate behaviour if you wanted to select them.
3. With whom you would consult prior to recalling them.

Question 2
In the last Test match that Pakistan played, the Starting Eleven consisted of 7 players aged 21-30, 1 20 year old and 3 men aged over 30.

What is your vision for how you would build on that core to develop a team capable of competing in the 2019-21 and 2021-23 World Test Championships?

Specifically:
1. How would you choose between a 24 year old batsman and a 34 year old batsman who both averaged the same in the most recent domestic season?
2. Do you consider selecting players aged over 30 and under 20 to carry any particular risks? What are those risks in each case?

Question 3
Your captain (Sarfraz) is almost 32 years old and is unlikely to hold his place with a superior batsman-keeper (Rizwan) breathing down his neck.

Please identify three alternative captains for your Test side, and outline to the panel what the advantages and disadvantages of each candidate would be.

Question 4
Throughout your time as captain you elected to play Tests in SENA with three quick bowlers plus Yasir Shah as a sole spinner.

After 10 Tests in SENA Yasir Shah has a bowling average of 67 runs per wicket.

Please outline what your preferred selection strategy for your bowling attack would be for the upcoming 2019-20 Test tour of Australia, and please outline two alternatives. Please explain the potential benefits and risks of each strategy.

Question 5
Two of your senior fast bowlers have indicated their intention to retire from Test cricket. One of them had a deal with the previous Chief Selector that he would only play Tests in SENA, to prevent him wearing out his body on dead UAE tracks.

Please outline three potential strategies that you would take to solve this problem.

B. PROBLEMS WITH MISBAH's CONTRACT
His contract should have had built-in performance indicators, allowing for his dismissal without compensation if for example:

1. Both Tests in Australia were lost by an innings or at least 7 wickets, or at least 200 runs.
2. Both Tests in NZ were lost, one of them by an innings.
3. If the team's T20i ranking drops out of the Top 3.
4. If the team fails to maintain the progress in ODIs which saw it come 4th at the World Cup.

 

[Shafi]

PCB & PAKPassion needs to go a little soft on Misbah - the team is not that good as the popular belief. But, in their josh, if PCB decides to sacrifice Misbah, it won’t convey confidence to next incumbent - appointing coach will become costlier for PCB and

The way Wasim Khan selected Misbah, foreigners will hardly trust if there is any advertisement in terms of coaching position. They called Walsh at midnight and rejected his application because he didn't answer the phone. Wasim Khan should be sacked before Misbah and Waqar for those fake advertisements.

 

[CleverSir]

This quote is why he needs to go. He’s definitely not the sole reason for the poor performance but he’s the HC and it really doesn’t matter. It’s his team. He has to protect it by taking all the blame.

 

[unemployedgm]

We can’t go on the streets to fight for justice in Pakistan. But you can use your voice on the platforms available to you. Here on this forum, you have a platform. Use it! If you truly believe in something, go ahead and say it!

But I feel there needs to be a lot of educating and uniting of fans before we endeavour on this revolution of standing for justice. In my Voice for Abdullah Shafique thread, a random bloke mentioned that no one is speaking of the injustice that has happened to Kamran Ghulam who also wasn’t picked in the draft because he is from KPK....whilst Kamran played his last T20 in 2018.

Then you have some people who think standing up against out of his depth T20 batsman Mohammad Rizwan is pro Sarfaraz. How can you stand for justice with all of these ridiculous factions in play? Then we also have a group that is hell bent on abusing under 18s, as if this is a weird culture in Places. How can you stand for justice with all of this division and confusion in the fans/players/admin?

That's my point. I'm not asking people to go into the streets. I'm suggesting that people have give concerted well thought out opinions on whatever platform you have available to you. We sometimes don't do that. At least not in a way that makes any sense.

 

[moghul]

Misbah is not the only factor, but has been the main factor in teams loss. He should be removed first before expecting any improvement.

 

[Usman]

Wasim Khan(while appointing Misbah as coach cum selector): Misbah will be solely accountable for the performances of the team


Misbah(after a year): I am not only factor behind bad performance


Pakistan Cricket and Pakistan Cricket Board in a total mess

This is exactly what I was going to say.

Wasim made that categorical statement to justify giving Misbah extradoniary powers as Head Coach and Chief Selector. The fact that the team failed miserably means Misbah needs to take full responsibility.

People like [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] will say these players have no talent etc etc. However whatever their talent levels, there's no question that most of them are underperforming right now.

Naseem for example was bad and yes, some may say he was never good in the first place. However it is an undeniable fact that he was much better than he is now - significantly faster and he created at least some threat. The fact that Naseem is nowhere near that level means something is not right with him. Misbah's job is to get the best out of his players and here he has spectacularly failed. Misbah needs to tell us what has happened to Naseem, why it happened and why couldn't Misbah and his fellow coaches fix it. If Misbah doesn't have satisfactory answers to these questions then I'm afraid we might as well play without a coach. If you're going to take home that massive pay packet, add value or go.

 

[Mamoon]

We are a country where for the vast majority of our history we have voted into power people whose lack of empathy for the 99% is for everyone to see. So why do we vote for people who have no empathy for our plight? Pakistan like so many third world countries has a messiah complex. It has become a part of our culture, our way of life, and our general expectations. We expect every coach, chief selector, and captain to be a messiah. When they fall below our expectations we skewer them not realizing or understanding where the flaws lie.

With everything that is going on, it is easy to criticize Misbah ul Haq. I agree, a better Manager(I use this term broadly) would do better and in fact should do better. There is enough talent in Pakistan to win both home and away in all formats. That said, the talent pool for Head Coaches, Chief Selectors, and Captains is very small to the point that it's non-existent.

There are maybe 5 people in Pakistan that are qualified to become a Chief Selector. There are even fewer people qualified to a be a Head Coach. There are maybe 1 or 2 players in Pakistan qualified to be a captain. Has anyone asked the question why?

There is a dearth of qualified individuals for these roles because over the last 30 years we have accepted the reality of Pakistan. How many people in Pakistan are raising their voice against basic injustices? Few or none. Those who are seem to have a misplaced agenda. Generally speaking no one is willing to raise their voices outside the confines of their Twitter Account or Living Rooms. Not because they are scared, but because know one wants to take the responsibility of Leadership(Moral or Thought). The result of this is a society of sycophants not leaders.

There are no captains because there is no current player that would ever speak out against wrongdoing. They will accept everything both good and bad, because survival lives in silence. If Fawad Alam spoke out against his non-selection would he ever have made a comeback. I think the answer to this question is no. And so every single person in Pakistan doing one thing and one thing only. Survive!!!

The culture of self-preservation is so ingrained in our psychology that we are not willing to stand up for what is right. As a result there are no leaders and there is little to no progress. Misbah was wrongly not selected in the prime of his career. Of course he was not alone. So what did he do? For the most part he stayed quiet and eventually he got an opportunity. He grabbed that opportunity with both hands. He is surviving. I don't blame him. It is what Shan Masood does when he bats in test cricket. It is what Imam ul Haq does in ODI cricket. And it is what Babar Azam does in T20 Cricket. Stand Up!!!

Please list these talents and create your playing XIs that can win home and away in all formats against all opposition.

If that is not what you implied, you don’t need to answer.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

I do agree it is not entirely Misbah's fault. However, it is he and his team who make Pakistan punch below their weight.

it is non sense to say if coach changes, the team won't change. It will change. It does in Premier League, it does in basket ball, it does in all sport.

All you need is someone who can bring the best out of the team - whatever it is capable of. One can clearly see they were miserable in more ways than one and the buck stops with Misbah.

 

[taqi]

He was chief selector and coach he can’t blame stupid selections and approach to anyone else.

T/20s where we won in NZ last time with almost same NZ team we lost.

In tests he is keep saying we could have won that one test in Eng but who’s fault is it?

Issues with our bowling is more prominent then ever. Waqar failed several times in this decade but still he is there.

We need fresh approach

 

[Mamoon]

Look, we are not at the level of India, Australia, New Zealand or England, but thats why we need to maximise our resources. If we make good selections, and play with the right tactics and then lose, then I dont have an issue, but so far Misbah seems to have no idea what he is doing for the most part.

Yes, we should dissolve the PCB and relinquish our test status because of the slump we find ourselves in.
Let's not maximize our resources, with a better management who can employ an actual strategy and compete.
It is one thing being a realist, but another being in a constant defeatist state.
Irrespective of how bad our cricket is right now, we have to move it along and somehow arrest our fortunes.
And having a mindset like your's doesnt help.

We are maximizing our resources already. Misbah’s Pakistan is not punching below it’s weight regardless of how much we overhype mediocre players out of desperation.

Potential wise, this Pakistan side is 6th/7th material in all formats. They don’t have the quality to be in the top 3/4. Maybe it can go to 5 temporarily, but it will slip down to 6 and 7 eventually.

Misbah will keep Pakistan in these positions. The Test results will naturally improve in the home cycle if spinning tracks are prepared. Yasir is still one of the best around on these pitches and can bowl match-winning spells.

The issue is that if you sack Misbah because he cannot produce results that are beyond Pakistan’s capability, you will not go anywhere. With the talent pool that Pakistan has, no coach in the world can do anything.

Even Mickey couldn’t arrest the decline after Pakistan got brutally exposed in the Asia Cup after a year long minnow-bashing and trash-talking, and then went on to lose 26 of his last 35 ODIs and lost a Test series to NZ in UAE before getting whitewashed in South Africa.

It is not about defeatist attitude. Instead of making castles in the air which they have done for years and years, our fans need to manage their expectations.

Pakistan cricket does not have the divine right to be a top cricket team and and neither are we overflowing with natural talent. That myth was busted long, long ago.

We are just a weak cricket nation along the same lines as tier 2 sides like Sri Lanka, West Indies and Bangladesh. There is nothing wrong with that if you manage your expectations and there is nothing wrong in support a side like that.

In sports, millions of fans around the world support weak teams that have no chance of becoming the top teams in their respective sports, but that fact does not stop them from supporting their teams with passion.

Unfortunately, Pakistani fans cannot come to grip with the reality. The reality is that the game of cricket ran past us and we failed to catch up.

Now unless every other team stops and waits for us to catch up, we will remain poor at cricket. Pakistan cricket has seen its heydays already. The peak of our cricket was from late 70s to early 2000s, and that was it.

As a team we should not stop trying. I agree with that, and that is what PCB is doing. They got Arthur, they got rid of Arthur, they got Misbah, they made him dual coach, then they got M. Wasim as selector, tomorrow they will get rid of both Misbah and M. Wasim, then they will find their replacements, then they will remove their replacements and life will go on.

 

[waleed88]

The champions trophy was great. But is just covered up cracks, we were an average LO team and the results after that tournament proved that.

There is no champions trophy tournament anymore I think. So when Misbah goes, I don’t know what your hoping for because to win the World Cup and be in the test championship final your will need quality,skill, and consistency. Pakistan are very very far behind in these departments in all facets of the game.

That defeat against Zimbabwe in the super over was very very concerning. I think the team was bad but not to that extent. The team was playing like a 90s team against them with Imam and Abid Ali opening and blocking their way to 119 in 25 overs in the first ODI. This is frankly unacceptable.

Zimbabwe made 255 in the first game and 278 in the 3rd game with Babar chasing it down. But even he couldn't take us across to the finish line. All these are BIG concerns when your prime player can't even chase a 278, or your team is conceding runs against Zimbabwe. Their slow start also shows that this culture of accumulating in the beginning is a deeply ingrained culture that stems from our domestic cricket.

 

[Savak]

Misbah can't cry about being unfairly targeted. He knew he was getting extraordinary powers as the head coach and chief selector therefore was taking on extraordinary responsibilities. And he still remained the head coach, chief selector for this NZ tour therefore the criticism is justified. He knew what he was getting into.

 

[Colorblind Genius]

Lahore: Pakistan men’s team head coach Misbah-ul-Haq thinks that he is not the only factor behind the national team’s bad performances over the past year.

The 46-year-old Misbah will appear before the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) cricket committee along with bowling coach Waqar Younis after the team’s disappointing performance on the tour of New Zealand.

Misbah wants the cricket committee to do ‘fact-based analysis’ which will further help the cricket of Pakistan.

“We have to understand all factors behind team’s defeat. There can’t just be me behind the dipping in performances. Nothing will change If one person leaves the system but we must address all the problems realistically,” Misbah said in a presser at Gaddafi Stadium.

Misbah took responsibility for the team’s defeat but wants critics to understand the reasons behind failures.

“The players worked hard in the available resources and conditions after going through a tough quarantine in New Zealand,” he added.

“COVID-19 is impacting not just our performances but it has affected other teams like India and Sri Lanka too. Cricket is completely changing due to the virus but now we have to get accustomed to this,” he maintained.

Misbah believes skipper Babar Azam’s injury was also the biggest factor behind the defeat. “Babar’s injury was a big miss for us as he has been among runs in the past year or so. His absence was equaled to New Zealand playing without Kane Williamson,” he added.

“We should also accept that the Blackcaps were better than us in all three departments. They have been playing good cricket for the past couple of years. We also tried our best on the field during the series but unfortunately, results did not go our way,” he maintained.

https://arysports.tv/im-not-only-factor-pakistans-team-bad-performance-misbah/

How conveniently this cunning guy forgot?


Misbah to be solely responsible for team’s selection and performance. Wasim Khan

LAHORE: Misbah-ul-Haq, after being handed the dual role of head coach-cum-chief selector, will be solely responsible for national team’s selection as well as its performance, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief executive Wasim Khan said on Wednesday.


https://www.dawn.com/news/1503538

 

[Colorblind Genius]

I am sure he didn’t think about it when he was negotiating back n forth to get a guaranteed $250,000 a year salary for 3 years.

 

[Pakpak]

We are a country where for the vast majority of our history we have voted into power people whose lack of empathy for the 99% is for everyone to see. So why do we vote for people who have no empathy for our plight? Pakistan like so many third world countries has a messiah complex. It has become a part of our culture, our way of life, and our general expectations. We expect every coach, chief selector, and captain to be a messiah. When they fall below our expectations we skewer them not realizing or understanding where the flaws lie.

With everything that is going on, it is easy to criticize Misbah ul Haq. I agree, a better Manager(I use this term broadly) would do better and in fact should do better. There is enough talent in Pakistan to win both home and away in all formats. That said, the talent pool for Head Coaches, Chief Selectors, and Captains is very small to the point that it's non-existent.

There are maybe 5 people in Pakistan that are qualified to become a Chief Selector. There are even fewer people qualified to a be a Head Coach. There are maybe 1 or 2 players in Pakistan qualified to be a captain. Has anyone asked the question why?

There is a dearth of qualified individuals for these roles because over the last 30 years we have accepted the reality of Pakistan. How many people in Pakistan are raising their voice against basic injustices? Few or none. Those who are seem to have a misplaced agenda. Generally speaking no one is willing to raise their voices outside the confines of their Twitter Account or Living Rooms. Not because they are scared, but because know one wants to take the responsibility of Leadership(Moral or Thought). The result of this is a society of sycophants not leaders.

There are no captains because there is no current player that would ever speak out against wrongdoing. They will accept everything both good and bad, because survival lives in silence. If Fawad Alam spoke out against his non-selection would he ever have made a comeback. I think the answer to this question is no. And so every single person in Pakistan doing one thing and one thing only. Survive!!!

The culture of self-preservation is so ingrained in our psychology that we are not willing to stand up for what is right. As a result there are no leaders and there is little to no progress. Misbah was wrongly not selected in the prime of his career. Of course he was not alone. So what did he do? For the most part he stayed quiet and eventually he got an opportunity. He grabbed that opportunity with both hands. He is surviving. I don't blame him. It is what Shan Masood does when he bats in test cricket. It is what Imam ul Haq does in ODI cricket. And it is what Babar Azam does in T20 Cricket. Stand Up!!!

Your last two paragraphs are absolutely spot on. And this has been the hallmark of our cricket. You introduce any new player and they go into their shell after a few games. Why? They know tuktuk to make a reasonable score is the only way to survive otherwise they won't be picked. In other nations players play their game as they know even after a bad result they won't forever be exiled.

 

[shariqnoor]

Lol you give Misbah a side of Miandad, Hanif Mohammad, Zaheer Abbas, Majid Khan, Asif Iqbal, Mudassar Nazar, Imran Khan, Salim Malik, Inzamam Ul Haq, Yousaf, Younis, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq, Mushtaq Ahmed, Abdul Qadir. Trust me he will find a way to make kittens out of them and to lose with them

That is how contagious his entire being permeates and how panoti he is

That is simply not true. If you had a team consisting of those players, Misbah as coach would be irrelevant and the team would win on its own.

Misbah as captain has won matches with the likes of Aizaz Cheema, Bilawal Bhatti, Anwar Ali. As coach he's helpless when the players take the field as we have a horrible team supported by an average captain.

 

[Savak]

That is simply not true. If you had a team consisting of those players, Misbah as coach would be irrelevant and the team would win on its own.

Misbah as captain has won matches with the likes of Aizaz Cheema, Bilawal Bhatti, Anwar Ali. As coach he's helpless when the players take the field as we have a horrible team supported by an average captain.

Lol which matches has Misbah won with these players? Sri Lanka, One off games against South Africa. Misbah as a coach is helpless, best to stop there. Misbah's DNA is safety and defensive cricket

 

[CleverSir]

I am sure he didn’t think about it when he was negotiating back n forth to get a guaranteed $250,000 a year salary for 3 years.

Attacking him on his salary isn’t good. He’s already on the lower end of international head coaches in terms of salary. If we want the big names we gotta pay closer to $1 million these days. We actually got what we paid for.

 

[Blistering Barnacle]

Misbah "worst captain to visit Australia" ul Haq continues to poison Pakistan cricket a decade later. When will this torture end. I think it's going to remain for the rest of my life. When I'm an old man, Misbah will be CEO or still somehow running the show. And the torture will go on and on.

 

[PakPremi]

So Misbah and Waqar will be given SA series. I suppose there was not enough time to hire new coach.

 

[Colorblind Genius]

Attacking him on his salary isn’t good. He’s already on the lower end of international head coaches in terms of salary. If we want the big names we gotta pay closer to $1 million these days. We actually got what we paid for.

You've gotta be kidding me!

This guy can't get a job of a chapraasi or Chai wala in another cricket board.

No, we didn't get what we paid for!

And either way you look at it, he pledged full responsibility before taking the job he was unqualified for.

 

[iniqbal223]

You've gotta be kidding me!

This guy can't get a job of a chapraasi or Chai wala in another cricket board.

No, we didn't get what we paid for!

And either way you look at it, he pledged full responsibility before taking the job he was unqualified for.

I liked this approach of coach + selector thing. It actually has worked, and put the Misbah in entire spotlight

He could not have any excuses now that he demanded someone else, he got different players, etc.

He owns the failure because he failed completely.. I think Andy Flower or who ever is coming should be given the same power of being coach and selector.. So that if his strategies are not working, we can boot him out as well, rather than hearing stories of selector and coach, each blaming each other...

 

[iniqbal223]

So Misbah and Waqar will be given SA series. I suppose there was not enough time to hire new coach.

The next series is in 2 weeks time,.. Not enough time for any new person to come and join the team given he has to remain in Bio-bubble for some time. Had it there been a long gap between NZ series and SA series... Misbah would have been fired by now

 

[Savak]

Attacking him on his salary isn’t good. He’s already on the lower end of international head coaches in terms of salary. If we want the big names we gotta pay closer to $1 million these days. We actually got what we paid for.

Misbah "worst captain to visit Australia" ul Haq continues to poison Pakistan cricket a decade later. When will this torture end. I think it's going to remain for the rest of my life. When I'm an old man, Misbah will be CEO or still somehow running the show. And the torture will go on and on.

Misbah was a nobody in 2007 at the age of 32, getting selected for the 2007 T20 WC at the expense of Yousaf turned out to be a massive lottery ticket for him. Since then he became a senior player, captain, head coach, chief selector. I swear to God he must have met someone very powerful in 2007 as this kind of upward trajectory in a young man's game of Cricket is unparalleled. I wish that someone can really carry out an in-depth investigation as to who his gidarsinghi is

 

[sam_ahm]

World Cup winning teams of the past like Pakistan, West Indies, Sri Lanka have been reduced to nothing. There is nothing to see in these teams really, can't even compete against top teams which is sad really.

There was a time when Wasim Akram was sacked for ending up as a runner up in 1999 WC, and now they have accepted mediocrity to such an extent that even a respectable defeat, that too once in a while, is enough to keep your job.

 

[Ahson8]

We are maximizing our resources already. Misbah’s Pakistan is not punching below it’s weight regardless of how much we overhype mediocre players out of desperation.

Potential wise, this Pakistan side is 6th/7th material in all formats. They don’t have the quality to be in the top 3/4. Maybe it can go to 5 temporarily, but it will slip down to 6 and 7 eventually.

Misbah will keep Pakistan in these positions. The Test results will naturally improve in the home cycle if spinning tracks are prepared. Yasir is still one of the best around on these pitches and can bowl match-winning spells.

The issue is that if you sack Misbah because he cannot produce results that are beyond Pakistan’s capability, you will not go anywhere. With the talent pool that Pakistan has, no coach in the world can do anything.

Even Mickey couldn’t arrest the decline after Pakistan got brutally exposed in the Asia Cup after a year long minnow-bashing and trash-talking, and then went on to lose 26 of his last 35 ODIs and lost a Test series to NZ in UAE before getting whitewashed in South Africa.

It is not about defeatist attitude. Instead of making castles in the air which they have done for years and years, our fans need to manage their expectations.

Pakistan cricket does not have the divine right to be a top cricket team and and neither are we overflowing with natural talent. That myth was busted long, long ago.

We are just a weak cricket nation along the same lines as tier 2 sides like Sri Lanka, West Indies and Bangladesh. There is nothing wrong with that if you manage your expectations and there is nothing wrong in support a side like that.

In sports, millions of fans around the world support weak teams that have no chance of becoming the top teams in their respective sports, but that fact does not stop them from supporting their teams with passion.

Unfortunately, Pakistani fans cannot come to grip with the reality. The reality is that the game of cricket ran past us and we failed to catch up.

Now unless every other team stops and waits for us to catch up, we will remain poor at cricket. Pakistan cricket has seen its heydays already. The peak of our cricket was from late 70s to early 2000s, and that was it.

As a team we should not stop trying. I agree with that, and that is what PCB is doing. They got Arthur, they got rid of Arthur, they got Misbah, they made him dual coach, then they got M. Wasim as selector, tomorrow they will get rid of both Misbah and M. Wasim, then they will find their replacements, then they will remove their replacements and life will go on.

Didnt read after your 1st line, if you think going in without a specialist spinner in an ODI, recalling Shehzad and Akmal, giving Musa a go without FC experience is "maximising our resources" then idk what to say

 

[iniqbal223]

I think a better and more experienced coach would improve Pakistan, but I don't believe that any coach in the world can take Pakistan to the top at the moment.

The simple reason is that the players are simply not good enough, technically not good enough and mentally weak and lack self-belief.

Misbah & Waqar are too smart and sane (always have diplomatic reasons to failures, just like some of the executives). They know when to say COVID as an excuse, and what to do, so they are pretty relaxed whether team wins or looses..

We really need someone WHO LOVES TO PUT IN HARD WORK WITH THE TEAM, and love to do the job day in day out... Same goes for the players too...

 

[Ozeirk]

There was talks of Misbah leaving after the sa series. Is that still on the table?

 

[hitthestump]

There was talks of Misbah leaving after the sa series. Is that still on the table?

He probably saved his spot in the test series, as if beating the worst SA side most people have ever seen was worth much at all. We will have to endure the humiliation of the world t20 before any further discussions around his coaching capacity are had.

 

[Rana]

PCB & PAKPassion needs to go a little soft on Misbah - the team is not that good as the popular belief. But, in their josh, if PCB decides to sacrifice Misbah, it won’t convey confidence to next incumbent - appointing coach will become costlier for PCB and

Appointing new coaches have been costlier?

 

[Colorblind Genius]

I’m not the only factor behind Pakistan team's bad performance : Misbah-ul-Haq

You got that damn right!
Waqar was the other reason.

Glad that you both were shown the door.

The change in the team's moral and it's performance is now in front of us.

 

[warcry]

if only Misbah and Waqar could get life bans from ever holding a post in the PCB.

them two have been the main reason behind our pitiful performances. from 2007 when he played that stupid scoop shot. to waqar being the coach and responsible for that botched chase in mohali (and the drop catches that went with it), to both of them responsible for the 2015 debacle of a world cup. lets not forget numerous capitulations in overseas test matches.

Waqar's the modern intikhab alam, always around stealing a living at the PCB and blaming everyone else for his failure as a bowling coach and as a head coach, with Misbah as a dependable partner in crime.

 

[Kroll]

if only Misbah and Waqar could get life bans from ever holding a post in the PCB.

them two have been the main reason behind our pitiful performances. from 2007 when he played that stupid scoop shot. to waqar being the coach and responsible for that botched chase in mohali (and the drop catches that went with it), to both of them responsible for the 2015 debacle of a world cup. lets not forget numerous capitulations in overseas test matches.

Waqar's the modern intikhab alam, always around stealing a living at the PCB and blaming everyone else for his failure as a bowling coach and as a head coach, with Misbah as a dependable partner in crime.

Haha well put, if anybody at the PCB was to offer these two a job again, they’d either be:

a) drunk as a skunk or
b) high on acid

 

[iniqbal223]

rumors are around that Misbah & Waqar are going to get key positions in PCB after wt20