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If Azhar Ali doesn’t fire with the bat in this Test match then it’s time for him to retire

Slog

Slog

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Flat wicket. Been useless all series. No Excuses left if he fails again.
 
Precisely, he should have retired or got dropped anyways but if he doesn't perform with bat, that should be the end of the two A's for Pakistan.

In case if they perform, the torture will continue.
 
I'm hoping and praying that he fails. He was bad as a tailender-number three anyway but now he is not only a tailender batting at number three he is the freaking captain of the side.


Only a shameless guy like Misbah can take such a decision.
 
Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq are going to perform in this match and troll PCT fans :P
 
Slog said:
Flat wicket. Been useless all series. No Excuses left if he fails again.
Click to expand...

He will just make up some excuse. His shameless defense of Asad Shafiq was nonsensical. He simply said that Asad Shafiq is a match winner. When Asad Shafiq is a rare individual who has played 76 tests matches without a single match winning performance. He played well in some loosing causes or draws. but never a win. This must be a world record has there ever been a test cricketer who played 76 Tests but never put in a Match winning performance?

I am not sure if this is a batting wicket until Pakistan plays on it. I mean England were 4 for 127. then this partnership came on. looks like we lost this Test match on day 1.
 
Even if he somehow manages to 'fire'. He should still go. Need to invest in new players and bring balance to the team, can't be having all these budday and kids taking up precious slots.
 
Nothing is going to happen. They don't have enough self respect to take a decision like that. They will keep cashing till it suits them.

It's on Wasim Khan to take action and force Misbah's hand. Does Wasim have the guts? Lets see.
 
Sadly, he is not going anywhere. I'm just praying Shan plays a good knock here & then he will definitely be in the running to replace Azhar.
 
Azhar needs 23 runs to overhaul Shadab's runs for the series. He's chipped away 4 of those. The challenge is he has to do it from this innings, can he do it?
 
As a Pakistan's well wisher, I want him to fail and not to fool his fans by useless 50 or even 100 which can be more fatal for the future of Pakistan Cricket.
 
I hope he fails today
Dont want him to score in a losing cause and secure his place and captaincy for next 2 years
 
He has to go along with that Asad the worst player ever but I think they will score some useless runs in this test.
 
Irrespective of his score. He must be removed as captain and then as a batsmen
 
JaDed said:
Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq are going to perform in this match and troll PCT fans :P
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They might - it's a flat wicket.

But can Azhar be retained after so many failures even if he has a single good away Test?
 
He’s a tough character , not one to throw in the towel and give up easily. I think Azhar will work hard to put his effort to bounce back and score a double century on the next tour to Bangladesh to silence all critics.

On a side note did anyone see that footage on Sky sports yesterday showcasing all of Azhar Ali’s lbw dismissals against English bowlers on various tours - that was seriously good coaching material for young kids, on how not to bat against seam and swing.
 
If he can get in in the first half hour and his first 10 balls from archer, he has a great chance. Asad and fawad too for that matter
This is am amazing wicket to bat on overs 20-80, which is why barbars loss was devastating
 
Abdullah said:
If he can get in in the first half hour and his first 10 balls from archer, he has a great chance. Asad and fawad too for that matter
This is am amazing wicket to bat on overs 20-80, which is why barbars loss was devastating
Click to expand...
Yes the only consolation I was hoping for from this match was a sunny weekend of watching Babar Azam scoring a classy double century on this batting paradise. Now it might be watching Azhar Ali in survival mode being tortured by fast bowlers and in revenge torturing the viewers by hanging around for as long as he can scoring next to nothing.
 
srh said:
You should have made this thread about Asad Shafiq instead
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I have zero expectations from that mental weakling anymore.

Maybe when we’re following on in the second innings he might score a cheap fifty
 
Abdullah said:
If he can get in in the first half hour and his first 10 balls from archer, he has a great chance. Asad and fawad too for that matter
This is am amazing wicket to bat on overs 20-80, which is why barbars loss was devastating
Click to expand...

I don't like quoting myself but there you go, thankfully he is capable of batting time when in.
 
Slog said:
I have zero expectations from that mental weakling anymore.

Maybe when we’re following on in the second innings he might score a cheap fifty
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For what Ali has lacked in technically, he often would try to make up for it with his determination and grit which is admirable when you compare him with coward. However in the 30s it gets much tougher. Beyond any runs Ali scores, he has cost the team with his captaincy; at the very least Pak need to take the arm band from him
 
Mir jibran said:
I hope he fails today
Dont want him to score in a losing cause and secure his place and captaincy for next 2 years
Click to expand...

Wow, just wow. By all means criticise and call for his retirement if he's poor but to call yourself a Pakistan fan and want someone to underperform is something else.

I don't think Azhar is a good captain but he's certainly showing grit and determination out there today.

He changed his stance ever so slightly to negate his weakness and really dug in for the first 30 overs at 20 strike rate?

Credit to him, let's hope he continues throughout the last session.
 
He should salvage some pride and retire after this test, o the team management should realize that he is now not goo enough in SENA despite this last bit of heroics. Tell him it's a good time to let go.

Look Azhar has been a good servant of Pakistan cricket but he has hung on well past his prime. He's caught a lot of flak for his performances in the last 2.5 years, frankly it's well deserved, and that has tarnished his legacy. He should let go now or be dropped.

But in typical Pakistani fashion he will either hang on until the next humiliation in SENA or start demanding a farewell series to leave on his own terms ala Misbah and Younis.
 
Kenpachi said:
Wow, just wow. By all means criticise and call for his retirement if he's poor but to call yourself a Pakistan fan and want someone to underperform is something else.
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I don’t think the fan is necessarily hoping for a failure for the Pakistan team. If you look at the match as a whole its true he changed his stance to negate the lbw. But you need to take into consideration this pitch is batting friendly. He was due a run on this wicket. By making a 100 here Azhar will continue to hog the captaincy position by under performing in other matches. If anything he should have performed earlier in the series when it mattered. This is nothing more than spot saving innings.
 
Shazzam said:
I don’t think the fan is necessarily hoping for a failure for the Pakistan team. If you look at the match as a whole its true he changed his stance to negate the lbw. But you need to take into consideration this pitch is batting friendly. He was due a run on this wicket. By making a 100 here Azhar will continue to hog the captaincy position by under performing in other matches. If anything he should have performed earlier in the series when it mattered. This is nothing more than spot saving innings.
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Read again. He said he wanted Azhar to fail. I stated wanting someone to fail is ridiculous no matter how much you don't like them.

This knock if it continues for a while will not just be a spot saving innings, it could prevent the loss too.
 
it's been a terrific innings - his first 50 outside Asia for 11 Tests.

But unfortunately it will keep him in the team, as a passenger in 21 innings out of 22 outside Asia.

Well done, and he's a lovely man, but it's bad news for Pakistan.
 
These are worst sort of innings when you want your team to plan for the long term.

Career saving 55s are what they're called, but in this case he's gone ahead and made a ton.
 
Whilst ive never been an Azhar fan, his sharp decline in performances needs to be explored in more detail to get an idea whats going on.

Rashid latif has mentioned a number of times now on PTV and his YT channel that he has a knee injury,more on the left side that is preventing him from bending forward when playing a length ball. His weight is all on the sole of his feet instead of being on the toes because the later put a huge toil on the knee.

Salman Butt did an interview a few days ago where he mentioned the same thing. He’s played with Azhar quite a lot recently in the domestic circuit with the Central Punjab team and said hes still struggling with those issues and his left leg is all taped up from the knee below when he comes out to bat.

What Butt further claimed was that Azhar’s injury has been seriously exacerbated by the team trainer who makes him run long distances as part of his training regimen. That is something you never do with someone with an active knee injury, instead strengthening the main muscle groups around the joint (the hams,quads and calves) through targeted resistance taining should be the priority. He also said that Azhar never speaks up even when he knows what they’re doing is harming him.
 
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Kenpachi said:
Read again. He said he wanted Azhar to fail. I stated wanting someone to fail is ridiculous no matter how much you don't like them.

This knock if it continues for a while will not just be a spot saving innings, it could prevent the loss too.
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He scored a century against Sri-Lanka in the last Test. Its not something new for him.

I am telling you from the fans perspective. When it mattered he never scored these runs. He’s scoring them now in a Test match that could be a potential draw. So wanting someone to fail after he had already failed this series makes sense. After he scores this century it will be the same story all over again. He’s not gonna score much for a while and use this century to back himself.
 
Grunge101 said:
Whilst ive never been an Azhar fan, his sharp decline in performances needs to be explored in more detail to get an idea whats going on.

Rashid latif has mentioned a number of times now on PTV and his YT channel that he has a knee injury,more on the left side that is preventing him from bending forward when playing a length ball. His weight is all on the sole of his feet instead of being on the toes because the later put a huge toil on the knee.

Salman Butt did an interview a few days ago where he mentioned the same thing. He’s played with Azhar quite a lot recently in the domestic circuit with the Central Punjab team and said hes still struggling with those issues and his left leg is all taped up from the knee below when he comes out to bat.

What Butt further claimed was that Azhar’s injury has been seriously exacerbated by the team trainer who makes him run long distances as part of his training regimen. That is something you never do with someone with an active knee injury, instead strengthening the main muscle groups around the joint (the hams,quads and calves) through targeted resistance taining should be the priority. He also said that Azhar never speaks up even when he knows what they’re doing is harming him.
Click to expand...

If he has a knee injury why is he not getting surgery on it?
 
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Shazzam said:
If he has a knee injury why is he not getting surgery on it?
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The injury happened in 2017, he went to UK to get treatment tho i dont think any surgery was done.
The rehabilitation was supposed to take 2 years but he resumed cricket too early and then the training regimen apparently has worsened it.
 
Shazzam said:
If he has a knee injury why is he not getting surgery on it?
Click to expand...

When you have a dehati Waqar who believes in blind over training in the team management, what do you expect? Even Imad Wasim has knee problems which explains his weight issues
 
Grunge101 said:
The injury happened in 2017, he went to UK to get treatment tho i dont think any surgery was done.
The rehabilitation was supposed to take 2 years but he resumed cricket too early and then the training regimen apparently has worsened it.
Click to expand...


So in other words this knee issue would have seen him gone for 2 years. He chose to play instead of wasting two years on healing. In that case he is damaging his own legacy by not taking care of this main issue. If Azhar played with a healed up knee he could maybe score more consistently.
 
Savak said:
When you have a dehati Waqar who believes in blind over training in the team management, what do you expect? Even Imad Wasim has knee problems which explains his weight issues
Click to expand...

Dang even Imad has that issue that sucks. This is why we need proper coaches. Not some former cricketer who thinks he knows the job.
 
This is the most meaningless century for the team's cause in the history of centuries. Saved his career though. There hasn't been a Pakistani selector/selection committee who has dropped a batsman who just scored a ton (Fawad Alam does not count).



Now Azhar will hang on, play a couple of easy series and the process repeats next time we are touring SENA.
 
Syed1 said:
This is the most meaningless century for the team's cause in the history of centuries. Saved his career though. There hasn't been a Pakistani selector/selection committee who has dropped a batsman who just scored a ton (Fawad Alam does not count).



Now Azhar will hang on, play a couple of easy series and the process repeats next time we are touring SENA.
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Did you see Azhar's ott celebrations while Misbah and his cronies all jumping about as if it was match winning century when we're still miles away from the follow on. Proper minnow mentality, have some shame you buffoons!
 
Savak said:
When you have a dehati Waqar who believes in blind over training in the team management, what do you expect? Even Imad Wasim has knee problems which explains his weight issues
Click to expand...
His training regimen apparently consists of running, running and more running. No specialist training for bowlers vs batsmen and no alterations made for those with injuries if the pundits on ptv are to be believed.
 
Kroll said:
Did you see Azhar's ott celebrations while Misbah and his cronies all jumping about as if it was match winning century when we're still miles away from the follow on. Proper minnow mentality, have some shame you buffoons!
Click to expand...

I didn't see it, no interest in watching the match but I fully expect Azhar to do something like that.


I recall a couple of years ago Azhar was captaining I think the Baluchistan side in the Pakistan Cup, it was a must win match and they were chasing a stiff target of over 300. Azhar came in as an opener and selfishly played for his century when he eventually reached it was jumping about and celebrating as if he had won the WC, meanwhile the asking rate was touching 10 rpo or there abouts. Needless to say Baluchistan lost comfortably.


This should tell you the mentality of the man.
 
PCB should have a policy that "career saving" 50s and 100s should have very low significance in selection criteria.

It is exciting watching teams fighting back when they are pushed against the wall etc but with Pakistan this has now become the norm - generally poor performance but then fighting performance when there is a lot of criticism. It's not exciting anymore, it is becoming frustrating.

The last 10 - 15 years or so, this is how this team has played Test cricket. Either players are not given enough chances (Fawad) or given too many chances (Shafiq, Shahzad, U Akmal, Malik etc.). The right balance is just not struck.
 
Azhar whacking Broad around the park now. Looks intent on a big score.
 
His haters have nothing to say now,he is the best batsman after Babar Azam in this XI
He is best player to lead Pakistan,people should stand by him in times of crisis
I bet Asad Shafiq is coming good next,they are class players back them,bring Faheem/Shadab in place of Fawad Alam
 
One innings or one match should never ever decide the fate of a player.

Azhar is playing arguably the knock of his life, but his performances over the past 3 years have been abysmal and its time for him to go. He has the opportunity to leave on a personal high after this innings.
 
coy0607 said:
One innings or one match should never ever decide the fate of a player.

Azhar is playing arguably the knock of his life, but his performances over the past 3 years have been abysmal and its time for him to go. He has the opportunity to leave on a personal high after this innings.
Click to expand...

Lmao what nonsense is this. He has the opportunity to leave on a high after this innings? He isn't retiring.

Cracking knock from him today. He deserves to live another day.
 
Highest scores by Pak captains vs Eng:
187*Hanif Mohammad Lord's 1967
153*Javed Miandad Edgbaston 1992
141*Azhar Ali Southampton 2020
118 Imran Khan The Oval 1987
 
Highest % of runs by a Pak captain in a completed innings:
52.82 Hanif Mohammad 187*/354 v Eng Lord's 1967
52.78 Aamer Sohail 133/252 v Aus Karachi 1998/99
51.64 Azhar Ali 141*/273 Southampton 2020
 
cricketfan11 said:
PCB should have a policy that "career saving" 50s and 100s should have very low significance in selection criteria.

It is exciting watching teams fighting back when they are pushed against the wall etc but with Pakistan this has now become the norm - generally poor performance but then fighting performance when there is a lot of criticism. It's not exciting anymore, it is becoming frustrating.

The last 10 - 15 years or so, this is how this team has played Test cricket. Either players are not given enough chances (Fawad) or given too many chances (Shafiq, Shahzad, U Akmal, Malik etc.). The right balance is just not struck.
Click to expand...

Not exactly career saving then is it... If it doesn't save your career? 😂

I agree with the rest of the post. Far too many people in pakistan cricket are too comfortable with their positions.
 
Firstly, congratulations to Azhar Ali on a superb innings.

That's where the good news ends.

What we are left with is a failing elderly batsman who has just scored an unbeaten 141 on a pitch on which the opposition's Number 3 scored 267, and on which the opposition reached 486-4 before they started to slog.

This is a true test of character now for both the selectors and for Azhar Ali.

The West Indian selectors found themselves in a similar situation with the great Gordon Greenidge in 1991. He has been deteriorating badly with age, then suddenly on his home ground he scored 226 in the Fourth Test v Australia, then in the next test he scored 6 and 43.

But the selectors held their nerve and dropped him anyway. In his penultimate Test he had scored 226, yet he was dropped forever.

The same thing happened with Nasser Hussain. He was the same age as Azhar Ali and his performances had slipped just like Azhar. England found themselves chasing 282 to win the First Test at Lords against New Zealand. Hussain, like Azhar Ali yesterday, turned back the clock by scoring a superb 103 not out, including the winning runs.

And having proved his point Hussain promptly left the field and retired on the spot.

Azhar scoring 141 not out is not a sign of more to come. It is the perfect opportunity for an honourable and admirable man to go out on a high.
 
Frustrated with how his career have panned out. Seems this might be his last overseas tour
 
Cant wait to see the back of this guy. Utterly useless and way past his expiry date.
 
The problem for Azhar is that he's constantly in a position where he needs to justify his place in the team. There's no convincing case that he should stay in the team, other than, because he's experienced.

I think it's imperative that he doesn't play the SA tests, as it's time to give a Kamran Ghulam or Saud Shakeel a long rope. I would still keep him in the squad for that series, at the very least, so that his exit is managed gracefully.
 
He’s Misbah’s hand picked player that’s gotten a free ride for years. Case in point of Pakistani tradition of trying to turn someone completely ordinary in to some legend.
 
KingOfPakBreakfast said:
The problem for Azhar is that he's constantly in a position where he needs to justify his place in the team. There's no convincing case that he should stay in the team, other than, because he's experienced.

I think it's imperative that he doesn't play the SA tests, as it's time to give a Kamran Ghulam or Saud Shakeel a long rope. I would still keep him in the squad for that series, at the very least, so that his exit is managed gracefully.
Click to expand...

And why does he need to constantly justify? Because he has largely been one dimensional, and regressed with time. This is unfortunate and exposes the flaw in our system for 'hanging' on to him this long. Despite his poor form he was appointed skipper and then removed. These silly u-turns have been defining our cricket this decade.

Azhar Ali could have easily been considered for thr ICC test team having played so much cricket this decade. But he got exposed, because of his lack of batsmanship and became a liability.
 
KingOfPakBreakfast said:
The problem for Azhar is that he's constantly in a position where he needs to justify his place in the team. There's no convincing case that he should stay in the team, other than, because he's experienced.

I think it's imperative that he doesn't play the SA tests, as it's time to give a Kamran Ghulam or Saud Shakeel a long rope. I would still keep him in the squad for that series, at the very least, so that his exit is managed gracefully.
Click to expand...

I agree with this.

The best he can do at the moment is guide the incoming youngsters.

Pakistan has a job to do now. We need to secure tours to weaker countries to build our team properly. We need to tour Sri Lanka, West Indies, and Bangladesh. We need to then invite these teams to home conditions and get our team the much needed experience before we play against the bigger teams.

This is the reality of the situation, we need game-time where we know we can win, allowing players to establish themselves.
 
Azhar Ali will bounce back into top form in style with a double century against Bangladesh, and silence all critics.

I can already predict Misbah’s post match interview stating we always knew Azhar would come good and get back into form as he’s an experienced player.

Meanwhile Azhar will thank all those including coach and selectors who backed him during tough times and claim he has a lot more to offer Pakistan cricket and can play test cricket for another 5 years at least.

Happy days again.
 
Asad Shafiq has already been kicked out. Hopefully Azhar Ali is next.
 
I really like Azhar he is really a hard working guy, just recently scored a magnificent 100 follwed up bt a decent half century in 2nd inns at Southampton where our beloved & golden boy Babar Azam failed, I'm not trying to say in anyway that Azhar is better than Babar but this was Azhar's 1st inns after Southampton test, so we need to stick with him. We should get rid of Haris he's useless.
 
If Azhar retired after the 2018/19 tour of South Africa, I doubt as many people would be cursing him as they are now. However he's yet another Pakistani cricketer carrying on well past his prime.

He doesn't give you any confidence at the crease even after 81 Tests. When a nightwatchman in Abbas lasts longer than you, it's time to go.
 
Azhar Ali has scored less than 20 in 10 of the 14 away Test innings that he has played in almost 3 years since Misbah and Younis retired.

I repeat, out of 14 away Test innings:

1 century
1 fifty
10 scores below 20
7 scores below 10
 
His time has been up since years. Very few players are CONSISTENTLY good after 33 years. Which is why most big players (Cook, Clarke) retire after that age. We made him captain at 36. I mean 36 is official who knows what his real age is. So moving a further few years after that ofcourse he's done and dusted. But his fan Misbah won't drop him.

We have done a lot of bad things in our cricket but I don't know what we did to land Misbah first as a player then captain and now coach.
 
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