Imam-ul-Haq - a sure selection during Inzamam's tenure but not being picked now?

[MenInG]

This question was asked of Misbah today:

Imam-ul-Haq not being selected since Inzi's departure

"We all know how good a player Imam-ul-Haq is and he was in good form especially in ODIs, and it is unfortunate how he missed previous series due to injury; He has not been selected for the Test series against Zimbabwe and Abdullah Shafique is there which is understandable as it is Zimbabwe and he is a young player, and its good for his development"

 

[Hasan123]

Imam doesn’t get any chances in tests anymore but trash like Shan Masood and Abid Ali are backed to the hill. You then get our selector saying Imam needs more first Cl games. But he then selects players like Abdullah Shafique and Haris Rauf who have done jack in first class cricket.

PCB fitness standards are not clear. For player selection it seems different rules apply to different players. It’s an absolute mess of a situation. Wasim Khan, Muhammad Wasim, Misbah, and Babar need to get on the same page.

 

[Suleiman]

It’s naive to think that no nepotism took place in this regard, that too in a country like Pakistan, where each and every industry and organization has no shortage of it.

But whether or not Imam was selected on the basis of nepotism, he repaid with results that matched his ability, and much worse players are being played over him now such as Abid and Shan as mentioned above.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Honestly I would prefer Imam in the test team over Imran Butt or Abid Ali. And I am fairly certain he will go much better than both in Pakistan.

Imran Butt was a puzzling selection in my opinion. If you go back and look at his numbers he literally had one good season on the basis of which he was selected. Prior to that season he had been averaging in the in the 20s nearly every season. His selection also shows the surface level research that Mohammad Waseem likes to boast about in his press conferences.

But coming back to Imam, he was dropped because he didn't score in South Africa and Australia which is pretty harsh. I mean how many Pakistani batsmen in the last twenty or so years have actually been successful in Australia? And how many openers do well in South Africa period?

 

[Hasan123]

Honestly I would prefer Imam in the test team over Imran Butt or Abid Ali. And I am fairly certain he will go much better than both in Pakistan.

Imran Butt was a puzzling selection in my opinion. If you go back and look at his numbers he literally had one good season on the basis of which he was selected. Prior to that season he had been averaging in the in the 20s nearly every season. His selection also shows the surface level research that Mohammad Waseem likes to boast about in his press conferences.

But coming back to Imam, he was dropped because he didn't score in South Africa and Australia which is pretty harsh. I mean how many Pakistani batsmen in the last twenty or so years have actually been successful in Australia? And how many openers do well in South Africa period?

Imam haters say because Imam failed in UAE in 1 series he can never play test cricket despite it being early in his career. But Shan Masood and Abid can fail after years of experience and still need more chances.

I would also like Imam to be give another run in test cricket.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Imam haters say because Imam failed in UAE in 1 series he can never play test cricket despite it being early in his career. But Shan Masood and Abid can fail after years of experience and still need more chances.

I would also like Imam to be give another run in test cricket.

Strawman argument. One bad series doesn't prove anything. And atleast Imam has had sustained on the international level. Besides Fakhar which Pakistani opener in the last decade and a half can lay claim to that?

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Imam needs to play more domestic simple fact, he's not had a great start to test cricket and it's obvious because of his lack of experience in domestic.

 

[Maher96]

Test team is joke for some time.

This continuous chopping and changing doesn’t help.

Why was Inzi actually sacked in the first place?

Because we didn’t t win the World Cup?

 

[Mamoon]

Imam is the best option for Test opening in Pakistan and is a very fine young batsman especially for our embarrassing standards.

We will eventually accept this truth but we will do it the hard way after wasting our time with half a dozen inferior options.

 

[Goooby]

Imam is the best option for Test opening in Pakistan and is a very fine young batsman especially for our embarrassing standards.

We will eventually accept this truth but we will do it the hard way after wasting our time with half a dozen inferior options.

The pattern continues and it seems like it'll never change

 

[The cricket enthusiast]

Imam is the best option for Test opening in Pakistan and is a very fine young batsman especially for our embarrassing standards.

We will eventually accept this truth but we will do it the hard way after wasting our time with half a dozen inferior options.

What's more frustrating is it's PCB who invest on them when they are raw likes of 'imam & shan' when it's time for fruition Same Board discard them like they are nobody .
I hope it's not because of the player's like umar akmal & asad shafiq & Ahmed shehzad too for that case who looks soo class apart at the beginning & pleasing to the eyes.
But only REGRESSED . i fail to understand really why is this case with almost every pak player ??
Is it because they are not mentally matured to handle the recognition and fame they get?
What is it really?
Like to hear your two cents on this.

 

[Mamoon]

What's more frustrating is it's PCB who invest on them when they are raw likes of 'imam & shan' when it's time for fruition Same Board discard them like they are nobody .
I hope it's not because of the player's like umar akmal & asad shafiq & Ahmed shehzad too for that case who looks soo class apart at the beginning & pleasing to the eyes.
But only REGRESSED . i fail to understand really why is this case with almost every pak player ??
Is it because they are not mentally matured to handle the recognition and fame they get?
What is it really?
Like to hear your two cents on this.

Firstly, a lot of Pakistani players make their debuts against weak teams which creates a false impression.

For example, Shadab rose to prominence in 2017 when he bamboozled minnow level batsmen in PSL with his googlies and then troubled West Indies batsmen on slow pitches who don’t do well against spin.

This created a false impression that Shadab was some highly talented leg-spinner, but if you look at his performances against the top sides, he has been mediocre forever.

Other players often make a big impression against good teams earlier such as Umar, Maqsood etc. but they fail to kick on and maintain that level because their weaknesses are targeted and they do not have the intelligence and game awareness to cope with it.

Shafiq didn’t regress though. He maintained that level from the beginning. He was a 39-40 averaging Test batsman and he sustained this level throughout his career. He simply wasn’t a good enough player to dominate top teams.

 

[Hasan123]

Strawman argument. One bad series doesn't prove anything. And atleast Imam has had sustained on the international level. Besides Fakhar which Pakistani opener in the last decade and a half can lay claim to that?

Imam will eventually get his chance in test cricket.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Imam is the best option for Test opening in Pakistan and is a very fine young batsman especially for our embarrassing standards.

We will eventually accept this truth but we will do it the hard way after wasting our time with half a dozen inferior options.

April 1st in next week. Your jokes are a week early. Imam is just as bad as shan and abid. All this nonsense about that pakistan should invest time in imam as a test opener is comedy gold.

None of abid, shan, imam or imran butt should be selected again in test cricket.

 

[Omer2002]

Absolutely agreed Imam has been unfairly treated he hasnt set the world on fire but has been very decent. Should definately be in our Test or One day teams. I like Abullah Shafiq but Imam over imran Butt and Abid Ali any day.

 

[Manzy2599]

Imam definitely makes the test team on merit. I don’t know why they’ve persisted with Shan, Abid and now Imran butt who have all failed consistently at the international level over the last few years.

 

[Bilal7]

Imam needs to be backed. He has shown he has the ability to do well at the international level.

 

[Mamoon]

April 1st in next week. Your jokes are a week early. Imam is just as bad as shan and abid. All this nonsense about that pakistan should invest time in imam as a test opener is comedy gold.

None of abid, shan, imam or imran butt should be selected again in test cricket.

He isn’t. Give him 7 years worth of chances like Shan and he will do much better than him.

Imam has decent technique and sound temperament. He has very good potential for our embarrassing standards and he should be backed over average players like Shan, Abid and Imran Butt.

As the least talented cricket nation in the world, Pakistan does not have elite openers waiting in the ranks. Imam is the best that we have got.

 

[Amjid Javed]

He isn’t. Give him 7 years worth of chances like Shan and he will do much better than him.

Imam has decent technique and sound temperament. He has very good potential for our embarrassing standards and he should be backed over average players like Shan, Abid and Imran Butt.

As the least talented cricket nation in the world, Pakistan does not have elite openers waiting in the ranks. Imam is the best that we have got.

Decent technic? Where you watching all the test matches so far on the radio? Like all our current openers he cant play the moving ball. Add to that he was struggling against short ball of dead wickets in UAE vs NZ.

Imam is not the best of a bad bunch currently. Nor should he be persisted with until he improves technically.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Imam definitely makes the test team on merit. I don’t know why they’ve persisted with Shan, Abid and now Imran butt who have all failed consistently at the international level over the last few years.

On merit? what exactly has he done domestically to earn a recall. He was given a run of 11 tests and failed.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Absolutely agreed Imam has been unfairly treated he hasnt set the world on fire but has been very decent. Should definately be in our Test or One day teams. I like Abullah Shafiq but Imam over imran Butt and Abid Ali any day.

So playing a run off 11 tests and failing is unfair treatment is it? )

Imam lovers need to start watching cricket on the tv.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Imam needs to be backed. He has shown he has the ability to do well at the international level.

Imam has shown hes a useless test opener like the rests. If your going to bring up the fact hes done ok in ODIs?

Most teams in world cricket dont use the same openers in ODIs and in tests purely because the cardboard cut out technics which work on roads in ODIs are exposed in tests.

 

[BigShak]

Saud Shakeel suffered big time with Inzi overlooking him for his nephew at the time. The gulf in class and talent between them is obvious to anyone yet Inzi gave Imam a debut when he really didn’t deserve it. Even the likes of Shan deserved to be selected in ODIs before Imam with his beastly List A record. Blatant nepotism from Inzi.

 

[gazza619]

Imam is the best option for Test opening in Pakistan and is a very fine young batsman especially for our embarrassing standards.

We will eventually accept this truth but we will do it the hard way after wasting our time with half a dozen inferior options.

Imam averages 25 after 11 test matches. Our standards are low but not that low.

He has had his chance. Now he will have to wait till others also get a proper shot.

 

[Mamoon]

Imam averages 25 after 11 test matches. Our standards are low but not that low.

He has had his chance. Now he will have to wait till others also get a proper shot.

He will average between 35-40 if he gets proper backing. He is very young and is yet to mature as a batsman.

His ceiling is quite high for our standards and it is evident from the composure and concentration he has shown in ODIs.

Even in Tests, he saved Pakistan from embarrassment in his debut Test in Ireland when the ball swinging like crazy.

There is no doubt he is a good player and Pakistan should back him over the alternatives who are clearly inferior.

Imam is the most impressive opener Pakistan have had in a long time.

 

[Blistering Barnacle]

Agree with Amjid.

Sorry but he's shown nothing special. I'd rather keep trying others.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Imam averages 25 after 11 test matches. Our standards are low but not that low.

He has had his chance. Now he will have to wait till others also get a proper shot.

Yep, my thoughts exactly there has been no injustice against him in terms of tests. He fully deserves to be part of the odi squad and maybe even t20 but not yet tests.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Agree with Amjid.

Sorry but he's shown nothing special. I'd rather keep trying others.

He needs more time in domestic end of.

 

[Saj]

Test average of 25
T20I average of 10

ODI average which is an impressive 52, but 8 innings v Zimbabwe, 2 versus Afghanistan and 1 versus Hong Kong in there.

 

[pakistani pride]

Better stop playing cricket if we really think Imam is the opener we need.

Pathetic all the way.

 

[pakistani pride]

Test average of 25
T20I average of 10

ODI average which is an impressive 52, but 8 innings v Zimbabwe, 2 versus Afghanistan and 1 versus Hong Kong in there.

These numbers say enough. Even that ODI average is boosted by selfish match losing 50s !

 

[gazza619]

He will average between 35-40 if he gets proper backing. He is very young and is yet to mature as a batsman.

His ceiling is quite high for our standards and it is evident from the composure and concentration he has shown in ODIs.

Even in Tests, he saved Pakistan from embarrassment in his debut Test in Ireland when the ball swinging like crazy.

There is no doubt he is a good player and Pakistan should back him over the alternatives who are clearly inferior.

Imam is the most impressive opener Pakistan have had in a long time.

I agree he has the ingredients and also appears to be intelligent which is so rare for a Pakistani batsman. I am concerned though that we dont pick white ball players in test cricket just based on white ball.

Imam has benefitted by favouritism under Inzimam. Now other players have also deserve a chance, thats all.

 

[Third Man]

Have to agree with Mamoon here. Imam is the best opening prospect we've got. Those saying he should already be dominating oppositions should be a little more reasonable. Even Babar hasn't fully found his feet at test cricket, and he's not an opener.

If you think that an opener can just come into test cricket and start dominating oppositions, you're a bit delusional, I'm afraid. Even Shubman Gill, who's probably the most talented young batsman around was finding it really difficult in the recent series.

Imam has a solid-enough technique and he's surely the best option in the long run. I'm all ears if someone can name a better option. Sure he has some chinks but he's a hardworking and intelligent guy and has time on his side. It's not as if we'd be keeping out a Sehwag or Hayden by picking Imam.

 

[Cric1234]

He’s overrated for sure he’s 25 probably 27-28 officially not an age where big improvement is likely he isn’t capable of averaging 40 in test cricket long term.

His ODI stats are overrated a strike rate close to 75 minus minnows when 90 is the minimum top order batsmen should aim for in today’s era.

Haider Ali should be in line for the future developing his temperament and technique by making him a test batsman will help his game.

 

[Mamoon]

I agree he has the ingredients and also appears to be intelligent which is so rare for a Pakistani batsman. I am concerned though that we dont pick white ball players in test cricket just based on white ball.

Imam has benefitted by favouritism under Inzimam. Now other players have also deserve a chance, thats all.

It is also the reason why he has been subjected to over the top criticism and hate. Everyone has a problem with him because he is Inzamam’s nephew.

Imam has shown a lot of composure to block out all the hate and perform reasonably well.

 

[UzmanBeast]

Have to agree with Mamoon here. Imam is the best opening prospect we've got. Those saying he should already be dominating oppositions should be a little more reasonable. Even Babar hasn't fully found his feet at test cricket, and he's not an opener.

If you think that an opener can just come into test cricket and start dominating oppositions, you're a bit delusional, I'm afraid. Even Shubman Gill, who's probably the most talented young batsman around was finding it really difficult in the recent series.

Imam has a solid-enough technique and he's surely the best option in the long run. I'm all ears if someone can name a better option. Sure he has some chinks but he's a hardworking and intelligent guy and has time on his side. It's not as if we'd be keeping out a Sehwag or Hayden by picking Imam.

Imam will do well in subcontinent conditions primarily because the ball does not swing after the first 2-3 overs. Yes, he will struggle overseas, but if someone as mediocre as Shan Masood can be given 20+ test matches without any solid performances, I think we can invest in someone who is more talented.

Player confidence is important. Imam should be in the squad ahead of Abid Ali, and should be given chances. He is not as bad as people make him out to be. He is by no means a David Warner, but he's the best that we have at the moment. His batting style means that he is willing to take time at the top of the order and allow himself to settle. He should be backed.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

He’s overrated for sure he’s 25 probably 27-28 officially not an age where big improvement is likely he isn’t capable of averaging 40 in test cricket long term.

His ODI stats are overrated a strike rate close to 75 minus minnows when 90 is the minimum top order batsmen should aim for in today’s era.

Haider Ali should be in line for the future developing his temperament and technique by making him a test batsman will help his game.

Looking at Haider ali feels like he will soon go the way Sohaib maqsood went.

And I’m sure he will not come good under the current management , Misbah and Waqar don’t have the skills to develop player. They are good enough to give fitness drills , that is the maximum they can do. Unfortunately they are the coaching staff.

 

[pakistanisgreat]

Imam will not get any chance while M. Wasim is the chief selector. If anyone remembered during the World cup time, when Pakistan played last game against BD and Imam scored 100. M. Wasim said on one of the TV shows that this 100 is useless and put that in the garbage.
So he has some personal agenda against imam i guess.

 

[Titan24]

Imam's thread produce polarized opinions. Lets go over some facts:

He was player of the series in ODIs in SA in 2019, cant remember any Pakistani opener doing so well in SA (Averaged 54 with a SR of 81) and scored 151 in Eng in 2019 (Averaged 117 with a SR of 88 in the series). Finished the match for Pak in Ireland in test when Pak was initially under bit of pressure. Outscored all Pakistani batsmen under pressure in Asia cup as well.

Imam has played 7 off his 11 test matches SENA. Yes in the 4 matches he played in UAE he didnt do much and averaged 28 but, then Shan Masood averaged 20 after 8 matches in UAE and Shan was able to up his average and run tally when he played in Pak which Imam is yet to play a match in.

He is 25 and so far has showed a solid temperament and decent enough technique in comparison to some of the young batsmen we have produced in recent times. Yes, one cant deny that he was susceptible to short ball and balls coming into him in his short test career but, do the current openers playing for Pakistan look weakness free? It has been couple of years and in those couple of years he has played 4 ODIs and a T20 match while at the same time he wasnt able to play domestic cricket last year to prove his red all form and any improvements.

Any other player would have been hyped like no tmw after a MOS performance in SA. Imam has his shortcomings and will have to improve upon those but, our fans dont want just any player to do well they want the player the like to do well and only such players get the hype while rest get the names like "Parchi" because of something he doesnt have control over. He was selected for Pak after QAE 2016-17 season in which he was the best opener and 3rd highest scorer, averaging 49 and HS of 200. Yes one can argue he could have been selected for tests rather than ODIs but, we cant argue that he performed in domestic cricket to get a call up.

He is in no way perfect but, the way he is treated by some fans and media people is pretty odd when some of the same people hype some much inferior players around like no tmw.

 

[Amjid Javed]

He will average between 35-40 if he gets proper backing. He is very young and is yet to mature as a batsman.

His ceiling is quite high for our standards and it is evident from the composure and concentration he has shown in ODIs.

Even in Tests, he saved Pakistan from embarrassment in his debut Test in Ireland when the ball swinging like crazy.

There is no doubt he is a good player and Pakistan should back him over the alternatives who are clearly inferior.

Imam is the most impressive opener Pakistan have had in a long time.

Most impressive? your full of comedy at the moment. What exactly was impressive about not being able to play swinging ball in eng or SA. What was impressive about struggling vs short ball vs UAE?

 

[Amjid Javed]

Imam will not get any chance while M. Wasim is the chief selector. If anyone remembered during the World cup time, when Pakistan played last game against BD and Imam scored 100. M. Wasim said on one of the TV shows that this 100 is useless and put that in the garbage.
So he has some personal agenda against imam i guess.

W wasim was right. Imams snail like batting in odis in comparision to other teams openers is there for all to see. Most odi teams have 2 openers who go out and attack from ball one or have ability to pick up run rate after a slow start. Imam cant do either and just puts pressure on batsmen at other end.

Pakistan will be exposed again selected such openers come world cup time in a few years.

 

[Amjid Javed]

It is also the reason why he has been subjected to over the top criticism and hate. Everyone has a problem with him because he is Inzamam’s nephew.

Imam has shown a lot of composure to block out all the hate and perform reasonably well.

Imam only got close to international team because of inzi. Otherwise he wudnt even have got anywhere near the team.

2ndly hes been mediocre in tests so deal witj that fact. Nothing to do with wether people like inzi or not.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

It is also the reason why he has been subjected to over the top criticism and hate. Everyone has a problem with him because he is Inzamam’s nephew.

Imam has shown a lot of composure to block out all the hate and perform reasonably well.

Imam's test record says hello.

He's had 21 innings in tests and not performed to the best of his abilities. There has been no injustice against him and the dropping from tests was justified, an average of 25 with only 3 fifties in 21 innings is far from impressive.

Add to boot he averages about 35 in first class cricket with only 5 centuries to his name which is roughly the same as Imran Butt. He needs more time in first class cricket (at least 1-2 seasons) to be re-considered for selection. Omair Bin Yousuf will be a better future prospect.

I don't understand you sometimes quick to attack someone as soon as they fail an innings and then support mediocre players nothing against Imam but he's not ready for tests yet.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Most impressive? your full of comedy at the moment. What exactly was impressive about not being able to play swinging ball in eng or SA. What was impressive about struggling vs short ball vs UAE?

Yep 11 matches (21 innings) is more than enough for someone to prove themselves and Iman failed to do that. The lad is talented and i like watching him in Odis but just needs about 2 seasons of QeA and perhaps even a stint in English County before being re-considered.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Test average of 25
T20I average of 10

ODI average which is an impressive 52, but 8 innings v Zimbabwe, 2 versus Afghanistan and 1 versus Hong Kong in there.

QOTW right here.

His domestic FC is mediocre aswell.

Even PZ realized after a few T20 in PSL that imam was a liability at top of order when trying to get big runs.

 

[pakistanisgreat]

W wasim was right. Imams snail like batting in odis in comparision to other teams openers is there for all to see. Most odi teams have 2 openers who go out and attack from ball one or have ability to pick up run rate after a slow start. Imam cant do either and just puts pressure on batsmen at other end.

Pakistan will be exposed again selected such openers come world cup time in a few years.

but if we are comparing with other teams then both our openers do not match with other teams. Why just punish Imam not the other opener.
I think we do not have any one who can replace him. Well in few weeks we will find out.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Imam's test record says hello.

He's had 21 innings in tests and not performed to the best of his abilities. There has been no injustice against him and the dropping from tests was justified, an average of 25 with only 3 fifties in 21 innings is far from impressive.

Add to boot he averages about 35 in first class cricket with only 5 centuries to his name which is roughly the same as Imran Butt. He needs more time in first class cricket (at least 1-2 seasons) to be re-considered for selection. Omair Bin Yousuf will be a better future prospect.

I don't understand you sometimes quick to attack someone as soon as they fail an innings and then support mediocre players nothing against Imam but he's not ready for tests yet.

The fact hes averaging 35 in a poor pakistani domestic league says it all. Even mo wasim has said he needs to improve his game in red ball cricket.

Hes just an opening version of asad shafiq.

 

[pakistani pride]

Imam's thread produce polarized opinions. Lets go over some facts:

He was player of the series in ODIs in SA in 2019, cant remember any Pakistani opener doing so well in SA (Averaged 54 with a SR of 81) and scored 151 in Eng in 2019 (Averaged 117 with a SR of 88 in the series). Finished the match for Pak in Ireland in test when Pak was initially under bit of pressure. Outscored all Pakistani batsmen under pressure in Asia cup as well.

Imam has played 7 off his 11 test matches SENA. Yes in the 4 matches he played in UAE he didnt do much and averaged 28 but, then Shan Masood averaged 20 after 8 matches in UAE and Shan was able to up his average and run tally when he played in Pak which Imam is yet to play a match in.

He is 25 and so far has showed a solid temperament and decent enough technique in comparison to some of the young batsmen we have produced in recent times. Yes, one cant deny that he was susceptible to short ball and balls coming into him in his short test career but, do the current openers playing for Pakistan look weakness free? It has been couple of years and in those couple of years he has played 4 ODIs and a T20 match while at the same time he wasnt able to play domestic cricket last year to prove his red all form and any improvements.

Any other player would have been hyped like no tmw after a MOS performance in SA. Imam has his shortcomings and will have to improve upon those but, our fans dont want just any player to do well they want the player the like to do well and only such players get the hype while rest get the names like "Parchi" because of something he doesnt have control over. He was selected for Pak after QAE 2016-17 season in which he was the best opener and 3rd highest scorer, averaging 49 and HS of 200. Yes one can argue he could have been selected for tests rather than ODIs but, we cant argue that he performed in domestic cricket to get a call up.

He is in no way perfect but, the way he is treated by some fans and media people is pretty odd when some of the same people hype some much inferior players around like no tmw.

How many ODIs has Pak won due to his selfish innings?

 

[Amjid Javed]

but if we are comparing with other teams then both our openers do not match with other teams. Why just punish Imam not the other opener.
I think we do not have any one who can replace him. Well in few weeks we will find out.

Opening with Abid Ali and imam in ODIs will be a huge mistake. Yes picking to sloggers and going other way wont be great either. But pakistan had 2 years to get a decent opening pair sorted for world cup.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

The fact hes averaging 35 in a poor pakistani domestic league says it all. Even mo wasim has said he needs to improve his game in red ball cricket.

Hes just an opening version of asad shafiq.

Yep, i mean this is the area we are struggling and i have to sympathise with the first selector who's actually doing his job right. The sad reality is that we have no openers that are ready for test cricket, besides Omair Bin Yousuf (Sindh) i know nobody who's shown he's a class opener.

By picking Imam and Shan it's a recycling process which really doesn't help or as i would call it "return to default"

 

[Amjid Javed]

Yep, i mean this is the area we are struggling and i have to sympathise with the first selector who's actually doing his job right. The sad reality is that we have no openers that are ready for test cricket, besides Omair Bin Yousuf (Sindh) i know nobody who's shown he's a class opener.

By picking Imam and Shan it's a recycling process which really doesn't help or as i would call it "return to default"

Agreed 100% are opening options are pathetic. This is why i think domestically players batting 3 or middle order need to put names forward to open in tests to help the team out.

In mean time Azhar needs to open with one other opener, we can the bed in a new player at number 3. Otherwise once azhar goes we will be even off with then trying to build a team with the top 3 positions in team filled with inexperience.

 

[Saj]

He's so weak against the short ball and the better bowlers have worked him out.

Any weaknesses you have at the highest level might not get exposed straight away, but sooner rather than later you get found out.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Agreed 100% are opening options are pathetic. This is why i think domestically players batting 3 or middle order need to put names forward to open in tests to help the team out.

In mean time Azhar needs to open with one other opener, we can the bed in a new player at number 3. Otherwise once azhar goes we will be even off with then trying to build a team with the top 3 positions in team filled with inexperience.

While Inzamam and the rest of the selectors were sleeping, Wasim is at least honest in admitting yea we don't have openers, we are lacking hitters, we are lacking red ball bowlers or strike bowlers. This is the problem that we don't appreciate when someone is doing something new and we make a fuss about 5% of the selection when the rest of it is totally fine.

I think let's not hit the panic button just yet and wait to see what Imran Butt does, for me i hope Butt Saab performs because the guy is brilliant in slips and finding a slips fielder in Pakistan is like finding a unicorn.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

He's so weak against the short ball and the better bowlers have worked him out.

Any weaknesses you have at the highest level might not get exposed straight away, but sooner rather than later you get found out.

Everyone has a weakness and the short ball is something that most batsmen commonly struggle with, however you have to remember that a bowler can't always bowl that line and will only persist with it for a certain period of time, it takes experience to negotiate that and leave deliveries.

 

[gazza619]

QOTW right here.

His domestic FC is mediocre aswell.

Even PZ realized after a few T20 in PSL that imam was a liability at top of order when trying to get big runs.

I think we are being a bit unfair to Imam here. He has great ODI averages against SA, England and SL.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

I think we are being a bit unfair to Imam here. He has great ODI averages against SA, England and SL.

Yep, he's no doubt a good limited overs player and certainly makes the ODI playing XI in my books but in tests he's still not a finished product.

 

[Titan24]

How many ODIs has Pak won due to his selfish innings?

He scored 50s in both the matches Pak won on last ODI tour of SA and lost series 3-2 (Not sure why was he given MOS in a series which Pak lost if his innings were considered selfish), scored 151 in 131 balls in Eng allowing Pak to score 358 with no other Pak batsmen scoring even a 50 but, yes it was obviously his fault Pak couldn’t defend it, scored a 100 in the WC match against BD as well. All the matches against Srl and Zim in which he scored 100s were in the winning cause as well but, who counts runs against those teams as in recent series young batsmen of Pak were scoring one 100 after another against Zim. So yes, Imam doesnt look good in comparison to the other young match winning batsmen in our team.

So now a question for you; how many ODIs Pak won against top 4 ODIs teams in last decade overall and how many young batsmen (U-25) with their unselfish innings won us those matches or won MOS in SA or scored 150 in Eng or won us matches even matches against lower ranked teams?

 

[Shoaibbtt]

How many ODIs has Pak won due to his selfish innings?

Now come on that's not fair he's a good ODI player in my books, just not ready for tests and t20 is too competitive to get in for him right now.

 

[Cric1234]

Now come on that's not fair he's a good ODI player in my books, just not ready for tests and t20 is too competitive to get in for him right now.

Both his hundreds against England and SA ended up in losses which tells you everything too slow in high scoring matches we won’t be winning too many with Imam opening the batting.

 

[Shoaibbtt]

Both his hundreds against England and SA ended up in losses which tells you everything too slow in high scoring matches we won’t be winning too many with Imam opening the batting.

I'm not the biggest Imam fan but he for me is the best going for now, let's see him in action next week and see how he does. Nortje and Rabada ain't gonna be easy and that will be a good test for him.

 

[Titan24]

Again one of those times where we can criticize the player as much we want but, not much replacements are being talked about.

So question is who should open instead of Imam to provide us those technically proficient and 100, 120 SR starts we are looking for in a consistent manner?

 

[Titan24]

Both his hundreds against England and SA ended up in losses which tells you everything too slow in high scoring matches we won’t be winning too many with Imam opening the batting.

Pak scored 358 and 317 in the two matches you are referring to and Imam played at a SR of 115 and 87 in those 151 and 101 runs knocks.

There is no reasonable basis to conclude Pak lost matches due to Imam’s slow batting when 300+ is not something Pak scores often. Its a team game at the end.

Yes he needs to improve his SR at the start but, again nobody said he is perfect.

 

[Cric1234]

Again one of those times where we can criticize the player as much we want but, not much replacements are being talked about.

So question is who should open instead of Imam to provide us those technically proficient and 100, 120 SR starts we are looking for in a consistent manner?

I would open with Rizwan and Fakhar for the short term Fakhar has something to prove at the moment which would open up a spot for U Akmal.

Rizwan
Fakhar
Babar
Akmal
Haider
Hafeez
Imad

It’s close to the best lineup we can come up with Haris potentially replacing Hafeez if fit enough.

 

[Cric1234]

Pak scored 358 and 317 in the two matches you are referring to and Imam played at a SR of 115 and 87 in those 151 and 101 runs knocks.

There is no reasonable basis to conclude Pak lost matches due to Imam’s slow batting when 300+ is not something Pak scores often. Its a team game at the end.

Yes he needs to improve his SR at the start but, again nobody said he is perfect.

150 at 115 strike rate isn’t enough when England chased it easily he needed to score close to 200 it’s all relevant and depends on the match situation same as 100 at 87 strike rate when 317 wasn’t a winning score.

 

[Titan24]

I would open with Rizwan and Fakhar for the short term Fakhar has something to prove at the moment which would open up a spot for U Akmal.

Rizwan
Fakhar
Babar
Akmal
Haider
Hafeez
Imad

It’s close to the best lineup we can come up with Haris potentially replacing Hafeez if fit enough.

Rizwan would be a pretty decent option but, return of Akmal or Hafeez coming back at 40 when next WC is in 2023 are not very realistic options in the middle order. With Rizwan opening Pak would lose a relatively experienced, excellent player of spin and overall a player who is progressing at a pretty good pace from the middle order making it totally dependent upon Babar with now Haris gone as well due to his fitness issues.

 

[Hawkeye]

For Tests, Imam is a good option IF the alternatives are:

1. Shan Masood
2. Abid Ali

Imam is better than both.

He's not, however, an ODI or T20 batsman. Maybe in low scoring ODIs he can do OK.

But overall a decent Test batter and better than Shan, Abid.

 

[Titan24]

150 at 115 strike rate isn’t enough when England chased it easily he needed to score close to 200 it’s all relevant and depends on the match situation same as 100 at 87 strike rate when 317 wasn’t a winning score.

Other than Imam no one even scored a 50 for Pak in that 358 runs which Pak scored, so not exactly sure about the match situation you are referring to. 300+ is a good score on most surfaces and its not like Pak scores that every other day or supposedly more when Imam doesnt score. Just because teams were able to chase those scores doesn’t necessarily conclude that the total wasnt enough, one has to expect something from the bowlers as well. If we are expecting Pak or any team for that matter to score 400 every other day on any surface when there are only handful of such totals than I guess its pretty unrealistic.

Again if there are opening batsmen in Pak who can score 200s against SENA countries and allow Pak to score 400s on surfaces on which 358 and 317 werent enough than obviously I would love to watch them play in Pak colours. However, issue is neither we are seeing them in domestic cricket nor anyone is sharing names of such players here.

 

[Titan24]

Interesting stat. There have been 11 times Pak has scored 300+ in last 4 years and Imam has scored a 100 in 6 of those.

 

[Cric1234]

Interesting stat. There have been 11 times Pak has scored 300+ in last 4 years and Imam has scored a 100 in 6 of those.

Interesting stat were 3 of those hundreds against Zimbabwe?

If that’s true then no matter what the stats say Imam is not the answer going forward to win high scoring matches consistently.

 

[Titan24]

Interesting stat were 3 of those hundreds against Zimbabwe?

If that’s true then no matter what the stats say Imam is not the answer going forward to win high scoring matches consistently.

He played in 10 of those 11 matches where Pak scored 300 in last 4 years. If we take out 3 matches against Zim, still 3 100s out of 7 times when team reached 300 (Excluding Zim) is pretty decent.

 

[emranabbas]

Uncle and nephew both need to go permanently
Both are toxic to pakistan cricket

 

[Hawkeye]

Imam

The single biggest factor we lost so many matches at the World Cup.

 

[Bewal Express]

Imam

The single biggest factor we lost so many matches at the World Cup.

Not really. Let's assume Imam didn't play, and he averages 50( inflated I know), and we got smashed, all the guys would be asking where he is with an average of 50. Imam is a solid player, nothing good or bad and he was picked by people other Inzi. Weren't you advocating players Tayyab, etc.

 

[Hawkeye]

Not really. Let's assume Imam didn't play, and he averages 50( inflated I know), and we got smashed, all the guys would be asking where he is with an average of 50. Imam is a solid player, nothing good or bad and he was picked by people other Inzi. Weren't you advocating players Tayyab, etc.

Well the silver lining is that he got badly exposed as he got a chance to play.

Now even his supporters will realize he’s a fraud stat padder with that average.

Even Afghanistan will not pick him in their team. He has no place in any modern ODI or T20 team.

 

[Bewal Express]

Uncle and nephew both need to go permanently
Both are toxic to pakistan cricket

No they are not. A board that has no idea what it's doing, leaking personal information is a far bigger concern. A board that has Sethi and Zaka fighting to be chairman is the problem. The real issue is that simpletons dont understand that if You have these crooks in charge and its pretty much the same for decades, you have no structure or systems. This means you come to rely on natural talent, which in a dry spell means a poor team.

 

[Nasty Naz]

Imam

The single biggest factor we lost so many matches at the World Cup.

Bowlers are going for 350-400 runs, spinners can't buy a wicket and somehow Imam is the biggest factor.

Imam has sucked without a doubt but no need to exaggerate it so much. He needs to work on his power shots and become a more dynamic hitter. Going to tough for him to keep his ODI going forward though with Fakhar/Abdullah & Saim Ayub also coming up.

 

[Bewal Express]

Well the silver lining is that he got badly exposed as he got a chance to play.

Now even his supporters will realize he’s a fraud stat padder with that average.

Even Afghanistan will not pick him in their team. He has no place in any modern ODI or T20 team.

He is a solid player, pretty much like all the others and I wouldn't have picked him but to blame him is unjust. PK crickets problem are far bigger than Imam, or Inzi or Babar or anyone else. It's a structural issue and we will be here again in 2027, 31 and 35. There will be no imam to be blame but we will be just as bad.

 

[Saj]

This guy sucks the life out of an innings.

If he starts quickly, he slows down.
If he starts slowly, he rarely speeds up.
If he's approaching a milestone, he slows down.

A liability for the team and not a team player.

 

[Flat_Track_Bully]

If par was 250-300 then he would be a great opener however ODI's have moved on. He should stick to the test format.

Also he needs to drop a lot of weight and up his fitness.