In numbers: Shadab Khan versus the world in Tests and ODIs

[Junaids]

I find myself reading a neverending litany of complaints about Shadab Khan.

He's not good enough with the ball or the bat.
He needs to play more First Class cricket.
He plays for too many teams and needs to play less cricket.
He needs to do more bowling and less batting.
He needs to do more batting and less bowling.
He needs to shut up and show more respect to his seniors.

Is this backed up by his statistics? Of course it isn't.

1. Shadab Khan in Tests v other wrist-spinners

All 6 of Shadab's Tests have been outside Asia. Here is how his numbers stack up against the world's other Test wrist-spinners since his debut on 30 April 2017. Minimum sample size = 3 Tests outside Asia (Kuldeep Yadav only played 2 Tests, in which he scored 0 runs in both and took 0 wickets in 1 Test, so it's unfair to include a sample size lower than 3 Tests. Also Shamsi played only 2 Tests, averaging 46.33 and is also excluded.)

RANK 1: Shadab Khan
14 wickets in 6 Tests, average 36.64
Strike rate 68.1, Economy 3.22

RANK 2: Yasir Shah
33 wickets in 9 Tests, average 39.03
Strike Rate 64.3, Economy 3.63

RANK 3: Ish Sodhi
3 wickets in 3 Tests, average 72.66
Strike Rate 120, Economy rate 3.63

2. Shadab Khan in Tests v all other spinners

NB Shakib Al Hasan has only played 2 Tests in this period.

RANK 1: R Ashwin
27 wickets in 8 Tests, average 30.48
Strike Rate 73.55, Economy 2.48

RANK 2: Nathan Lyon
109 wickets in 25 Tests, average 30.92
Strike Rate 67.0, Economy 2.76

RANK 3: Moeen Ali (I'm surprised too!)
65 wickets in 20 Tests, average 31.46
Strike Rate 54.8, Economy 3.44

RANK 4: Krish Maharaj
62 wickets in 19 Tests, average 33.45
Strike Rate 60.0, Economy 3.34

RANK 5: Ravendra Jadeja
43 wickets in 14 Tests, average 36.39
Strike Rate 79.9, Economy 2.73

RANK 6: Shadab Khan
14 wickets in 6 Tests, average 36.64
Strike rate 68.1, Economy 3.22

RANK 7: Yasir Shah
33 wickets in 9 Tests, average 39.03
Strike Rate 64.3, Economy 3.63

RANK 8: Mitchell Santner
8 wickets in 6 Tests, average 56.62
Strike Rate 128.8, Economy 2.63

3. Shadab Khan v all other spinners as a batsman

RANK 1: Shadab Khan 300 runs at 33.33
RANK 2: Mitchell Santner 248 runs at 27.55
RANK 3: Ravendra Jadeja 578 runs at 27.52
RANK 4=: Moeen Ali 777 runs at 22.20
RANK 4=: Yasir Shah 333 runs at 22.20
RANK 6: R Ashwin 250 runs at 17.88
RANK 7: K Maharaj 401 runs at 14.32
RANK 8: Nathan Lyon 329 runs at 13.70

4. Shadab Khan v all other leg-spinners at the 2019 World Cup

RANK 1: Imran Tahir
11 wickets in 76 overs, average 34.00
Strike Rate 41.4, Economy 4.94

RANK 2: Shadab Khan
9 wickets in 58 overs, average 35.55
Strike Rate 38.6, Economy 5.51

RANK 3: YS Chalal
12 wickets in 74 overs, average 36.83
Strike Rate 37.0, Economy 5.97

RANK 4: Adam Zampa
5 wickets in 33 overs, average 47.20
Strike Rate 39.6, Economy 7.15

RANK 5: Adil Rashid
11 wickets in 92 overs, average 47.81
Strike Rate 50.1, Economy 5.71

RANK 6: Rashid Khan
6 wickets in 71.5 overs, average 69.33
Strike Rate 71.8, Economy 5.79

Conclusions:
1. Only R Ashwin and Nathan Lyon have significantly better Test bowling records outside Asia than Shadab Khan since his debut, but their batting records are far worse and they still average over 30 with the ball anyway.

2. Shadab Khan's Test bowling record outside Asia is already superior to Yasir Shah's. And his batting is almost twice as good as Yasir Shah's: Shadab is arguably good enough to bat at Number 6, while Yasir Shah looks a position too high at Number 8.

3. Shadab Khan's performances as a Test batsman are far superior to all other spin bowlers, and close to the level of a specialist batsman.

4. At the 2019 ICC World Cup, Shadab Khan was marginally behind Imran Tahir as the best performing leg-spinner, but ahead of the other major leggies including Chalal and Adil Rashid and Rashid Khan. Plus he scored more runs and fielded better than the others.

5. Perhaps the best way to view Shadab Khan is like this: so far in his Test career he has a practically identical bowling average to Ravendra Jadeja (Shadab 36.64, Jadeja 36.39) but a significantly batter batting average (Shadab 33.33, Jadeja 27.52). Shadab is, in essence, a small upgrade on Jadeja - he is identical as a bowler but he can bat higher up the order and allow you to select an additional bowler.

In short, Shadab Khan's numbers basically expose as idle prejudice most of the accusations to which he is endlessly subjected.

 

[BreadPakoda]

How many overs per test match does Shadab bowl vs other bowlers? I’m sure Fawad and Shafiq have better stats than Shadab if we ignore no. of overs.

Make Shadab bowl 30 overs per innings like Yasir does instead of 15 and the results could be different.

 

[BreadPakoda]

Did I just read that Shadab is an upgrade of Jadeja?

 

[Square Drive]

There are some exaggerations here, but a very good thread and I do agree with the central message: Shadab is a very useful and underappreciated player on PP, and most of this hate is unjustified.

Matchwinner, has that X factor, has that clutch gene and is genuinely useful in all 3 facets. Also a genuine candidate to take over captaincy in LOIs in the future, as suggested by Mickey Arthur.

He's here to stay, like it or not. Having said that, he does need to be bowling long spells in FCs to tighten up his bowling.

 

[Junaids]

Did I just read that Shadab is an upgrade of Jadeja?

Absolutely, in Tests outside Asia. the numbers are undeniable. Since Shadab's debut:

Shadab Khan 6 Tests v Ravendra Jadeja 14 Tests
Shadab 300 runs at 33.33
Jadeja 578 runs at 27.52

Shadab 14 wickets at 36.64 (SR 68, ER 3.2)
Jadeja 43 wickets at 36.39 (SR 80, ER 2.7)

Shadab is clearly a superior Test cricketer to Jadeja outside Asia.

 

[Junaids]

How many overs per test match does Shadab bowl vs other bowlers? I’m sure Fawad and Shafiq have better stats than Shadab if we ignore no. of overs.

Make Shadab bowl 30 overs per innings like Yasir does instead of 15 and the results could be different.

No, no and thrice no!

1. Their respective strike rates and economy rates illustrate what they are like as a bowler. And Shadab is delivering very similar numbers to Yasir in terms of economy and strike rate - but at a better average.

2. The whole point is that nobody in their right mind uses a leg-spinner for 30 overs per innings outside Asia. In my 51 year lifetime the only leggie worth using that way was Shane Warne. Misbah (and by proxy Azhar) refuse to pick Shadab because he can't perform a role that shouldn't even be happening.

You can bat Shadab at 7 or even 6 in Tests and play an extra pace bowler. Whereas Yasir Shah can't bat above 8 (and he should be at 9 or even 10) and he replaces that fourth quick outside Asia - only to perform worse with the ball.

 

[Rayyman]

Really annoyed by some posters even though Pakistan won today.

First it was the Indians trolling with fake threads now Junaids with his millionth (creepy) post on the mediocre Shadab.

 

[Junaids]

Perhaps the key thing in this thread is how the different spin options allow you to balance your team.

Shadab Khan averages 33.33 with the bat - you can easily play him at Number 7 and select an extra quick bowler. This is precisely what New Zealand does with Mitchell Santner - and he is literally not even half the bowler that Shadab Khan is.

Jadeja and Santner average 27 with the bat and you can pick them at Number 7 too - and then field 4 quicks in SENA.

The problem with the other spinners - even Ashwin and certainly in the case of Lyon - is that you cannot bat them above Number 8 outside Asia, which means that you have to sacrifice your fourth quick to accommodate them.

And that is incredibly impactful on the remaining three quicks who bowl longer, slower spells as a result.

 

[Junaids]

Really annoyed by some posters even though Pakistan won today.

First it was the Indians trolling with fake threads now Junaids with his millionth (creepy) post on the mediocre Shadab.

It's a direct response to the rubbish spouted after today's events, in which on a belter of a pitch:

Shadab Khan 4-0-48-0 and 15 (11)
Adil Rashid 3-0-40-0 and 3 (3)

I am staggered by the haters out there!

The hate that people spout about Shadab is always supported by ZERO facts.

And when you actually list the facts - as I have done in this thread - the hate is exposed as complete rubbish.

(BTW on the topic of creepy - I was the strongest opponent of his behavior towards his ex a few months ago.)

 

[BreadPakoda]

I actually agree with [MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] on certain things in the OP. There is potential..If he improves one core skill, he could replace Malik/Afridi or even Hafeez 3.0 as the next blessed in all facets player for PCT in the coming decades.

 

[Thunderbolt14]

[MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] trust me I really really like Shadab but he’s barely played any first class cricket - i can see him maturing into what you want him to be eventually but he just doesn’t know how to set up a top batsman right now - he doesn’t even have good enough control on a stock delivery.

I agree with the stats posted in this thread when it comes to limited overs but in tests there’s still a long way to go

And i am excited by his batting improvements but also this is the Pakistan cricket team! He’ll never refine his skills to that point where he essentially becomes a second Hafeez (the one at the top of the bowling and all rounder charts) for us.

Surely you’re making fun of Pakistani fans who overhype players immensely before they are disappointed - Shadab’s only exceptional quality right now is his desire to set his own terms (setting the standard for fielding and bringing his own energy to the crease when batting)

 

[Junaids]

[MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] trust me I really really like Shadab but he’s barely played any first class cricket - i can see him maturing into what you want him to be eventually but he just doesn’t know how to set up a top batsman right now - he doesn’t even have good enough control on a stock delivery.

I agree with the stats posted in this thread when it comes to limited overs but in tests there’s still a long way to go

And i am excited by his batting improvements but also this is the Pakistan cricket team! He’ll never refine his skills to that point where he essentially becomes a second Hafeez (the one at the top of the bowling and all rounder charts) for us.

Surely you’re making fun of Pakistani fans who overhype players immensely before they are disappointed - Shadab’s only exceptional quality right now is his desire to set his own terms (setting the standard for fielding and bringing his own energy to the crease when batting)

I actually agree with you - but I don't think it matters.

It's lunacy to play any leg-spinner who is not Shane Warne as your fourth bowler in SENA. It didn't work with Abdul Qadir, and it only really worked with Mushtaq Ahmed when there was Azhar Mahmood as a fourth quick.

I agree that Shadab hasn't fully developed as a leggie. But Yasir Shah has, and he is an absolutely rubbish fourth bowler in SENA!

Yasir Shah can only play as one of four bowlers.

Shadab Khan allows you to play four specialist quick bowlers, and he can do enough bowling to be your fifth bowler - and sole spinner - outside Asia. As my numbers show, his average, economy rate and strike rate are pretty much standard for a spinner outside Asia since his debut.

Yasir Shah too often outside Asia returns the kind of numbers that he did at Southampton last week:

39-3-173-2

I'm sorry, I have no use for a bowler like Yasir Shah outside Asia. He's been trading for too long off the back of two last innings 5-fers in England in 2016, yet when he needed to bowl England out at Old Trafford this time in the fourth innings with 277 runs to defend, he was not capable of it.

(Neither was Shadab, but I'm arguing that Yasir's inability is why you don't give one of your four specialist bowling positions to a leggie in SENA.)

Yasir Shah keeps getting selected outside Asia for a role which is not actually required or helpful.

 

[Mueez]

Shadab is a matchwinner, however he needs to play FC and bowl those long, long spells to get control on his line and length. He also needs to work on his batting too!

He’s here to stay as many PPers have said.

 

[TeymurBlake]

I like Shadab Khan. But there is a lot of work needed. He needs some First Class cricket.

 

[Ab Fan]

Shadab is a good player. He should be playing in Pakistan team across all formats.

 

[QalandarFan]

There are some exaggerations here, but a very good thread and I do agree with the central message: Shadab is a very useful and underappreciated player on PP, and most of this hate is unjustified.

Matchwinner, has that X factor, has that clutch gene and is genuinely useful in all 3 facets. Also a genuine candidate to take over captaincy in LOIs in the future, as suggested by Mickey Arthur.

He's here to stay, like it or not. Having said that, he does need to be bowling long spells in FCs to tighten up his bowling.

Pretty much sums it up for me as well, all I would add is he needs to do some work on his batting.

Great post [MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION]

 

[MenInG]

Shadab's move to number 8 in ICC ranking for bowlers in T20Is

 

[Afhan Ali]

Santner and Jadeja are inferior to Shadab? . I never see such type of post anywhere.

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

He is definitely better than santner ,but jadeja is on a different level.
I have seen shadab's bowling in SENA.His average flatters to decieve.
On this tour he took two wickets,jofra and James Anderson.The average is inflated because of these two wickets.

But Shadab has potential with the bat ,he can become a batsman who averages 35 + with the bat and a Shahid Afridi level bowler at best.
He can't be the lead spinner at all,in asian conditions he has no part to play.

This bowling average of 30 odd will take a big hit if Yasir is dropped and he is forced to bowl more overs.

The comparison with jadeja is naive bcoz jadeja can run riot on helpful pitches and he is a much better batsman than Shadab on current form.

Jadejas batting average since 2016
2016-38
2017-42
2018-45
2019-63
2020-played just one match average 25.
Before 2016 he averaged in low 20s.

 

[Junaids]

Santner and Jadeja are inferior to Shadab? . I never see such type of post anywhere.

Absolutely, in Tests outside Asia. the numbers are undeniable. Since Shadab's debut:

Shadab Khan 6 Tests v Ravendra Jadeja 14 Tests
Shadab 300 runs at 33.33
Jadeja 578 runs at 27.52

Shadab 14 wickets at 36.64 (SR 68, ER 3.2)
Jadeja 43 wickets at 36.39 (SR 80, ER 2.7)

Shadab is clearly a superior Test cricketer to Jadeja outside Asia.

I think the numbers are fairly clear: outside Asia, Shadab is significantly superior to Jadeja as a Test cricketer.

 

[IMMY69]

Shadab is so young and experienced, especially for a leg spinner.

If played across all formats and with a fixed batting position of 7 or maybe even 6 I have no doubt he’ll grow to become a top top all rounder.

 

[Markhor]

The sample in Tests is too small, but in ODIs Shadab has the same bowling average as Joe Root against non-minnows since the 2018 Asia Cup. That's shocking for the main spinner in an Asian team.



Meanwhile, "the next Shakib" has a SR of 68 in ODIs despite batting at 7 or 8. That wasn't acceptable even in the 90s. So how exactly are we being unfair to ask more from our primary all-rounder ?

 

[Mamoon]

As I said in the Wahab thread, it is not possible to rate a bowler who is a monumental failure against India, who are the gold standard of batting.

Shadab averages 58 with the ball against India in 5 ODIs. He is quite clearly no good at all.

 

[IMMY69]

The sample in Tests is too small, but in ODIs Shadab has the same bowling average as Joe Root against non-minnows since the 2018 Asia Cup. That's shocking for the main spinner in an Asian team.

View attachment 103091

Meanwhile, "the next Shakib" has a SR of 68 in ODIs despite batting at 7 or 8. That wasn't acceptable even in the 90s. So how exactly are we being unfair to ask more from our primary all-rounder ?

I have a lot of respect for you but these stats are all useless.

I don’t know how many times one has to repeat this but let’s try once more.

Shadab is a 20 year old leg spinner with an extremely Hugh potential with both bat and ball... leg spin is probably harder form of bowling and you can argue that at 20 he’s probably ahead of the curve.

These comparison threads are just a waste of time

 

[Junaids]

As I said in the Wahab thread, it is not possible to rate a bowler who is a monumental failure against India, who are the gold standard of batting.

Shadab averages 58 with the ball against India in 5 ODIs. He is quite clearly no good at all.

Shane Warne averaged 57 with the ball against India in 18 ODIs.

By your standards Shane Warne was no good at all too!

Again, actual facts demolish another ludicrous attack against Shadab Khan.

Shane Warne averaged 56.56 in 18 ODIs v India.

Shadab Khan averages 58.25 in 5 ODIs v India - and India is a higher-ranked ODI team than during Warne’s era.

 

[Markhor]

I have a lot of respect for you but these stats are all useless.

I don’t know how many times one has to repeat this but let’s try once more.

Shadab is a 20 year old leg spinner with an extremely Hugh potential with both bat and ball... leg spin is probably harder form of bowling and you can argue that at 20 he’s probably ahead of the curve.

These comparison threads are just a waste of time

I agree Shadab is young and learning the difficult craft that's legspin. My argument is Shadab should go learn his craft in domestic cricket because international cricket is not an academy.

His control and ability to set up batsmen will only improve by bowling long spells. If PCB have his best interests in mind, they'll ask him to play every single game of the upcoming QEA Trophy.

 

[IMMY69]

I agree Shadab is young and learning the difficult craft that's legspin. My argument is Shadab should go learn his craft in domestic cricket because international cricket is not an academy.

His control and ability to set up batsmen will only improve by bowling long spells. If PCB have his best interests in mind, they'll ask him to play every single game of the upcoming QEA Trophy.

This I completely agree with.
PCB should insist that any Contracted player must play a minimum number of first class cricket each season

 

[Junaids]

I agree Shadab is young and learning the difficult craft that's legspin. My argument is Shadab should go learn his craft in domestic cricket because international cricket is not an academy.

His control and ability to set up batsmen will only improve by bowling long spells. If PCB have his best interests in mind, they'll ask him to play every single game of the upcoming QEA Trophy.

I totally agree.

 

[MenInG]

Shadab on Twitter Spaces:

"I want to play Test cricket but to be honest I think I can't make my place in the Test squad right now. I have not played first class cricket for quite a while but I want to make a comeback in the premium format of the game because there is nothing more charming than playing Test cricket for your country"

 

[Mamoon]

Perhaps the best way to view Shadab Khan is like this: so far in his Test career he has a practically identical bowling average to Ravendra Jadeja (Shadab 36.64, Jadeja 36.39) but a significantly batter batting average (Shadab 33.33, Jadeja 27.52). Shadab is, in essence, a small upgrade on Jadeja - he is identical as a bowler but he can bat higher up the order and allow you to select an additional bowler.

I wonder what Junaids thinks 3 years later…

 

[viveks]

This guy is a master at statistical manipulation.

A very hilarious fact that most people reading this would have missed out on is that 1 of these 6 test matches was played against Ireland! If you remove that match, his stats would have been as follows:

Bowling ave 41
Batting 30


Also I love the idea that below 3 test matches is 'too low of a sample size', but 6(!) test matches is enough to conclude that someone is an 'upgrade on Jadeja'(that is, an upgrade on a man with 250+ Test wickets). You have to laugh about it

 

[BreadPakoda]

I wonder what Junaids thinks 3 years later…

He likely still thinks Shadab is better than Jadeja

 

[shamaan]

He likely still thinks Shadab is better than Jadeja

In t20s he definitely is

 

[MP2011]

In t20s he definitely is

T20 is a joke format and everyone knows this.

 

[shamaan]

T20 is a joke format and everyone knows this.

That's no doubt about it.