What's new

Is Mohammad Hafeez Pakistan’s best batsman?

babajee

babajee

T20I Debutant
Joined
Apr 11, 2017
Runs
7,208
We all bash Hafeez on this forum... but is he actually our best batsman?
 
No he is not. Babar is. Followed by Haris, and then Fakhar. In LOIs.
 
babajee said:
We all bash Hafeez on this forum... but is he actually our best batsman?
Click to expand...

Of course he is. Hafeez is actually a Pakistani great. His ability to score runs away from home is fantastic. We need him in the world cup.
 
Rayyman said:
No he is not. Babar is. Followed by Haris, and then Fakhar. In LOIs.
Click to expand...

Babar is a ttf and the most overhauled batsman ever. He's another umar akmal. Haris sohail can't get more than 50s and Fakhar is a brainless hack.
 
This is more appropriate here -

No, but he has experience of 20 years, which helps him to manage numbers. I don't look much at stats, because it tells what you want to paint on wall, not what you need to put in the concrete mixture. For example take this series -

These days, ODI games has gone to 300+ era - even associates batting first would post around 225-250 against better sides. Gone are the days, when you try a little careless humpty, you might be shot out for 134 in 42'2 - just about 10-15 years back, BD's main target was to play out 50 overs, because that was tough. These days, without score board pressure, if you are cunning enough - you can easily bat selfishly and post numbers for pankha (fan) base to shout for you, while your team can found themselves over 50 under par.

MoHa has done exactly same in this series - twice PAK batted first and he took his comfort to score 60 (71), 81 (80) while his team posted at least 35 under par. Thrice PAK chased and his scores were 1 (9), 0 (4), 6 (20) - this is absolute manipulation of stats and this guy is a Professor in doing that. This has been his career story actually - manipulation, well supported by PCB & his Captains. Even when he was posting Sobers like performance with bat & chucking in UAE, his outside Asia stats were like 25/70 - that too hugely boosted by his lifetime achievement - a mega bonanza series against Robert Mughabe's ZIM.

Guy is intelligent and extremely cunning - instead of indulging in the rat race of Captaincy, he kept his Captain (s), coach (s) comfortable and enjoyed the megastar status in the team for almost a decade - only player regular starter for 3 formats, bats in top 3 for all 3 format, bowls full quota, drops at abundance at 1st slip or point, assured Cat A central contract ..... this won't have been possible had his Captain (s) were threatened.

Unfortunately for him, this time, this guy Arthur called the bluff, otherwise long may it lived and MoHa was destined for 2023, possibly as Captain (still can happen - if Arthur gets sacked).
 
I want the three Sainted Seniors gone - but he's the least worst of them.

At least the guy has two performances of note in this series against a quality pace attack - what did Malik do ? Where's all the posters on here who spoke of "Malik V2.0" and how he should be captain merely after bashing SL and WI to no end ?

Its amazing how there's all this invective and insults thrown at Hafeez yet Malik who has a FAR worse record in England and New Zealand somehow escapes criticism with some still suggesting he could go to the 2019 World Cup.
 
Currently he’s fifth after Babar, Fakhar, Haris and Sarfraz (who had a bad series but has generally been better in recent years). He was behind Malik but Malik’s probably slipped behind him after this NZ series.

5th or 6th (if malik is considered ahead) best batsmen out of 7 is low enough to cull from the squad. Especially with no established 7th bat yet. However Those four batsmen i mentioned are quite new to the odi team (babar and fakhar at least, sarfraz has only locked in his loi place a few years and haris just came back from injury). So it kind of makes sense Hafeez has been with the team so long as in the past he was second/third best bat in his line up as well as bowling too.
 
Markhor said:
I want the three Sainted Seniors gone - but he's the least worst of them.

At least the guy has two performances of note in this series against a quality pace attack - what did Malik do ? Where's all the posters on here who spoke of "Malik V2.0" and how he should be captain merely after bashing SL and WI to no end ?

Its amazing how there's all this invective and insults thrown at Hafeez yet Malik who has a FAR worse record in England and New Zealand somehow escapes criticism with some still suggesting he could go to the 2019 World Cup.
Click to expand...

Not even trolling I genuinely agree with you. Hafeez is a far better batsman. His strike rate may be slightly less but at least he scores runs. Malik can't get runs against quality attacks outside Asia. Even in champions trophy Hafeez played better than Malik.
 
htariq25 said:
A pathetic statement. U haven't justified your opinion and u have no evidence. Name me a batsman better than Hafeez then?
Click to expand...

I don't need to justify my decisions and opinions to you.

Babar is a better batsmen imo.
 
Hasan123 said:
I don't need to justify my decisions and opinions to you.

Babar is a better batsmen imo.
Click to expand...

Not on this tour. Babar has looked like a tailender in comparison to Hafeez on this tour.
 
Savak said:
Not on this tour. Babar has looked like a tailender in comparison to Hafeez on this tour.
Click to expand...


A 1 off tour isn't how you decide who a better batsmen is. Hafeez has been made to look like a tailender many times .
 
At the end of the day, you have to appreciate that batsmen like Lara, Tendulkar, Hafeez, Viv Richards, are born once in a generation - it is unfair to compare the likes of Babar Azam to such legends of the game.

Not since Lara's retirement have I seen a batsman as majestic and flamboyant as Hafeez in full flow, he makes batting look so effortless at his best, even against the world's best bowlers.
 
He is the most important Pak player. One of their best batsmen if not the best in the current squad.

I see Pak fans saying that Hafeez needs to be kicked out. But the issue is, you cannot kick out your best batsman even if he is old.
 
Hafeez DID NOT perform with either the 60 or the 80 odd. When you're settled at the crease, you don't throw your wicket away like that and play towards a big score. That 60 did nothing for Pakistan, just saved Hafeez's average. The 80 odd innings, he was crawling along till that last abomination of an over by Boult. Got out in single figures in other matches I believe. Classic case of selfish batting.

I think the fall out between Hafeez and Arthur is because of his selfish batting throughout this series. I'm firmly behind Arthur in this instance. The senior cricketers in this team don't deserve to be called seniors.
 
Syed1 said:
Woah doing a 180 there buddy :ibutt
Click to expand...

Sure. It’s all one big garbage heap. I couldn’t be bothered who is at the top or the bottom of it. Although I am sure its an epithet that hafeez would wear with pride; I am less rubbish than the others.
 
Usman Chadda said:
Hafeez DID NOT perform with either the 60 or the 80 odd. When you're settled at the crease, you don't throw your wicket away like that and play towards a big score. That 60 did nothing for Pakistan, just saved Hafeez's average. The 80 odd innings, he was crawling along till that last abomination of an over by Boult. Got out in single figures in other matches I believe. Classic case of selfish batting.

I think the fall out between Hafeez and Arthur is because of his selfish batting throughout this series. I'm firmly behind Arthur in this instance. The senior cricketers in this team don't deserve to be called seniors.
Click to expand...

Every young player in this team is performing at a pace that is in line with the length of their career. Hafeez is a 15 year bottler. So if I use that logic; hafeez is the worst player in the team
 
SMH. Arthur and Inzi cooking up some conspiracy to remove our best batsman :facepalm:
 
troodon said:
He is the most important Pak player. One of their best batsmen if not the best in the current squad.

I see Pak fans saying that Hafeez needs to be kicked out. But the issue is, you cannot kick out your best batsman even if he is old.
Click to expand...
he's not our best batsman
 
3rd or 4th best.

Can't put Haris ahead of him yet because of his inability to convert 50s and accelerate.

Hafeez on his day will score a century and score runs freely.
 
Aman said:
3rd or 4th best.

Can't put Haris ahead of him yet because of his inability to convert 50s and accelerate.

Hafeez on his day will score a century and score runs freely.
Click to expand...
Which is very rarely and mostly against weaker attacks.

He looks like a good player but rarely delivers the goods
 
I would say he is the Messi of world cricket.. or make that Missi

'Play and missi'
 
Yes, he is.

The legacy of players like Viv, SRT, Lara, Sobers, Hafeez, Gilchrist, Kallis etc cant be captured by stats.

He is a once-in-a generation batter and add his bowling skills, that makes him the greatest alongside Gary Sobers and Imran Khan.
 
Sad thing is Hafeez's replacement is either Shehzad or Azhar.
 
Not sure Micky got threat from outside and told him to keep his mouth shut if he wants to keep his job. Initially Micky was against Hafeez selection.
 
Ab Fan said:
Yes, he is.

The legacy of players like Viv, SRT, Lara, Sobers, Hafeez, Gilchrist, Kallis etc cant be captured by stats.

He is a once-in-a generation batter and add his bowling skills, that makes him the greatest alongside Gary Sobers and Imran Khan.
Click to expand...

It's an insult to the game to name Garfield Sobers alongside the great Mohammed Hafeez.
 
Hafeez is a player the world doesn't see much. He's a once in a generation player. Reliable with the bat, solid strike-rate, good rotater of strike and on his day a solid hitter. Bowling is brilliant, he's an awesome wicket taker but could improve his strike rate against left handers and is Pakistan best slip fielder ever.
 
Hitman said:
It's an insult to the game to name Garfield Sobers alongside the great Mohammed Hafeez.
Click to expand...

Alright. He may be slightly inferior to Sobers but still comparable enough IMO or are you being sarcastic??
 
MMHS said:
This is more appropriate here -

No, but he has experience of 20 years, which helps him to manage numbers. I don't look much at stats, because it tells what you want to paint on wall, not what you need to put in the concrete mixture. For example take this series -

These days, ODI games has gone to 300+ era - even associates batting first would post around 225-250 against better sides. Gone are the days, when you try a little careless humpty, you might be shot out for 134 in 42'2 - just about 10-15 years back, BD's main target was to play out 50 overs, because that was tough. These days, without score board pressure, if you are cunning enough - you can easily bat selfishly and post numbers for pankha (fan) base to shout for you, while your team can found themselves over 50 under par.

MoHa has done exactly same in this series - twice PAK batted first and he took his comfort to score 60 (71), 81 (80) while his team posted at least 35 under par. Thrice PAK chased and his scores were 1 (9), 0 (4), 6 (20) - this is absolute manipulation of stats and this guy is a Professor in doing that. This has been his career story actually - manipulation, well supported by PCB & his Captains. Even when he was posting Sobers like performance with bat & chucking in UAE, his outside Asia stats were like 25/70 - that too hugely boosted by his lifetime achievement - a mega bonanza series against Robert Mughabe's ZIM.

Guy is intelligent and extremely cunning - instead of indulging in the rat race of Captaincy, he kept his Captain (s), coach (s) comfortable and enjoyed the megastar status in the team for almost a decade - only player regular starter for 3 formats, bats in top 3 for all 3 format, bowls full quota, drops at abundance at 1st slip or point, assured Cat A central contract ..... this won't have been possible had his Captain (s) were threatened.

Unfortunately for him, this time, this guy Arthur called the bluff, otherwise long may it lived and MoHa was destined for 2023, possibly as Captain (still can happen - if Arthur gets sacked).
Click to expand...
[MENTION=79064]MMHS[/MENTION] has summed it up very well.
 
Hafeez is no doubt is the most naturally gifted batsman in the world.He needs only a phatta UAE wicket to showcase his talent.I am still annoyed on Steyn for humiliating such a world class player in SA.Why he has been given chance in such a testing condition in Zimbabew?He has been unjustifiably been called for chucking thrice by ICC .Its conspiracy. He is way way better allrounder than Shakib.
 
If you heard the commentary of the first T20I against Zimbabwe, you would actually think Hafeez is some sort of an ATG.
 
Of course.

Today he played another solid innings.

His 0 runs will be of enormous use and give confidence to the rest of the batsmen.
 
15 years on from his debut in side and still a pathetic batsmen!
 
babajee said:
We all bash Hafeez on this forum... but is he actually our best batsman?
Click to expand...

Is he related to the guy called “Mohammad Hafeez Out Duck”?

The one with the second worst away record in 140 years of Test cricket?
 
If you meant worst I completely agree. This cheat needs to be shown the door. Awful player.
 
Justcrazy said:
[MENTION=79064]MMHS[/MENTION] has summed it up very well.
Click to expand...

It's a shame that this thread even belongs to PP - they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day...... I say, it wasn’t destroyed in a day either.
 
The one major positive you get with hafeez is that he is always consistent.
Put him in front of a half decent fast bowler, or a competent team or a better situation he will wave the white flag nine it of ten times.
 
Pete Rose said:
The one major positive you get with hafeez is that he is always consistent.
Put him in front of a half decent fast bowler, or a competent team or a better situation he will wave the white flag nine it of ten times.
Click to expand...

When was the 10th time occurred last - must be a historical milestone?
 
MMHS said:
When was the 10th time occurred last - must be a historical milestone?
Click to expand...

You could argue that he was under pressure to play a blinder when he was sent in during the last ten overs of the CT. The team had a massive start and he was sent out of position to play for the team
 
Pete Rose said:
You could argue that he was under pressure to play a blinder when he was sent in during the last ten overs of the CT. The team had a massive start and he was sent out of position to play for the team
Click to expand...

And made sure that a possible 360 ends below 340, which sums up the expectation. Since PAK won the Final by 180 margin, after a blinder from FZ (and an opening spell of Amir), people tend to forget that, MoHa came to bat at 247-3, at 39'4 overs against an off color Indian team/attack - and PAK scoring 91/1 in last 62 balls, with MoHa consuming 37 of those 62, to BLAST 57.
 
Didn't follow the game v Australia today and haven't checked the scorecard as yet , wanted a pleasant surprise, Hafeez getting a 100 v Australia -- can someone surprise me and tell me he reached that landmark today?
 
Majid Khan said:
Didn't follow the game v Australia today and haven't checked the scorecard as yet , wanted a pleasant surprise, Hafeez getting a 100 v Australia -- can someone surprise me and tell me he reached that landmark today?
Click to expand...

Good guess, you were close. Just remove the 1 from the 100.
 
MMHS said:
And made sure that a possible 360 ends below 340, which sums up the expectation. Since PAK won the Final by 180 margin, after a blinder from FZ (and an opening spell of Amir), people tend to forget that, MoHa came to bat at 247-3, at 39'4 overs against an off color Indian team/attack - and PAK scoring 91/1 in last 62 balls, with MoHa consuming 37 of those 62, to BLAST 57.
Click to expand...

true true. even his best means leaving 20 runs at the table
 
If Hafeez is best Pakistan batsman , then I am not far away from being best from Asia :)
 
Good strategy by team management to save Hafeez's career. He will be right back on flat deck of UAE against weaker team. Don't think this guy is dropped.
 
Hafeez does not get dropped, it just does not happen - only rested.
 
Looks like both india and pakistan will go hand in hand in teh wc with a buddha brigade middle order.
Sarfu,Hafeez,Malik,DK,Dhoni,Kedar,Rayudu and the spirit of shahid sfridi all form a circle and sing hallelujah.
Daddy's army.:salute
 
No. Babar then followed by Harris. Hafeez is probably one of the better players of spin though.
 
Ton up for the FTB

Watch him tweet how great he is & that he should be part of WC plans. Team is doomed.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Pakistani Pace
Say what you want, but Babar Azam is still Pakistan’s most gifted batter
Replies
67
Views
1K
Kianig89
Kianig89
Ball Blazer
Former Pakistan Test cricketer Wazir Mohammad dies at age 95
Replies
4
Views
212
Markhor
M
Cricket Warrior
  • Poll Poll
Mohammad Naeem vs Saim Ayub: Who Deserves a Spot in Pakistan’s T20I Side?
Replies
14
Views
467
RedwoodOriginal
RedwoodOriginal
M
Shaheen Shah Afridi – Pakistan’s new pace all-rounder?
Replies
30
Views
856
BouncerGuy
BouncerGuy
Ball Blazer
  • Poll Poll
[PICTURES/VIDEOS] Saim Ayub as an all-rounder: Performance watch
2 3
Replies
217
Views
6K
The Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle
Back
Top