Misbah-ul-Haq's position now is, sadly, untenable

[MenInG]

I am his number one supporter and love what he did for Pakistan in Tests but he cannot possibly continue as captain.

I really dont know the inside conversations between him and PCB but surely as a person, he can walk away and no one will belittle him for that.

He has done what he can with this team and its time for another to step forward as captain.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This run of 6 consecutive Test defeats is the worst losing run in Pakistan's cricket history <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/817660459092418560">January 7, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Surely no captain would like to have this against his name?

 

[Junaids]

I am his number one supporter and love what he did for Pakistan in Tests but he cannot possibly continue as captain.

I really dont know the inside conversations between him and PCB but surely as a person, he can walk away and no one will belittle him for that.

He has done what he can with this team and its time for another to step forward as captain.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This run of 6 consecutive Test defeats is the worst losing run in Pakistan's cricket history <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/817660459092418560">January 7, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Surely no captain would like to have this against his name?

Any skipper of a non-Asian team would have rushed his resignation out before the fifth day to get it in before he could be sacked.

Anyone who has read Mickey Arthur's book can immediately see that this is Misbah's team, not his.

Mickey even played four quicks in Pakistan - and beat Inzamam there - because he thinks that any less than four quicks and they lose pace and accuracy.

And he dropped Shaun Pollock for being too slow - when he was quicker than Sohail Khan or Imran Khan.

Misbah controlled the composition and selection of this team. He set the fields.

And whereas Imran Khan stuck his neck out and insisted upon Sarfraz Nawaz and Abdul Qadir when the PCB refused, and got them, ultimately Pakistan failed to find the 280 runs at 46.66 from Salman Butt as second opener, the 199 runs at 33.16 from Umar Akmal at Number 5 and the 13 wickets at 28.46 of Mohammad Asif.

Pakistan cricket is notorious for its lack of accountability.

But those are real figures from the players Misbah left behind. And they, combined with his own output of 76 runs at 12.66, and the contempt his bowling fields attracted from Taylor to Chappell to Warne, should see Misbah held to account.

And sacked.

 

[Asim2Good]

Any skipper of a non-Asian team would have rushed his resignation out before the fifth day to get it in before he could be sacked.

Anyone who has read Mickey Arthur's book can immediately see that this is Misbah's team, not his.

Mickey even played four quicks in Pakistan - and beat Inzamam there - because he thinks that any less than four quicks and they lose pace and accuracy.

And he dropped Shaun Pollock for being too slow - when he was quicker than Sohail Khan or Imran Khan.

Misbah controlled the composition and selection of this team. He set the fields.

And whereas Imran Khan stuck his neck out and insisted upon Sarfraz Nawaz and Abdul Qadir when the PCB refused, and got them, ultimately Pakistan failed to find the 280 runs at 46.66 from Salman Butt as second opener, the 199 runs at 33.16 from Umar Akmal at Number 5 and the 13 wickets at 28.46 of Mohammad Asif.

Pakistan cricket is notorious for its lack of accountability.

But those are real figures from the players Misbah left behind. And they, combined with his own output of 76 runs at 12.66, and the contempt his bowling fields attracted from Taylor to Chappell to Warne, should see Misbah held to account.

And sacked.

didn't see that happening with Smith after recent SL tour.

 

[Statsman]

Same here. Been a supporter but think Misbah should call it quits now. I'm sure there are more like us.

He is almost 43 fgs.

 

[kingusama92]

Class player. Great guy.

BUT, he has to retire. There's nothing to gain now.

 

[Slog]

Any skipper of a non-Asian team would have rushed his resignation out before the fifth day to get it in before he could be sacked.

Anyone who has read Mickey Arthur's book can immediately see that this is Misbah's team, not his.

Mickey even played four quicks in Pakistan - and beat Inzamam there - because he thinks that any less than four quicks and they lose pace and accuracy.

And he dropped Shaun Pollock for being too slow - when he was quicker than Sohail Khan or Imran Khan.

Misbah controlled the composition and selection of this team. He set the fields.

And whereas Imran Khan stuck his neck out and insisted upon Sarfraz Nawaz and Abdul Qadir when the PCB refused, and got them, ultimately Pakistan failed to find the 280 runs at 46.66 from Salman Butt as second opener, the 199 runs at 33.16 from Umar Akmal at Number 5 and the 13 wickets at 28.46 of Mohammad Asif.

Pakistan cricket is notorious for its lack of accountability.

But those are real figures from the players Misbah left behind. And they, combined with his own output of 76 runs at 12.66, and the contempt his bowling fields attracted from Taylor to Chappell to Warne, should see Misbah held to account.

And sacked.

Take out Sydney 2010 green mamba, And Asif averages 75 in Australia.

There were no green mambas here so dunno why Asif's performances from six years ago matter when neither Asif is the same and definitely there wasn't a single pitch anywhere near the Sydney 2010 one.

Also even with that he averages 33+ so not sure where 28 came from

Please stop making numbers up. Asif and his 125kph dollies would have been massacred on the pitches we played on. HBLs domestic batsmen who can't make it in international bullied him at almost 5 am over in the QeA final when the pitch flattened out a bit.

 

[Last Monetarist]

Likewise, no real reason to stay now. Give the new captain, ideally Sarfraz, a relatively less stressful tour to the Caribbean to ease into the job. It's probable that Misbah will announce his international retirement before the PSL.

 

[Asim2Good]

and BTW in my view, its time for Misbah to ritre now.
He should announce retirement once he is back in Pak, should not listen to PCB

 

[Smbhayi]

didn't see that happening with Smith after recent SL tour.

wasn't Cook so out of form about 2 years and also his team failing badly? didn't see he sacked after that!

 

[Arham_PakFan]

didn't see that happening with Smith after recent SL tour.

Or clarke after 4-0 in India and 2-0 in the UAE.

 

[Syed1]

didn't see that happening with Smith after recent SL tour.

Was Smith 42 years old and a dud in his primary role of batting?

 

[Asim2Good]

Was Smith 42 years old and a dud in his primary role of batting?

That was not point in original post I quoted.
Smith lost 2 series in a row, where he avg abt 40 in both those series. So yes he was faliure with bat in both series ( as per his standards)

 

[MMHS]

He can only redeem himself & his legacy by winning the tough series against WI, BD & Srilanka. PAK has no replacement for Misbah - if required he'll bat at 11, (no 10, he'll carry Imran for batting at 11) & lead the dynamic charges on field with his experience, tactical nuances & man management. PAK is now 8th/9th in ODI & 5th in Test, soon it'll become 6th after NZ-BD Series, 7th if it's 0-3 in WI - therefore it's unfair for any new Captain to be appointed now. As ICC indicated, Ireland & Afghanistan will be given Test status in 2019 - may be PCB can invite Afghans in 2020, which'll be perfect time to relieve Misbah & appoint Azhar or Sarfy to cake charge for next decade.

 

[Buffet]

As great Miandad said, Pakistan doesn't have replacement and tough series against WI, BD and SL is coming.

 

[Rayyman]

Can't continue as captain, but his performances as a batsman also show that he should either retire or be dropped.

 

[moghul]

As great Miandad said, Pakistan doesn't have replacement and tough series against WI, BD and SL is coming.

He is right, it's hard to replace Misbah, it's not easy to lose 6 tests in a row and be outscored by tailenders in batting. Only Misbah could do that.

 

[Major]

So Misbah should retire because we lost a Test Series, or because of his batting form?

Because i remember when we lost 3-0 to SA in SA, and everyone at that time acted as if it was the end of the world aswell.

 

[static]

So Misbah should retire because we lost a Test Series, or because of his batting form?

Because i remember when we lost 3-0 to SA in SA, and everyone at that time acted as if it was the end of the world aswell.

Because of his batting form, and his captaincy(which deteriorated alarmingly this series). And it doesn't look like he has the desire to fight it out while batting looking at his form of dismissals.

He has played long enough, did a lot of good for Pak cricket, I'm a big fan. But there comes a time when it has to end, and this is that time.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

People are commenting as if Misbah wants to continue for a few more years. He wanted to quit after ENG tour but now he will for sure.

We have Azhar and Sarfraz there now who can lead the team for the time being.

 

[shah_1]

So Misbah should retire because we lost a Test Series, or because of his batting form?

Because i remember when we lost 3-0 to SA in SA, and everyone at that time acted as if it was the end of the world aswell.

His form, he is old and can't play fast bowling anymore.

 

[Major]

His form, he is old and can't play fast bowling anymore.

hmmm interesting, because what i saw in the NZ series was that he was batting better then everyone else.

So if Misbah's form is bad and cant play then all other should also retire.

Also, there is a difference between "can't play fast bowling" and throwing your wicket due to non-seriousness on your part.

Misbah can play, but the problem i see is that he is not even serious with his batting. He is playing too much carefree, and to fix that is not forcing him to hang his boots

 

[TalentSpotterPk]

Let him land in his Home Soil.

Get ready for a press conference at Lahore within 3 days of his arrival back home.

He will announce retirement from all forms of International Cricket ie Test & T20i cricket.

 

[Abdullah719]

hmmm interesting, because what i saw in the NZ series was that he was batting better then everyone else.

So if Misbah's form is bad and cant play then all other should also retire.

Also, there is a difference between "can't play fast bowling" and throwing your wicket due to non-seriousness on your part.

Misbah can play, but the problem i see is that he is not even serious with his batting. He is playing too much carefree, and to fix that is not forcing him to hang his boots

He needs to retire because we have to look ahead. He will turn 43 soon. We need to start grooming the team for future series. After WI, we play Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. These three series would be ideal to allow a new captain (and the middle order replacement) to settle and get prepared for the tougher series in 2018/2019.

Unless you think Misbah will play till 2020 or so???

 

[Pete Rose]

I think he will retire. Maybe the only thing that might be alluring for him is a potential tour of india.

 

[shaz619]

Let him land in his Home Soil.

Get ready for a press conference at Lahore within 3 days of his arrival back home.

He will announce retirement from all forms of International Cricket ie Test & T20i cricket.

Exactly! why are there not many posters out there like you and I? all would be good in the world

It doesn't take a lot to figure out this is what Misbah intends to do but some are using this as an opportunity to bash him further for the sake of it

 

[moghul]

Why we keep asking for him to retire , as he has God given right to keep getting selected as long as he wants to even with his age and pathetic form. Why don't we ask for his sacking from the toothless selectors and accountability from BCP.

 

[Dark Magician]

Misbah should have quit a years ago to allow a new generation of players to emerge but instead he carried on and got exposed. The whole team needs to be fixed.

Sami Aslan
Butt
Azhar Ali
Shafiq
Babar Azam
?
Safraz
Amir
Yasir
?
?

Shafiq can't hide at 6 forever. He needs to bat higher. Ali at 3 means you have someone to stabilize the team. Azam needs to bat at 5 IMO. He's not suited for the number 3 position. Then you'll need pacers. The one's you have currently are useless .

 

[Hasan123]

He should and will retire.

 

[Syed1]

I think he will retire. Maybe the only thing that might be alluring for him is a potential tour of india.

OMG that is 'scheduled' at the end of 2017. If Misbah is hoping to hang on till then may God have his mercy on us.

 

[Major]

He needs to retire because we have to look ahead. He will turn 43 soon. We need to start grooming the team for future series. After WI, we play Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. These three series would be ideal to allow a new captain (and the middle order replacement) to settle and get prepared for the tougher series in 2018/2019.

Unless you think Misbah will play till 2020 or so???

Yar Abdullah you cannot force someone to retire just for the sake of it.

I will say 2 things here.

1) Team grooming and all is just a made up phrase used amongest our cricket fans who for some odd reason like young batsmen.

Tell me one thing, the grooming players that we do introduce in a format, how many years does this career actually expands to.

If you look at in ODIs, from 2011 to 2015, only Misbah, Hafeez and Younis were part of the actual team. Shezad and Umar were in and out during the time line, Harris Sohail came in late and is nowhere in the team after the world cup. Only 1 of the bowlers was part of the team even after the world cup(wahab Riaz)

Even if you look at the test format, Misbah, Younis and Azhar were continued with. Shafiq almost lost his place, but yes he is part of the team. Sarfraz isn't performing, Wahab is there because everyone else sucks. Openers have been changed.

Thing is, i never believed in this grooming theory as in reality it never had worked. Yes it works maybe on 2-3 players but not on the whole batting line up.

Our line up for both batting and bowling has to change after every 6 months to an year, because the problem is we play cricket in two places.

a) spin friendly tracks
b) fast bowling friendly tracks

On spin tracks, imran khan and Rahat Ali bowl well, on pacey tracks Sohail Khan bowls well.
On spin tracks, hafeez bats well

2) The cause of the loss in Australia

When you drop something or change something, you do it because its the cause. You eradicated the cause and the problem is solved.

Tell me, the reason behind the 3-0 series loss was Misbah's captaincy, his batting, teams batting or teams bowling?

To me it was the teams bowling. All our batsmen barring Misbah batted well. Misbah was going to have his purple patch at anytime, besides he threw his wicekts away.

No one is bothered to look at the fact that our bowlers did nothing.. Amir was useless, wahab is nothing, sohail doesnt have fitness and rahat can't bowl at one place. But even yet, no one is discussing this.

People think dropping Misbah will solve the whole problem, when in reality it won.

What solves the problem this time is our bowling being fixed.

 

[Abdullah719]

Yar Abdullah you cannot force someone to retire just for the sake of it.

I will say 2 things here.

1) Team grooming and all is just a made up phrase used amongest our cricket fans who for some odd reason like young batsmen.

Tell me one thing, the grooming players that we do introduce in a format, how many years does this career actually expands to.

If you look at in ODIs, from 2011 to 2015, only Misbah, Hafeez and Younis were part of the actual team. Shezad and Umar were in and out during the time line, Harris Sohail came in late and is nowhere in the team after the world cup. Only 1 of the bowlers was part of the team even after the world cup(wahab Riaz)

Even if you look at the test format, Misbah, Younis and Azhar were continued with. Shafiq almost lost his place, but yes he is part of the team. Sarfraz isn't performing, Wahab is there because everyone else sucks. Openers have been changed.

Thing is, i never believed in this grooming theory as in reality it never had worked. Yes it works maybe on 2-3 players but not on the whole batting line up.

Our line up for both batting and bowling has to change after every 6 months to an year, because the problem is we play cricket in two places.

a) spin friendly tracks
b) fast bowling friendly tracks

On spin tracks, imran khan and Rahat Ali bowl well, on pacey tracks Sohail Khan bowls well.
On spin tracks, hafeez bats well

2) The cause of the loss in Australia

When you drop something or change something, you do it because its the cause. You eradicated the cause and the problem is solved.

Tell me, the reason behind the 3-0 series loss was Misbah's captaincy, his batting, teams batting or teams bowling?

To me it was the teams bowling. All our batsmen barring Misbah batted well. Misbah was going to have his purple patch at anytime, besides he threw his wicekts away.

No one is bothered to look at the fact that our bowlers did nothing.. Amir was useless, wahab is nothing, sohail doesnt have fitness and rahat can't bowl at one place. But even yet, no one is discussing this.

People think dropping Misbah will solve the whole problem, when in reality it won.

What solves the problem this time is our bowling being fixed.

Problem is that this thread is about Misbah specifically.

We all know that the bowling was garbage in this series. You can see my thread on the stats, even.

Tell me logically - Will a player have a better chance of success if he is given series vs WI, Ban, SL to start with, as opposed to having to start overseas against England and SA in 2018/19?

And back to my original question - Do you think Misbah should carry on to 2020?

 

[Junaids]

Problem is that this thread is about Misbah specifically.

We all know that the bowling was garbage in this series. You can see my thread on the stats, even.

Tell me logically - Will a player have a better chance of success if he is given series vs WI, Ban, SL to start with, as opposed to having to start overseas against England and SA in 2018/19?

And back to my original question - Do you think Misbah should carry on to 2020?

To a significant degree the bowling was garbage BECAUSE of Misbah.

Amir, Wahab and Yasir would have got twice as many wickets if they had bowled half as many overs, with accurate quicks giving them a five minute gap between overs rather than Yasir bowling three minute overs. And if they had been given fields conducive to getting people out.

How is Amir meant to get people out in Australia with one slip?

 

[Abdullah719]

To a significant degree the bowling was garbage BECAUSE of Misbah.

Amir, Wahab and Yasir would have got twice as many wickets if they had bowled half as many overs, with accurate quicks giving them a five minute gap between overs rather than Yasir bowling three minute overs. And if they had been given fields conducive to getting people out.

How is Amir meant to get people out in Australia with one slip?

That is a separate debate. I think that this attack is overall, pretty mediocre. It was rendered even more useless due to the the captaincy.

 

[Haroon786]

That was not point in original post I quoted.
Smith lost 2 series in a row, where he avg abt 40 in both those series. So yes he was faliure with bat in both series ( as per his standards)

Smith received the Test mace during the SL series IIRC, no Test captain would be sacked so soon after reaching the no 1 Test ranking.

 

[msb314]

I am his number one supporter and love what he did for Pakistan in Tests but he cannot possibly continue as captain.

I really dont know the inside conversations between him and PCB but surely as a person, he can walk away and no one will belittle him for that.

He has done what he can with this team and its time for another to step forward as captain.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This run of 6 consecutive Test defeats is the worst losing run in Pakistan's cricket history <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/817660459092418560">January 7, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Surely no captain would like to have this against his name?

He should have walked away after the England tour.

On the contrary to what [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] said - Misbah's career is likely to end in more tears than YK.

Atleast YK got to 10K runs and is statistically our greatest ever Test batsman - Misbah's legacy will read as our worst even Test losing streak and 5th spot in rankings from exactly where he picked up back in October 2010.

 

[Flat_Track_Bully]

Misbah will be remembered as the captain who does not understand player development.

We all know in world sport that after 33-34 most athletes lose their peak performance.

Time to bring the average age of the team down. I don't care if we lose if most players are below 30.

 

[octavian]

To a significant degree the bowling was garbage BECAUSE of Misbah.

Amir, Wahab and Yasir would have got twice as many wickets if they had bowled half as many overs, with accurate quicks giving them a five minute gap between overs rather than Yasir bowling three minute overs. And if they had been given fields conducive to getting people out.

How is Amir meant to get people out in Australia with one slip?

This is an inconvenient truth that not many want to hear. Pakisan's bowling is by no means as threatening as it used to be but at the same time it no where as bad they performed in NZ and AUS.

Misbah's leadership, strategy and game plan were all that of a desperate man trying to escape a drubbing and a drubbing is what we got.

 

[Speedster777]

Whats disgusting is Misbah blaming the team instead of owning his responsibly and failure as a captain.

 

[James]

I agree MIG.

He's been a magnificent servant and has given so much.

But it is time to move on.

 

[FlickedOffHips]

Pretty sure this is it. maybe he'll play the WI to try and finish on a high but IMO that is very very unlikely.

 

[coy0607]

there is a long long history of Pakistani players hanging on for too long, Misbah is no different

there's a lot of money to be made for these players, they wont leave on their on

If Misbah announces his retirement, I'll be pleasantly surprised but otherwise PCB needs to step up

 

[Buffet]

So Misbah should retire because we lost a Test Series, or because of his batting form?

Because i remember when we lost 3-0 to SA in SA, and everyone at that time acted as if it was the end of the world aswell.

He should retire because he is not enjoying his cricket and he mind seems to be not in cricket. Not unexpected due to his age. Losing and winning happens in sports.

 

[LordJames]

Whats disgusting is Misbah blaming the team instead of owning his responsibly and failure as a captain.

I agree. He should have bowled Express from one end and Googlies from another. We primarily lost due to toothless bowling. If iur bowling was even average an out of form Misbah could have been less of a concern

 

[moghul]

I agree. He should have bowled Express from one end and Googlies from another. We primarily lost due to toothless bowling. If iur bowling was even average an out of form Misbah could have been less of a concern

Not bowling fast or googlies but he was expected to bat better than Amir and Yasir shah at least and if he forgot fieled placing could have asked some other people around him.

 

[Major]

Whats disgusting is Misbah blaming the team instead of owning his responsibly and failure as a captain.

Ok tell us why we lost the series? The ability to not take 20 wickets or the fact that only misbah didnt score runs

 

[Junaids]

Ok tell us why we lost the series? The ability to not take 20 wickets or the fact that only misbah didnt score runs

The lack of wickets was Misbah's fault.

A leggie can't take wickets with six fielders on the leg-side.

A quick can't take wickets in Australia with one slip.

 

[moghul]

The guy is almost 43' he is tired mentally and physically, failing miserably both as batsman and as captain, creating new record of long stretch of defeats and we are still debating whether he should continue or be sacked, amazing.

 

[Kianig89]

What will Misbah acheieve by playing WI series other than personal glory his performance does not merit him a position fgs plz go

 

[ExpressPacer]

I don't buy this. Yeah, I'm all for him retiring but what should the poor guy do?! This was always called for. You can bring in the best captain in the world but he still wasn't gonna win with ordinary team of Imran Khan's and Rahat Ali's. We should've drawn two of those Tests there but our batsmen refused to hold their wicket for a couple of hours. I don't understand how that is Misbah's fault.

Regardless, I'm ready to agree you views of it being SOLELY Misbah's fault YET that does not mean he will not go down as an ATG captain and a terrific player. The way he's led this team throughout has been nothing short of exemplary. He was our best bet in the toughest of conditions. And, despite wanting him to call it a day, I still feel he's an awesome batsman even to this day. Everyone has bad tours and frankly speaking, this is his first in a very, very long time. Cut the guy some slack!

 

[LegendAli]

That was not point in original post I quoted.
Smith lost 2 series in a row, where he avg abt 40 in both those series. So yes he was faliure with bat in both series ( as per his standards)

Look at the difference in one's self respect.

On one hand you got the Saffer who retired after averaging 40 in his last two series and then there is the Pakistani who Averages 10, maybe 15 in the last 6 series and is still thinking about whether he should retire or not.

Come on, yaar.

 

[soso_killer]

Led his country with pride and distinction. But all good things must come to an end.
At his age he is probably denying some youngster a spot which is more detrimental to Pakistan cricket.

 

[Mamoon]

He should have walked away after the England tour.

On the contrary to what [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] said - Misbah's career is likely to end in more tears than YK.

Atleast YK got to 10K runs and is statistically our greatest ever Test batsman - Misbah's legacy will read as our worst even Test losing streak and 5th spot in rankings from exactly where he picked up back in October 2010.

I don't agree. Misbah's career has always been out his collective influence as captain rather than just his batting performance. Even his staunchest supporters - barring one or two - have accept that he wasn't and never will be a world class individual player.

His legacy as a player is insignificant in comparison to his legacy as captain. No matter how and why, the fact is that he did take Pakistan to the number one ranking in Tests which was our biggest cricketing achievement since winning the World Cup in 1992, and this is how his career will be remembered.

However, there is no point in him dragging his career further. He cannot take the team any further now, and I back him to the right thing. He wants to retire in Pakistan and that is what he will do, no point in announcing the retirement just before/after the Sydney match.

 

[Hawkeye]

I don't agree. Misbah's career has always been out his collective influence as captain rather than just his batting performance. Even his staunchest supporters - barring one or two - have accept that he wasn't and never will be a world class individual player.

His legacy as a player is insignificant in comparison to his legacy as captain. No matter how and why, the fact is that he did take Pakistan to the number one ranking in Tests which was our biggest cricketing achievement since winning the World Cup in 1992, and this is how his career will be remembered.

However, there is no point in him dragging his career further. He cannot take the team any further now, and I back him to the right thing. He wants to retire in Pakistan and that is what he will do, no point in announcing the retirement just before/after the Sydney match.

He'll retire after WI tour. You find that okay or it's stretching it too long?

 

[Convict]

didn't see that happening with Smith after recent SL tour.

One point of difference - Smith is still contributing with the bat and his the best player in his team.

Misbah is now a liability

 

[Asim2Good]

One point of difference - Smith is still contributing with the bat and his the best player in his team.

Misbah is now a liability

no, he isn't. Let Misbah back in his comfort zone and he ll start to score again just like Smith

 

[Convict]

no, he isn't. Let Misbah back in his comfort zone and he ll start to score again just like Smith

And Smith is Australia's best batsmen every where in the world and is still only 27. No reason to get rid of him.

Misbah is nearly 43 and a complete liability outside of his comfort zone

 

[MRSN]

I don't agree. Misbah's career has always been out his collective influence as captain rather than just his batting performance. Even his staunchest supporters - barring one or two - have accept that he wasn't and never will be a world class individual player.

His legacy as a player is insignificant in comparison to his legacy as captain. No matter how and why, the fact is that he did take Pakistan to the number one ranking in Tests which was our biggest cricketing achievement since winning the World Cup in 1992, and this is how his career will be remembered.

However, there is no point in him dragging his career further. He cannot take the team any further now, and I back him to the right thing. He wants to retire in Pakistan and that is what he will do, no point in announcing the retirement just before/after the Sydney match.

you said Sydney will be his last test..but rumors are he is not going to retire soon.

 

[cricketfanfirst]

Misbah has done great service to Pakistan cricket and led with dignity. I never heard reckless or demeaning statements from him which otherwise are quite normal with several Pakistani players.

A great gentleman who led with honor, but all good things must come to an end.

He should retire now and give a rest to his aging body, he must be tired both mentally and physically now and it's time to call it a day...

 

[the SHA]

Hes gone. Im pretty sure the decision was made after the 2nd test loss that he will retire post-series. They're probably just delaying the announcement until they figure out if Azhar Ali has any real competency about him or not in the ODIs.

 

[BestEver]

Misbah-ul-Haq is an ordinary player - Not a legend

A lot of Misbah fans saying that he is a legend but actually he is not.

As a batsman.
He was just an average ODI player. Almost Everyone hated him as a ODI batsman. Still Remember his Tuk Tuk innings in 2011 WC semifinal helped India winning and when the match was almost gone he started hitting big shots. and his 70+ against Zimbabwe in WC 2015 at test match strike rate almost made pakistani fans cry. Thanks to pakistani bowlers saved whole pakistan from an embarrassment. He played a lot of these kind of innings. Inshort was a match loser in ODIs.

AND

An average Test player. Apart from a 100 at lords and fastest test 100 not a single remarkable performance. Hardly ever scored outside UAE.

so why he is a legend ? because of captaincy ?

Well i am not an expert on cricket captaincy but i had seen every cricket expert criticizing his captaincy. He left ODI team at 8th rank. Test team is also at no.5 now and will go down at no.6 after NZvsBAG series and he is not leaving yet.

SO, why he is a legend Misbah Fans ?

 

[troodon]

He is a legend not for his stats. But for his Captaincy when he took over a Pak team that was in turmoil and took it to No.1 ranking.

 

[MRSN]

Misbah will be legend only in the books. The reality is he was an average player and captain whose biggest positive would be counted to keep the side together. Misbah will not be remembered for any his heriocs on the field with the bat in hand, or with his decisions making or leaving a team of young talented players.

 

[MRSN]

He is a legend not for his stats. But for his Captaincy when he took over a Pak team that was in turmoil and took it to No.1 ranking.

that's the only positive he will be remembered for keeping players together and keeping controversies away from team. everything else is highly debatable.

 

[BestEver]

He is a legend not for his stats. But for his Captaincy when he took over a Pak team that was in turmoil and took it to No.1 ranking.

Rain took Pakistan to No.1 and for just 30 days.

 

[AZulfi]

No he's not with a captaincy record of 2 wins and 9 losses in Eng/Aus/RSA/NZ

This also lays to rest the stupid debate re. who is Pakistan's greatest ever cricket captain

It is Imran Khan (one may disagree with some of his political views. I certainly do) by a country mile

 

[Sadevdesai]

Rain took Pakistan to No.1 and for just 30 days.

Yessss .... the Indians drew the Test against WI because of Rain .... 4 days were washed out !!! So our being #1 has nothing to do with us winning aTest Series and getting #1ranking.

 

[Speedster777]

Ideally, Misbah should have been kicked out of the side after his failure in the WC 2011 semi final. He led his time to an embarrassing defeat.

 

[MenInG]

Ideally, Misbah should have been kicked out of the side after his failure in the WC 2011 semi final. He led his time to an embarrassing defeat.

Ideally? The man lead your team to their best EVER Test ranking. Have some shame.

 

[AlphaFighter]

Misbah will be legend only in the books. The reality is he was an average player and captain whose biggest positive would be counted to keep the side together. Misbah will not be remembered for any his heriocs on the field with the bat in hand, or with his decisions making or leaving a team of young talented players.

To be honest not even in the books. History will regard him as a boring, uninspiring individual, it took Ian Chappel one observation in a series to sum him up and he didn't mince words.

 

[MRSN]

To be honest not even in the books. History will regard him as a boring, uninspiring individual, it took Ian Chappel one observation in a series to sum him up and he didn't mince words.

that is true though. Most foreign cricket fans and analyst don't deeply follow our cricket unless we are playing against them. They mostly go by results like Pakistan clean sweep against England and Australia. It's us fans who have watched and followed our team so closely and have better idea about our cricket team's strengths and weaknesses and it's reasons of downfall than they do.

 

[MenInG]

that is true though. Most foreign cricket fans and analyst don't deeply follow our cricket unless we are playing against them. They mostly go by results like Pakistan clean sweep against England and Australia. It's us fans who have watched and followed our team so closely and have better idea about our cricket team's strengths and weaknesses and it's reasons of downfall than they do.

I really dont know what to say here!

 

[MRSN]

Ideally? The man lead your team to their best EVER Test ranking. Have some shame.

but he is making a fair point isn't he,referring to ODIs specifically? two people who are responsible for our exit in 2011 world cup get the next world cup as farewell. one also becomes captain for next 4 years..isn't this a bit ironic?

 

[MRSN]

I really dont know what to say here!

The point MIG is that it not skills of Misbah and brilliant captaincy that lead us clean sweep against them. It was mix of Ajmal and Yasir's heroics and the fact that both Aus,Eng batsmen are dud against spin,as you saw both teams struggling against SL in SL and India in India,being clean sweep there as well. Pakistan could have clean sweep against them without Misbah as well.

 

[Abdullah719]

The point MIG is that it not skills of Misbah and brilliant captaincy that lead us clean sweep against them. It was mix of Ajmal and Yasir's heroics and the fact that both Aus,Eng batsmen are dud against spin,as you saw both teams struggling against SL in SL and India in India,being clean sweep there as well. Pakistan could have clean sweep against them without Misbah as well.

Alternatively, you could say we used to lose home series in Pakistan often - and after we beat England 3-0 in 2012, they went on to draw with SL in SL and beat India in India.

We can keep doing this for ages but we're just going in circles. Misbah has his strengths and weaknesses and most people know what they are.

We know he isn't the best at developing players. We know he is rather one-dimensional in his strategy and is tactically weak at times.

However, you can't brush all his achievements under the carpet. He has strong points as well.

 

[cricketInsight]

As I said it then, Misbah's time to retire was after the England series win - he taken Pakistan to number 1. There wasn't much left to prove himself but he felt that he could do us one more favor i.e. earn us some respect in AUS which has ended up tarnishing his legacy.

I wont blame him for that - it probably was a noble intent. But i absolutely cannot explain or understand why is not retiring now. What is there to think about? He cannot rebuild this team since time is not on his side - rebuiling will start after he retires. He must hang up his boots now - he did his part and we thank him for his service - Paksitan has achieved a lot in Test Cricket recently - This is what has kept us fans going in the dark ages of our limited overs cricket.

Maybe he is not rushing to announce retirement because he has PCB's confidence that he wont be fired so he can make the announcement himself - I hope he is not delaying this to wait and see the results of the ODI series before making a decision - that should not be a factor in Test Cricket.

 

[msb314]

I don't agree. Misbah's career has always been out his collective influence as captain rather than just his batting performance. Even his staunchest supporters - barring one or two - have accept that he wasn't and never will be a world class individual player.

His legacy as a player is insignificant in comparison to his legacy as captain. No matter how and why, the fact is that he did take Pakistan to the number one ranking in Tests which was our biggest cricketing achievement since winning the World Cup in 1992, and this is how his career will be remembered.

However, there is no point in him dragging his career further. He cannot take the team any further now, and I back him to the right thing. He wants to retire in Pakistan and that is what he will do, no point in announcing the retirement just before/after the Sydney match.

Sorry but it isn't.

Winning a series home Tests in Asian conditions and celebrating and jumping over the moon over a 2-2 draw against England is nothing to be proud of. We were no. 1 for about 2 weeks and are now rightfully back where we truly stand as a Test team - that is in 5th spot.

The 2009 World T20 and heck even reaching the SF in the 2011 WC remain greater achievements IMO.

Misbah was a great Test captain in Asian conditions - one of the very best in exploiting home advantage and is it stands - we remain undefeated at home/UAE in Test series since Nov 2007. However, that is about it when talking about Misbah.

 

[msb314]

Alternatively, you could say we used to lose home series in Pakistan often - and after we beat England 3-0 in 2012, they went on to draw with SL in SL and beat India in India.

We can keep doing this for ages but we're just going in circles. Misbah has his strengths and weaknesses and most people know what they are.

We know he isn't the best at developing players. We know he is rather one-dimensional in his strategy and is tactically weak at times.

However, you can't brush all his achievements under the carpet. He has strong points as well.

As I replied to Mamoon - he was one of the very best at exploiting Asian conditions in Testsi.e. using Ajmal, Babar/Rehman and Hafeez as a spin trio and persisting with Hafeez the batsman along with YK who are/were beasts in Asia - but that should be it regarding Misbah.

 

[ChAslam]

So Misbah should retire because we lost a Test Series, or because of his batting form?

Because i remember when we lost 3-0 to SA in SA, and everyone at that time acted as if it was the end of the world aswell.

He is 43 years old! He needs to go now. In fact, he should have announced retirement after 2nd Test that 3rd test will be his last.

He is acting like as if he is 30 years old.

Jaan choor dey yea hamari bas. First, he destroyed our ODI team now he wants to bulldoze Test Team by doing pathetic captaincy and getting out in Afridiesque style.

Fawad Alam should replace him in next series.

 

[Mamoon]

Sorry but it isn't.

Winning a series home Tests in Asian conditions and celebrating and jumping over the moon over a 2-2 draw against England is nothing to be proud of. We were no. 1 for about 2 weeks and are now rightfully back where we truly stand as a Test team - that is in 5th spot.

The 2009 World T20 and heck even reaching the SF in the 2011 WC remain greater achievements IMO.

Misbah was a great Test captain in Asian conditions - one of the very best in exploiting home advantage and is it stands - we remain undefeated at home/UAE in Test series since Nov 2007. However, that is about it when talking about Misbah.

It is. Doesn't matter how and why, but the fact is that Misbah did take Pakistan to the number one ranking which no captain since Imran Khan was able to do so, and our previous, more talented teams failed in beating teams at home with such consistency.

You have to give credit where it is due. I am of course more than aware of the shortcomings of this team and how we managed to draw the series in England, but you cannot argue with facts and the fact is that the number one ranking, albeit for a very brief period, is our greatest achievement since the 1992 World Cup.

 

[Mamoon]

He'll retire after WI tour. You find that okay or it's stretching it too long?

you said Sydney will be his last test..but rumors are he is not going to retire soon.

I would prefer him to retire now. I don't see the point in touring the Caribbean.