"Nowhere have we set an exact criteria for selection on basis of fitness" : Misbah-ul-Haq

[MenInG]

Misbah speaking to the press today

"Remember that this isn't the Captain, Coach or Chief Selector's team - this is our team - it is important to understand that this is Pakistan's team"


Sharjeel Khan's fitness

"First of all let me say that there seems to be an impression that Sharjeel's selection has been made based upon wishes of the Captain and Coach - This impression is totally wrong"

"We all sat together and a proper discussion on Sharjeel's selection was had about where he stands with his fitness, where he can contribute to the side and what his role will be, what time period do we have to bring him towards required fitness standards - we were all agreed on this"

"We are now, in a realistic way and Sharjeel knows this, taking Sharjeel towards the required standard of fitness; This is not a compromise"

"Nowhere have we set exact criteria for selection on basis of fitness; Yes we have fines for being unfit and we don't compromise in that sense - we don't say that a player can remain that way (unfit) and not improve; But in the same way we don't want the team to suffer because of this"


About his own future

"I am focussed on my current assignments and the upcoming series - I am not worried about whether I will be able to get a contract extension for 2 years as that will happen, when it happens; The PCB will take the decision on my contract renewal as they deem fit at that time; Whether a new person has to be brought in etc will all be decided by the PCB keeping in mind the needs of the team"


Why Sharjeel Khan was picked now and Mohammad Asif and Salman Butt were not picked before?

"I have no idea what the rules were at the time when others were not picked but if the law states now that such people are allowed to play then we have to follow that - if the player has completed his punishment then he can play as that is not a law we made or are an authority on"


Selection/Compromise on fitness

"Whichever player is needed for the team is given targets to improve so we are able to play in the side when needed; No where is it written that we will not include a player if he doesnt meet the fitness standard"

"Sharjeel has played all season and performed in 4-Day, OD and T20s"

"Our target was to work on all players like Azam Khan, Sohaib Maqsood but due to a busy schedule we couldn't do that but that's why we invited then to NHPC"

"Coming to Sharjeel as we have 3 weeks to go to T20 series, we had some time to work on his skills and fitness, to help him come up to our standards"


On Imad Wasim

"The answer on Imad's exclusion has been provided by Mohammad Waseem in detail; I have always said that this is Pakistan's team and not our team; Conditions in SA are known to all and its quite possible that only one spinner will play, and a fast bowling all-rounder will be playing too; We need a spinner in middle overs and Imad's effectiveness and his role is with the new ball; Also his form has been taken into consideration - recently Nawaz has performed well and we are trying to give him some continuity with chances before the World Cup where we will be playing 2-3 series"

"Imad is always there for us - we haven't written him off, so lets see how we go in the future"


Contradiction of policies on fitness with what Mohammad Waseem said

"We have had many detailed discussions on fitness with our trainers at NHPC and Coaches with Pakistan side also; The idea is to simplify and bring in parameters on which there will be no compromise"

"So players will be told to maintain certain weight or given targets to achieve in the next 2-3 month and then there are also measures such as endurance and fat levels to consider - which is the sense in which Mohammad Wasim spoke about the issue"


Team still not settled with WT20 approaching

"We can already see a nucleus of 7-8 main players in our team which will take part in the T20 World Cup; In fact out of 15 players we expect to see 10-12 players to remain as the nucleus with 2-3 batting places settled; There can be some 1-2 changes due to form etc"

"Looking at the overall lineup of our T20 team, you will see 4-5 players who can be considered certain when it comes to batting, in the bowling you have Shaheen Shah Afrid, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Faheem Ashraf, Hassan Ali and Shadab Khan; We also have the likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Haider Ali who are settled and part of the playing XI"


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"


Cricket Committee only meets when Pakistan lose

"Cricket Committee should meet in all cases - whether we win or lose - the performances should be reviewed"


India Pakistan series possibility

"We will see when an India-Pakistan series does happen - until that happens, we are concentrating on the tasks at hand and to prepare ourselves so that we play our best cricket against whichever opposition we play"

 

[Rana]

This guy...

Who takes anything he says seriously when it was he who brought 37 year old Mohammad Irfan back into the national side and opened a T20i with Imam ul Haq?

 

[Firebat]

"Coming to Sharjeel as we have 3 weeks to go to T20 series, we had some time to work on his skills and fitness, to help him come up to our standards"

16 days to go until the 1st T20I, if he loses 2 kg a day then he'll have lost 32 kg! Why's everyone complaining

 

[Rayyman]

So Amir and Imad are nowhere to be seen despite both being ranked in the Top 10.

 

[Shafi]

"I am focussed on my current assignments and the upcoming series - I am not worried about whether I will be able to get a contract extension for 2 years as that will happen, when it happens; The PCB will take the decision on my contract renewal as they deem fit at that time; Whether a new person has to be brought in etc will all be decided by the PCB keeping in mind the needs of the team"

Why he is talking about extension now? He still has more than 1.5 years left. MenIng can you please tell what he is talking about?

 

[Cric1234]

Why he is talking about extension now? He still has more than 1.5 years left. MenIng can you please tell what he is talking about?

He wants to stay for another 5-10 years get ready for more mediocrity in the future.

 

[Mamoon]

The Mohammad Wasim-Misbah-Babar nexus is complete shambles at the moment.

It is extremely obvious that the team management and the Mohammad Wasim are not on the same page.

This is what happens when you appoint a selector who is interested in personal glory and tries to steal the spotlight.

Thank you Wasim Khan for another masterstroke.

 

[Kroll]

He wants to stay for another 5-10 years get ready for more mediocrity in the future.

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[MenInG]

Why he is talking about extension now? He still has more than 1.5 years left. MenIng can you please tell what he is talking about?

Was asked about it.

 

[Kroll]

"Remember that this isnt the Captain, Coach or Chief Selector's team - this is our team - it is important to understand that this is Pakistan's team"

Says the guy who filled up the team with his mediocre pals.

 

[Major]

Diplomatic stuff by Misbah. The guy doesnt throw anyone under the bus.

Hopefully Sharjeel will fail. I just hope Sharjeel isn't able to shed weight. I cannot stand a player who has fixed matches or done spot fixing and gets to play for Pakistan. This is just disrespectful to the nation.

Feel sorry that honest people like Misbah are forced to defend fixers here.

Anyways, really hoping Sharjeel to fail the fitness standard

 

[topspin]

Diplomatic stuff by Misbah. The guy doesnt throw anyone under the bus.

Hopefully Sharjeel will fail. I just hope Sharjeel isn't able to shed weight. I cannot stand a player who has fixed matches or done spot fixing and gets to play for Pakistan. This is just disrespectful to the nation.

Feel sorry that honest people like Misbah are forced to defend fixers here.

Anyways, really hoping Sharjeel to fail the fitness standard

A well wisher of Pakistan cricket would want Sharjeel to do well because Pakistan lacks batsmen who can hit quick bowlers on the back foot.

On the other hand Misbah fans want what Misbah desires, that is to see Sharjeel fail because of his past at ISLU when Misbah was Head Coach.

Just goes to show that Misbah fans can never be rational.

 

[Snowflake]

With Sharjeel's inclusion, no one knows how to defend or talk about the focus on fitness anymore )

Misbah says that fitness criteria has not been compromised but also says we have not set an exact criteria anywhere! lol!

Babar says that Sharjeel's fitness is not satisfactory but he's a match-winner, so we selected him.

Sharjeel says that it is not all about fitness!

Complete shambles!

 

[Saj]

Nowhere have we set exact criteria for selection on basis of fitness

Misbah says the above.

But Mohammad Wasim said that Haris was dropped mainly for fitness reasons.

Confusing!

 

[Snowflake]

Misbah says the above.

But Mohammad Wasim said that Haris was dropped mainly for fitness reasons.

Confusing!

When there is no exact criteria, what should the players be preparing for? Or are we to believe that they have a custom plan for each player? This is such B.S )

 

[MenInG]

Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq on Thursday made it clear he doesn’t want to look too far ahead and is taking one series at a time, saying the decision to give him an extension lies solely with the PCB.

Misbah’s three-year coaching contract will expire just before the T20 World Cup in India later in the year.

“I always say that one can’t plan so ahead as far as my coaching is concerned. I take it series to series. When the time comes it is time for the PCB to decide what is best for Pakistan cricket,” he said in a virtual press conference.

Misbah said the selectors and team management are on the same page on selection matters, making it clear that he doesn’t want to dwell on tainted T20 opener Sharjeel Khan’s selection.

“I had to say this is a Pakistan team because such things appear in the media and an impression is created that there is discord among team management and selectors over selection matters. But I say everything is done collectively,” he said.

“I don’t know why Muhammad Asif or Salman Butt were not selected after completing their bans but what I know is that until their is a law that bars us from selecting a player after he has served any ban we can’t keep anyone out.”

The Pakistan coach said Sharjeel has been selected because of his form and he has been told that he has time before the T20 series in South Africa to achieve his fitness.

“… he has to work hard and meet the required fitness standards of the team. He has to reach a certain level where there are no compromises,” Misbah said.

“We will see how he progresses and improves his fitness without damaging his skill levels.”
Chief selector, Muhammad Wasim had recently said that fitness benchmark was being brought down to occupy more skillful players.

Misbah said: “We have had a detailed discussion on the fitness issue and we are trying to simplify the process for players by introducing parameters for players on which there will be no compromise.

“But also relate it to performances on the ground by the players. We are giving targets to players depending on their requirements.

“We are not reducing the fitness benchmarks of the team. We are trying to relate it to match and ground fitness. It is not that we will reduce the benchmark of Yoyo tests from 18 to 15 marks.”

Pakistan will leave for the twin tours of South Africa and Zimbabwe on Friday after all the 22 members of the squad and 13 officials tested negative for COVID-19 on Thursday.

Pakistan will play four T20Is and three ODIs in South Africa starting next month and Misbah said it would be challenging going and playing the ODI series without any practice games.

“We have less time to acclimatize to conditions in SA but I am confident that we can produce good results,” he said.
Misbah said that no players, including seniors, have been written off and they will be considered for future selection.

“It is all a matter of who is in form. We can consider any player at any time who is in form. No player is written off.”

Misbah also said that the postponement of the PSL 6 had allowed players to have a break and the training camp was also short.

“We had some concerns that if the PSL had been completed on schedule and we would have left immediately for South Africa remaining in the bio-secure bubble for such a long time,” he said.

“But now this break has been welcome and I think our players are mentally very strong in these circumstances and the team bonding is very good.”

https://indianexpress.com/article/s...kistan-head-coach-contract-extension-7245045/

 

[Major]

A well wisher of Pakistan cricket would want Sharjeel to do well because Pakistan lacks batsmen who can hit quick bowlers on the back foot.

On the other hand Misbah fans want what Misbah desires, that is to see Sharjeel fail because of his past at ISLU when Misbah was Head Coach.

Just goes to show that Misbah fans can never be rational.

bro, back in 2010, i used to wake up early in the morning just to watch Pakistan bowl. I used to spend time discusing cricket on forums and taking interest.

You know how much hurt i was when i find out that these guys for whom we take out time to follow and support end up being involved in fixing and corruption?

A player can be the next Kohli, but once is involved in corruption, i would wish the worst possible thing on him.

It boils my blood seeing these guys still be able to play cricket even after what htey have done.

 

[Hasan123]

I think if it was upto Misbah he would have not selected Sharjeel due to fitness, he said if players fix and then become available for selection after a ban he doesn’t have an issue with their selection.

PCB need to set clear rules on what the fitness expectations are, all players should know them. If you don’t meet them, you don’t get selected. It is baffling how Haris Sohail and Imad are left out due to fitness but Sharjeel who is much worse shape is selected.

West Indies dropped Hetmyer and a couple of other players due to not meeting the fitness standards, those players could not have any excuse as they know what the standards were. Imad and Haris every right to be annoyed if they are dropped for fitness but Sharjeel is selected despite being out of shape.

 

[Major]

I think if it was upto Misbah he would have not selected Sharjeel due to fitness, he said if players fix and then become available for selection after a ban he doesn’t have an issue with their selection.

PCB need to set clear rules on what the fitness expectations are, all players should know them. If you don’t meet them, you don’t get selected. It is baffling how Haris Sohail and Imad are left out due to fitness but Sharjeel who is much worse shape is selected.

West Indies dropped Hetmyer and a couple of other players due to not meeting the fitness standards, those players could not have any excuse as they know what the standards were. Imad and Haris every right to be annoyed if they are dropped for fitness but Sharjeel is selected despite being out of shape.

Misbah does have issue with spot fixers. Fitness is anotehr thing Misbah does look into, but Misbah as no tolerance for spot fixers and match fixers

There is a reason he treated Wahab better than Amir and it was because of corruption.

Nasir Jamshed was Misbah's main player and he always gave him preference, but as soon as Jamshed was proven to be a fixer, Misbah never selected him.

 

[BaankeJi]

This is laughable!
No exact criteria- then how will a player prepare for it? Just get the BMI inside acceptable limits and be ready?

 

[Hasan123]

Misbah does have issue with spot fixers. Fitness is anotehr thing Misbah does look into, but Misbah as no tolerance for spot fixers and match fixers

There is a reason he treated Wahab better than Amir and it was because of corruption.

Nasir Jamshed was Misbah's main player and he always gave him preference, but as soon as Jamshed was proven to be a fixer, Misbah never selected him.

I don't think Misbah has an issue with selecting a fixer if they are available to play for Pakistan. I think he would prefer they are banned for life but that is obviously out of his hands.

I don't remember Misbah having an issue with Amir coming back. Misbah had a big say in selection in his captaincy days. So if he did not want Amir back,I doubt he would have come back.

Amir played all the tests against England and Australia in 2016, I think he played against West Indies in Misbah last series . So Misbah had no issue with selecting Amir.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

The Mohammad Wasim-Misbah-Babar nexus is complete shambles at the moment.

It is extremely obvious that the team management and the Mohammad Wasim are not on the same page.

This is what happens when you appoint a selector who is interested in personal glory and tries to steal the spotlight.

Thank you Wasim Khan for another masterstroke.

Misbah wants to select his buddies, wasim is not allowing that to happen. Misbah trying to apply pressure on selector and try to force through the captain

Wasim is realistic and wants to try a few options before the T20 WC and also test young and budding players in the upcoming Zim series, Remember what Misbah did for the home series against Zim and he even lost 1 match.

Get rid of the conservative Misbah , the most timid cricketer who is reluctant to changes or try anything new.

 

[Shafi]

The Mohammad Wasim-Misbah-Babar nexus is complete shambles at the moment.

It is extremely obvious that the team management and the Mohammad Wasim are not on the same page.

This is what happens when you appoint a selector who is interested in personal glory and tries to steal the spotlight.

Thank you Wasim Khan for another masterstroke.

So according to you who should be the selector? Inzamam, Misbah, Inti, Mohsin, Qasim...

 

[MenInG]

Are we missing a trick by not including players just because they cant sprint fast?

Cornwall 73 in a Test today vs Sri Lanka

Azam Khan could well be our Cornwall also?

 

[Saj]

Having seen our players at close quarters in recent days, I can honestly say that the fitness of some of them is nothing short of atrocious.

Only in Pakistan would such players be selected for the national team.

A few of our players are way overweight and nowhere near the levels of fitness that should be required at this level. In fact when I saw some of them in the first match I attended I actually thought they were security staff and not players.

 

[shortbread]

Having seen our players at close quarters in recent days, I can honestly say that the fitness of some of them is nothing short of atrocious.

Only in Pakistan would such players be selected for the national team.

A few of our players are way overweight and nowhere near the levels of fitness that should be required at this level. In fact when I saw some of them in the first match I attended I actually thought they were security staff and not players.

Saj bhai, PCB had set strict fitness benchmarks few years back, following which Umar Akmal was dropped failing a YoYo test. Are these not applicable anymore?

 

[hitthestump]

Having seen our players at close quarters in recent days, I can honestly say that the fitness of some of them is nothing short of atrocious.

Only in Pakistan would such players be selected for the national team.

A few of our players are way overweight and nowhere near the levels of fitness that should be required at this level. In fact when I saw some of them in the first match I attended I actually thought they were security staff and not players.

I'm guessing the culprits haven't changed - Maqsood, Sharjeel and Azam.

I'd be curious to know if any other non-playing names were in there as we only saw a few changes during the tour.

 

[umarf76]

Having seen our players at close quarters in recent days, I can honestly say that the fitness of some of them is nothing short of atrocious.

Only in Pakistan would such players be selected for the national team.

A few of our players are way overweight and nowhere near the levels of fitness that should be required at this level. In fact when I saw some of them in the first match I attended I actually thought they were security staff and not players.

There are other teams with similar situations with cricketers not so fit. Srilanka and West Indies also have a number of players who may not be considered fit. Over the years there have been many "fat/unfit" crickets starting from WG Grace, Hammonds, many in the English team in the 80s, Boon, Lehman, Ranatunga, Inzamam etc. There is a long list.

Sure modern day cricket has changed but Pakistan does not have the luxury of talent and this is not the Pakistan Army that we chose the fittest only cricketers. IF we dont go with people like Sharjeel and Azam who have the ability to change games then we dont stand a chance.

We have many other issues to resolve. Sharjeel adn Azam are not the cause of our issues. We should not continue to blow this issue out of proportion. Many people will back the talent of these guys.

 

[Sir-fraz]

There are other teams with similar situations with cricketers not so fit. Srilanka and West Indies also have a number of players who may not be considered fit. Over the years there have been many "fat/unfit" crickets starting from WG Grace, Hammonds, many in the English team in the 80s, Boon, Lehman, Ranatunga, Inzamam etc. There is a long list.

Sure modern day cricket has changed but Pakistan does not have the luxury of talent and this is not the Pakistan Army that we chose the fittest only cricketers. IF we dont go with people like Sharjeel and Azam who have the ability to change games then we dont stand a chance.

We have many other issues to resolve. Sharjeel adn Azam are not the cause of our issues. We should not continue to blow this issue out of proportion. Many people will back the talent of these guys.

Lmao bro dont be an apologist.. these guys get paid millions to be professional athletes.

Fact ia the team is just there for the paycheque are dont really care about winnibg. Because if they actually cared we wouldve seen whole sale changes by now..

Wasim khan is just another mooch on the system..

Times have changed. Look at the top 4 teams and point out an unfit player...

You guys want your team to be the best but dont want your players to work hard to get there.. fitness is one problem among the many that plague pakistan cricket

 

[Zaz]

There are other teams with similar situations with cricketers not so fit. Srilanka and West Indies also have a number of players who may not be considered fit. Over the years there have been many "fat/unfit" crickets starting from WG Grace, Hammonds, many in the English team in the 80s, Boon, Lehman, Ranatunga, Inzamam etc. There is a long list.

Sure modern day cricket has changed but Pakistan does not have the luxury of talent and this is not the Pakistan Army that we chose the fittest only cricketers. IF we dont go with people like Sharjeel and Azam who have the ability to change games then we dont stand a chance.

We have many other issues to resolve. Sharjeel adn Azam are not the cause of our issues. We should not continue to blow this issue out of proportion. Many people will back the talent of these guys.

The game changing moments arent someone who can bludgeon a six anymore Its the small details a brilliant moment in the field

The margins are so small as we saw in the last game results are decided in the field now where a lazy running, half hearted fielding effort or dropping a 50-50 catch is where the game is decided nowadays

The likes of sharjeel maqsood and azams 25 runs off 20 balls are useless if they concede the same in the field

 

[Double Trouble]

Totally agree with Saj bhai
Some of the players were bigger than my local rugby team

Look at Bairstow for example who’s a wicket keeper but when required to field is a gun fielder whilst Azam K looks like the guy who ate the largest bun when he fields

This isn’t Kabbaddi it’s cricket

 

[Pakpak]

There are other teams with similar situations with cricketers not so fit. Srilanka and West Indies also have a number of players who may not be considered fit. Over the years there have been many "fat/unfit" crickets starting from WG Grace, Hammonds, many in the English team in the 80s, Boon, Lehman, Ranatunga, Inzamam etc. There is a long list.

Sure modern day cricket has changed but Pakistan does not have the luxury of talent and this is not the Pakistan Army that we chose the fittest only cricketers. IF we dont go with people like Sharjeel and Azam who have the ability to change games then we dont stand a chance.

We have many other issues to resolve. Sharjeel adn Azam are not the cause of our issues. We should not continue to blow this issue out of proportion. Many people will back the talent of these guys.

Azam Khan with a mouth watering average of 17 last season, with no domestic cricket to his name, horrible first team appearances so far, can't field to save runs can't run himself.....has the ability to change games.

The state of our fans is as horrific as our team.

We might as well start taking players in straight from mohallas. Their credentials will be exactly the same as Azam. Might even be more fitter.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Pakistan teams have always treated the England tour as a holiday, in the past they would be posting pictures of themselves in a different restaurant every night. Now they are getting blasted via social media they have wised up and are posting less publicly.

There's absolutely no way of fixing this without a proper management structure and a coach who can enforce discipline. But we seem to say this every year and nothing changes.

 

[umarf76]

Azam Khan with a mouth watering average of 17 last season, with no domestic cricket to his name, horrible first team appearances so far, can't field to save runs can't run himself.....has the ability to change games.

The state of our fans is as horrific as our team.

We might as well start taking players in straight from mohallas. Their credentials will be exactly the same as Azam. Might even be more fitter.

I agree that the state and mentality of our fans is the biggest issue!

 

[umarf76]

Lmao bro dont be an apologist.. these guys get paid millions to be professional athletes.

Fact ia the team is just there for the paycheque are dont really care about winnibg. Because if they actually cared we wouldve seen whole sale changes by now..

Wasim khan is just another mooch on the system..

Times have changed. Look at the top 4 teams and point out an unfit player...

You guys want your team to be the best but dont want your players to work hard to get there.. fitness is one problem among the many that plague pakistan cricket

I agree with some of your points but we dont have that luxury. It is not acceptable to keep losing and have your best skilled players warming the bench. This is not the 400m!

 

[Sir-fraz]

I agree with some of your points but we dont have that luxury. It is not acceptable to keep losing and have your best skilled players warming the bench. This is not the 400m!

Yes but they still have to run the 20M to get runs.. and it will add up to over 400Ms... again dont excuse the lack of hunger by our players...

 

[Colorblind Genius]

I am focussed on my current assignments and the upcoming series - I am not worried about whether I will be able to get a contract extension for 2 years as that will happen, when it happens; The PCB will take the decision on my contract renewal as they deem fit at that time

So, he is going to ask for extension, and then it’s up to PCB?

“Oye koi thori sharam hoti hai, koi haya hoti hai”

 

[shamaan]

There are other teams with similar situations with cricketers not so fit. Srilanka and West Indies also have a number of players who may not be considered fit. Over the years there have been many "fat/unfit" crickets starting from WG Grace, Hammonds, many in the English team in the 80s, Boon, Lehman, Ranatunga, Inzamam etc. There is a long list.

Sure modern day cricket has changed but Pakistan does not have the luxury of talent and this is not the Pakistan Army that we chose the fittest only cricketers. IF we dont go with people like Sharjeel and Azam who have the ability to change games then we dont stand a chance.

We have many other issues to resolve. Sharjeel adn Azam are not the cause of our issues. We should not continue to blow this issue out of proportion. Many people will back the talent of these guys.

Yes skill is important but so is fitness.the 2 names in the spotlight sharjeel and maqsood have played for Pakistan before and if they are not willing to improve thier fitness then they should not be in the squad and pluss it's not like they are gayle.

 

[MenInG]

This is Pakistan at their practice today

 

[PakLFC]

This is why we have unfit players like Sharjeel and that fat guy who played against England. We have no standards when it comes to fitness related issues. I think it's that fat guy standing in the middle I am talking off?