Pakistan needs its Test mojo back, Misbah-ul-Haq has to become our coach again!

[Hawkeye]

From being one of the top Test teams, to now becoming minnows in Tests -- consecutive series losses at home!

This Test team was used to absolutely dominating much better England, Australia and other sides in our "Home" series in the last decade.

Misbah made us a Test team that was impossible to beat at home. We were literally undefeated.

Now, we are clueless, and are losing every series at home. Let alone away - which we never used to win against any competitive country.

Misbah knows the art of Test cricket.

He's the one who can change our fortunes again, at least in Test cricket.

This time, not as a player or captain.
But, definitely as a coach.

Rameez has to take a decision, before it gets too late.

 

[Hawkeye]

Not to mention-
We also became the number 1 ranked Test nation at that time. No matter how briefly.

We had a system, a methodology, and it was working in Tests.

 

[Cric1234]

Misbah lucked out when he first arrived having Younis and a few others averaging over 50 with Ajmal Yasir and Rehman as his spinners.

Anybody would win a few series in UAE with that team since then he’s lost series to different teams in UAE and outside Asia selected Azhar and Shafiq as the mainstays of the test team and put a defensive negative mentality into Pak cricket as a whole.

No thanks no more slow crap batting Misbah can keep that to himself.

 

[moghul]

Oh, FGS , it’s Misbah legacy still haunting us , with defensive and losing mentality. Sooner with get rid of that and play positive cricket is better .

 

[moghul]

Not to mention-
We also became the number 1 ranked Test nation at that time. No matter how briefly.

We had a system, a methodology, and it was working in Tests.

Won some matches at UAE mainly with help of two chuckers who were later banned but somehow their record were not abolished , should have .

 

[WhenSultansBowled]

Misbah lucked out when he first arrived having Younis and a few others averaging over 50 with Ajmal Yasir and Rehman as his spinners.

Anybody would win a few series in UAE with that team since then he’s lost series to different teams in UAE and outside Asia selected Azhar and Shafiq as the mainstays of the test team and put a defensive negative mentality into Pak cricket as a whole.

No thanks no more slow crap batting Misbah can keep that to himself.

Lols.

Misbah knew his team's strength. The dude struggled and then some in FC cricket. Don't forget he delivered an epic phainta to the English side of Strauss.

Misbah also chased multiple 300 targets:
http://www.howstat.com/cricket/statistics/Matches/MatchScorecard.asp?MatchCode=2134
http://www.howstat.com/cricket/statistics/Matches/MatchScorecard.asp?MatchCode=2188

 

[RyanRyan10]

Welcome back Hawkeye!

You have got a point

Ever since mid 90s, Pak have consistently lost home series except for Misbah era. Under him, Pak also got some good results in away (Eng, NZ, SL, WI). The current Pak team has been poor both home and away. But fans are getting carried away with some T20 wins and forgetting how good Pak was in the MisYou era.

 

[Cric1234]

Welcome back Hawkeye!

You have got a point

Ever since mid 90s, Pak have consistently lost home series except for Misbah era. Under him, Pak also got some good results in away (Eng, NZ, SL, WI). The current Pak team has been poor both home and away. But fans are getting carried away with some T20 wins and forgetting how good Pak was in the MisYou era.

They never played at home in Pakistan and Misbah lost Tests in UAE to Sri Lanka West Indies New Zealand so yes he lost consistently there aswell after the first year where Australia and England’s weakness against spin was exposed.

 

[shaz619]

They never played at home in Pakistan and Misbah lost Tests in UAE to Sri Lanka West Indies New Zealand so yes he lost consistently there aswell after the first year where Australia and England’s weakness against spin was exposed.

Did Misbah lose any Test series in Pakistan/UAE as coach and captain?

 

[SamNJ]

Misbah must be Pakistan's red ball coach. The guy follows domestics religiously. Is a decent strategist.
There is no way a team having Babar, Azhar, Imam, Shafique, Shan with Rizwan should be losing tests at home like this. Need a better planner.

 

[Rana]

If Misbah has no interference in the white ball sides

I don’t mind it at all.

The moment he starts playing his dirty, toxic games and meddling with players and their white ball careers…boy he will be toast!

 

[boomboomcheema]

Fans were taking Pakistans victories against opponents at home ( UAE ) for granted under Misbah, and look at the team now losing back to back against Australia and England. Shame on Pakistan under Babar.

 

[ElRaja]

spend the money and get langer in as a test-only coach, he'd take it given the time commitment would not be massive for 6 to 9 tests a year, maybe 2 to 3 months in Pakistan, and 2 to 3 months away.

 

[Forum363]

Misbah is a toxic egotistical man who thinks he is smarter than he is.

Had he been less selfish, he could have developed into a great coach but he should be nowhere near a leadership position ever again.

 

[pakistanigoneaussie]

you dont move forward by going back



Misbah will give temporary relief at best.

 

[shaz619]

Misbah would be a welcome addition if he kept his ego in check and was made coach of the Test team only. But that would not happen and it’s likely he would clash with any other coach which would be made for the white ball teams.

PCB would also have to pay more to have two head coaches.

Am sure there are much better more experienced options to consider if Pakistan are willing to pay handsomely.

 

[Bleedgreen4ever]

Absolutely not. This guy instilled a negative mindset in our team and made us play like school boys.

He only won in UAE spin pitches and even lost one test in Zimbabwe.

This guy should be nowhere near the team.

 

[PakHammer]

Misbah is a good bet for red ball cricket coach but not white ball.

Ideally Pakistan could attract a foreign coach like Moody or Fleming/Morgan for white ball cricket coach as they wont have to spend too much time in Pakistan or on long foreign test tours.

Let Misbah coach the test team as we're never going to the Bazball approach for test cricket. Ramiz wont think like this though as he is the one who sacked Misbah.

 

[Hawkeye]

Welcome back Hawkeye!

You have got a point

Ever since mid 90s, Pak have consistently lost home series except for Misbah era. Under him, Pak also got some good results in away (Eng, NZ, SL, WI). The current Pak team has been poor both home and away. But fans are getting carried away with some T20 wins and forgetting how good Pak was in the MisYou era.

Thank you.

And yes, you're absolutely right.

We used to take home Test wins for granted under Misbah. We were horrendously poor winning Tests even at home before Misbah.

Now, we're back to the "normal" of losing Tests at home.

This has to change.

There's no better red ball coaching option right now. I understand if people have reservations about white ball cricket.

But, that's not what I'm asking for. Sure, get a flashy "modern" white ball coach.

In Tests, however, we need to become pros again.

 

[Hawkeye]

you dont move forward by going back



Misbah will give temporary relief at best.

It will be some relief at least, glad we agree on that.

Who do you think can be the permanent relief?

A foreign coach won't work specially in Tests for us.

 

[Mamoon]

What happens when Misbah passes away? You have to move on at some point.

Misbah is a deaf king among blind men as far as Test cricket is concerned, but you can’t keep going back to the same people.

 

[Hawkeye]

What happens when Misbah passes away? You have to move on at some point.

Misbah is a deaf king among blind men as far as Test cricket is concerned, but you can’t keep going back to the same people.

[MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] I think you pulled the stats once about how poor we were at winning Tests at home - before Misbah's era.

And now, we're back to that - losing series after series at home.

Misbah isn't old yet by any standard of coaches' age. He's also pretty recent and in touch with cricket. Why not take advantage of that in red ball cricket?

If not him, who are you suggesting?

With foreign coaches most players won't understand him when so many tactics have to be devised and improvised over the five days.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Misbah might work in Test cricket provided Pakistan go back to playing in the UAE.

UAE you can force wins with spinners.

In Pakistan, you need fast bowlers to step up. Misbah won't he and to do much here.

 

[Mamoon]

[MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] I think you pulled the stats once about how poor we were at winning Tests at home - before Misbah's era.

And now, we're back to that - losing series after series at home.

Misbah isn't old yet by any standard of coaches' age. He's also pretty recent and in touch with cricket. Why not take advantage of that in red ball cricket?

If not him, who are you suggesting?

With foreign coaches most players won't understand him when so many tactics have to be devised and improvised over the five days.

UAE suited Misbah’s captaincy perfectly. He made the best use of those conditions. Pakistani conditions are different, the pitches are either super flat or they provide good assistance to fast bowlers.

Pakistan’s biggest problem is that the players are incompetent. There is not good enough talent coming through. No matter who you bring as a coach or selector, his hands will be tied because the gulf between Pakistan & the other top sides is growing bigger & bigger.

 

[Hawkeye]

Misbah might work in Test cricket provided Pakistan go back to playing in the UAE.

UAE you can force wins with spinners.

In Pakistan, you need fast bowlers to step up. Misbah won't he and to do much here.

Pakistani pitches aren't very pace friendly, they're flatter than UAE unless we specifically prepare a spinning track like in Multan.

If you remember, Multan too isn't a spin friendly track - remember Sehwag?

This time the media and public outrage after the 1st Test forced PCB to make an unnatural spinning track.

Anyway, even when pace is involved, he isn't going to be bad - and Pak pitches are no Aus/ENG when it comes to pace.

Right now our team and management is clueless about making Test tactics over 3-5 days.

 

[DeadlyVenom]

Misbah was one of the most iconic test strategists in the history of Pakistan as a captain.

He has some blemishes beside his name as a coach though. He made some poor decisions.

I don't think he would be able to work with the lack of talent at our disposal in test cricket.

 

[Hawkeye]

UAE suited Misbah’s captaincy perfectly. He made the best use of those conditions. Pakistani conditions are different, the pitches are either super flat or they provide good assistance to fast bowlers.

Pakistan’s biggest problem is that the players are incompetent. There is not good enough talent coming through. No matter who you bring as a coach or selector, his hands will be tied because the gulf between Pakistan & the other top sides is growing bigger & bigger.

Pakistan won Tests 2-0 against SA in Pakistan when Misbah was our coach and cricket came back to PAK.
That was in 2021.

And, that series had pace-friendly tracks too.

Before that, PAK had won a Test series only once in their entire history against SA.

I agree about the lack of talent part.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Pakistani pitches aren't very pace friendly, they're flatter than UAE unless we specifically prepare a spinning track like in Multan.

If you remember, Multan too isn't a spin friendly track - remember Sehwag?

This time the media and public outrage after the 1st Test forced PCB to make an unnatural spinning track.

Anyway, even when pace is involved, he isn't going to be bad - and Pak pitches are no Aus/ENG when it comes to pace.

Right now our team and management is clueless about making Test tactics over 3-5 days.

Pace bowlers do have an impact in Pakistan. Not all the time but in small phases. Cummins and Starc seized on such opportunities and put PAK under the pump last season.

This time, English seamers - Wood, Ollie and Jimmy all have sub 20 averages in this series. Whereas for Pakistan


Naseem- 41
Ali - 65
Rauf - 70 +

are the averages.

You are getting outgunned in the pace department by touring sides .

Misbah or any other coach for that matter can't solve that.

 

[Major]

yup, we need misbah back, and this time misbah needs to remove babar as captain

 

[Major]

UAE suited Misbah’s captaincy perfectly. He made the best use of those conditions. Pakistani conditions are different, the pitches are either super flat or they provide good assistance to fast bowlers.

Pakistan’s biggest problem is that the players are incompetent. There is not good enough talent coming through. No matter who you bring as a coach or selector, his hands will be tied because the gulf between Pakistan & the other top sides is growing bigger & bigger.

nope.

You really think Babar could had won us test games in UAE? Seriosuly?

 

[Hawkeye]

Pace bowlers do have an impact in Pakistan. Not all the time but in small phases. Cummins and Starc seized on such opportunities and put PAK under the pump last season.

This time, English seamers - Wood, Ollie and Jimmy all have sub 20 averages in this series. Whereas for Pakistan


Naseem- 41
Ali - 65
Rauf - 70 +

are the averages.

You are getting outgunned in the pace department by touring sides .

Misbah or any other coach for that matter can't solve that.

Yes, pacers do have some impact.

That's why Misbah whitewashed SA in Pakistan in 2021! In that series, pace played quite a big role.

Only our 2nd Test victory against SA in our entire history.

So, even once Test cricket came to PAK a few years ago, Misbah kept us on the winning track --- winning ALL test series played under him.

 

[umerz]

We dont even have those kind of spinners. Ajmal, Rehman and then Yasir Shah who won test matches for Pakistan back in those days. Our batting isnt on that level either. Misbah Younus as seniors while Asad and Azhar used to play second fiddle

 

[Mamoon]

nope.

You really think Babar could had won us test games in UAE? Seriosuly?

With Ajmal throwing the ball & peak Yasir? Yes.

Babar whitewashed South Africa at home last year on seaming tracks when Shaheen & Hassan were taking wickets.

Any captain would look good when you have wicket-taking bowlers.

Every captain is at the mercy of the quality of players when it comes to producing results.

Misbah couldn’t do it in the UAE in Limited Overs because he didn’t have the players. His captaincy & leadership made no difference.

 

[Hawkeye]

We dont even have those kind of spinners. Ajmal, Rehman and then Yasir Shah who won test matches for Pakistan back in those days. Our batting isnt on that level either. Misbah Younus as seniors while Asad and Azhar used to play second fiddle

Misbah kept winning even after Ajmal.

When Tests came to Pak, he won us all the Test series.

Even whitewashed South Africa 2-0 in Pakistan. Only our 2nd Test series win against SA in our history.

 

[Hawkeye]

With Ajmal throwing the ball & peak Yasir? Yes.

Babar whitewashed South Africa at home last year on seaming tracks when Shaheen & Hassan were taking wickets.

Any captain would look good when you have wicket-taking bowlers.

Every captain is at the mercy of the quality of players when it comes to producing results.

Misbah couldn’t do it in the UAE in Limited Overs because he didn’t have the players. His captaincy & leadership made no difference.

Misbah was the coach when we whitewashed SA in Pak.

Before that, we had two Test series played in Pak under him, again we didn't lose them.

Just saying - it wasn't just UAE specific when we kept winning.

 

[indianpanacea]

The problem lies with captain who makes pathetic team selection with selector.it seems to me true now that he picks players on friendship..if not,then what are
1.M.Nawaz
2 salman Agha
3 haris rouf
4 Nauman
Doing in test squad..and
Why is Rizwan constantly playing despite too many failures in test cricket?
There are capable batters/ bowlers in domestic cricket who warrant place like
Usman salahuddin
Mubasir khan
Shaan Masood( who should be selected in playing 11)
I think M.wasim as selector is pathetic and be shown door
Babar should be sacked as test captain and instead sarfaraz be given test responsibility with Saud shakeel made his deputy

 

[NeVerMind]

Misbah should be out Baz...only brought in for Test matches...leave the limited overs to someone else....

 

[Cric1234]

Misbah was the coach when we whitewashed SA in Pak.

Before that, we had two Test series played in Pak under him, again we didn't lose them.

Just saying - it wasn't just UAE specific when we kept winning.

The seamers did better then SA were close to minnow level in Asia beating them at home isn’t a big achievement.

Remind us of Pakistan’s ranking during Misbah tenure as coach and remind us of the successful test batsmen he’s picked during his time does anyone apart from Azhar even average over 40 who were picked during Misbahs time as captain and coach?

Despite a few home series wins overall the team was inconsistent played a negative defensive brand of cricket and was a low ranked team nothing can be worse than what Babar is doing though he’s as clueless as anyone’s been.

 

[Major]

With Ajmal throwing the ball & peak Yasir? Yes.

Babar whitewashed South Africa at home last year on seaming tracks when Shaheen & Hassan were taking wickets.

Any captain would look good when you have wicket-taking bowlers.

Every captain is at the mercy of the quality of players when it comes to producing results.

Misbah couldn’t do it in the UAE in Limited Overs because he didn’t have the players. His captaincy & leadership made no difference.

bro, Misbah started his test captaincy with Abdur Rehman. There was a time a when he did not play ajmal in the start. Misbah has played different spinners each time and had favourable results.

You are taking alot of credit away from the captain. Misbah had ZUlfiqar Babar who is way worse than the current lot.

Point is, to whitewash opponents and keep an undefeated record you need to know how to captain a side.

His captaincy and leadership made alot of difference. The fights we gave in odis was because of Misbahs captaincy even without the players.

Babar azam can't captain, maybe he can use pacers well, but he doesnt have a clue on using spin bowlers.

 

[Cric1234]

bro, Misbah started his test captaincy with Abdur Rehman. There was a time a when he did not play ajmal in the start. Misbah has played different spinners each time and had favourable results.

You are taking alot of credit away from the captain. Misbah had ZUlfiqar Babar who is way worse than the current lot.

Point is, to whitewash opponents and keep an undefeated record you need to know how to captain a side.

His captaincy and leadership made alot of difference. The fights we gave in odis was because of Misbahs captaincy even without the players.

Babar azam can't captain, maybe he can use pacers well, but he doesnt have a clue on using spin bowlers.

He did he only lost every match in the champions trophy got whitewashed regularly playing a defensive brand of cricket in ODIs the team was ranked number 8 but yeah he did put up a fight at the 2015 World Cup when he made the quarter finals.

That’s a big achievement for a team ranked number 8 well done Misbah a great player and thinker in limited overs cricket.

 

[moghul]

Bring back Misbah and couple of chuckers and we will be all right.

 

[Mamoon]

bro, Misbah started his test captaincy with Abdur Rehman. There was a time a when he did not play ajmal in the start. Misbah has played different spinners each time and had favourable results.

You are taking alot of credit away from the captain. Misbah had ZUlfiqar Babar who is way worse than the current lot.

Point is, to whitewash opponents and keep an undefeated record you need to know how to captain a side.

His captaincy and leadership made alot of difference. The fights we gave in odis was because of Misbahs captaincy even without the players.

Babar azam can't captain, maybe he can use pacers well, but he doesnt have a clue on using spin bowlers.

Misbah’s Pakistan showed no fight in ODIs in UAE. Lost every series against a top team.

Misbah’s captaincy coincided with Ajmal & Yasir. It would be foolish to suggest it didn’t benefit him.

My point is that every captain needs good players. No one is a miracle worker.

It is naive to assume that it Misbah becomes coach now Pakistan will start winning Tests again.

 

[Cric1234]

Misbah’s Pakistan showed no fight in ODIs in UAE. Lost every series against a top team.

Misbah’s captaincy coincided with Ajmal & Yasir. It would be foolish to suggest it didn’t benefit him.

My point is that every captain needs good players. No one is a miracle worker.

It is naive to assume that it Misbah becomes coach now Pakistan will start winning Tests again.

Pakistan were whitewashed in SENA during Misbahs tenure as coach the team went downhill despite a few wins at home he left the team as a low ranked one with no batsmen to speak of Babar hasn’t improved it he’s made it a bit worse the negative defensive brand of cricket continues.

 

[Kroll]

you dont move forward by going back



Misbah will give temporary relief at best.

I can see relief here alright...comic relief. Well, everyone needs a good laugh after such a shattering loss.

 

[CrIc_Mystique]

As an outsider, i donot have much to argue for or against your coach change.
As an observer of pak cricket, you guys have done well whenever its pace and reverse swing with pace. cue - the SAF series in 2020 you won because of reverse. Then you decide to play guys who won you that series like SSA, nassem, hassan ali in every series - eg odi agains zim -ie overloading their young bodies leading to them having injuries. (well, we in India are doing the same, look at bumrah who is inujured but will magically recover and play each match come IPL)
Secondly, you have come up against a quality and classy opponent who is determined to win no matter what the surface you provide. your only chance is to provide grassy bouncy wickets that reverse later- all this hooplah of the coach change wont lead you anywhere if Rambo Raja's basic instinct is to prepare wickets to prevent loosing when he should be concentrating on competing first and winning as the ultimate objective.

 

[PakHammer]

It's just this Pakistan test coaching set up do not strategies enough.

Example, Nauman Ali had a good test series against South Africa at home as he was a experienced first class cricketer & knew the home conditions well. He was dropped after an average series against Australia. But he was not the only player who had an average series.

In this match he should played against England instead of Zahid because he would give you a bit of control with the ball and is not a mug with the bat. If he came out batting this morning instead of Zahid with those number of runs needed, in my opinion we win the match.

 

[Abid Z]

Are we seriously having this debate. It doesn’t matter who is the coach with these bunch of no hopers. When I see the likes of zahid and Mohammed Ali it brings tears to the eye. I can’t understand why we can’t field a better 11 than this. Once we develop and select a good squad of around 20 players then we can think about an international coach. Right now it’s a waste of money. Just stick to developing good players. Seems that if we lose shaheen and Naseem then we don’t have a bowling unit. What good is a coach then ?

 

[ask_analyse_act]

yup, we need misbah back, and this time misbah needs to remove babar as captain

LOL and what make Azhar ali captain again.. The captains he made are pretty much like him defensive and stubborn for change.

ON what credentials should he comeback, what is his percnetage of win? Was it better that MA that he sacked ?

there were some worst moments when he was the coach like the Yasir Shah stuff in Aus... bringing back Sohail Khan , Imran Khan - who were struggling to bowleven during the time when Misbah was the captain..

IF he was the coach cum selector , Pakistan would still be playing Abid Ali, Imran butt and so on..

Shafique , Shakeel would still be warming the bench..


Dont talk about giving chance to Naseem shah, Hasnain, Musa etc thats another stupid stuff which clueless Waqar made (asked to give him three rookies and he will make them world's no. 1)

Both Waqar and Misbah were incharge of the team at some capacity for more than a 6 yrs in the lact decade and have only produced Azhar Ali , Asad Shafiq... Name one LOI batsman that these two have given all these years...

 

[ask_analyse_act]

It's just this Pakistan test coaching set up do not strategies enough.

Example, Nauman Ali had a good test series against South Africa at home as he was a experienced first class cricketer & knew the home conditions well. He was dropped after an average series against Australia. But he was not the only player who had an average series.

In this match he should played against England instead of Zahid because he would give you a bit of control with the ball and is not a mug with the bat. If he came out batting this morning instead of Zahid with those number of runs needed, in my opinion we win the match.

He went wicketless in BAN spinning pitches.. He is rightly dropped.

Wasim PPT bringing in a new spinner after every QEA season to keep Yasir Shah out..

He brought Nauman, Sajid, Zahid, Nawaz, Abrar , Salman etc... Only Abrar have shown some potential with the ball.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

Bring back Misbah and couple of chuckers and we will be all right.

Exactly thats the way to go, along with Waqar probably his cooling period now is over as a commentator , so back to coaching business.

 

[RyanRyan10]

They never played at home in Pakistan and Misbah lost Tests in UAE to Sri Lanka West Indies New Zealand so yes he lost consistently there aswell after the first year where Australia and England’s weakness against spin was exposed.

You can call anyone good or bad by providing selective examples. Misbah lost tests here & there but before him, Pak was losing at home and after his departure, things have been worse except for a short period when he coached the side.

Between 1995 to 2010: Pak lost 10 series at home

After Misbah's captaincy tenure: Pakistan lost 2 series within 2 years

After Misbah's coaching tenure: Pakistan has lost 2 series in a year

So, Pakistan with Misbah as coach & captain: Lost 0 series. They won 17 matches & lost 4. The W/L ratio is 4.25

Pakistan without Misbah as coach & captain (since 1995): Lost 14 series. They won 26 matches & lost 25. The W/L ratio is 1.04.

Stats suggest that Misbah was 4 times better than the rest.

 

[RyanRyan10]

Thank you.

And yes, you're absolutely right.

We used to take home Test wins for granted under Misbah. We were horrendously poor winning Tests even at home before Misbah.

Now, we're back to the "normal" of losing Tests at home.

This has to change.

There's no better red ball coaching option right now. I understand if people have reservations about white ball cricket.

But, that's not what I'm asking for. Sure, get a flashy "modern" white ball coach.

In Tests, however, we need to become pros again.

Fully agree.

Misbah era was Pakistan's best after thr golden period of 1982-1994 when they used to be 2nd best after WI.

Misbah understood the limitations of his side and didn't succumb to media pressure. Misbah was criticized a lot for not picking domestic lords like Fawad Alam but he was mad to look like a joke against Australia.

As a captain + coach, his home W/L ratio is 4 times better than the rest (as I have mentioned in my previous post) but some fans just want to blame him for everything. They will blame Misbah even for Pakistan's decline in Hockey.

 

[shariqnoor]

Misbah-ul-Haq was a bonafide giant of Pakistan. Never lost a Test series at home as a captain or coach.

Misbah's biggest strength was his ability to extract the best out of the available resources at hand.

Pakistan's fast bowling resources from 2010 to 2016 were at an absolutely all-time low. So he pivoted to spin where he knew he had Hafeez/Afridi to work with. Inducted Ajmal and then later on Yasir to create a lethal spinning attack which ultimately won Pakistan innumerable matches.

Also the hate he gets for the ODIs is simply unwarranted. The ODI team from 2011-2015 was genuinely terrible because of a lack of talent at his disposal. Captains with their tactical nous can slightly raise the floor of the team but they cannot raise the ceiling. The ceiling will ultimately be always raised by the quality of individual players. Would Ben Stokes or Eoin Morgan be able to take the England ODI World Cup 1999 team to the semis then? Never in a million years. The same Eoin Morgan flopped miserably with the 2015 ODI team.

However, despite the lack of resources, Misbah in the ODIs achieved a series win over India in India, SA in SA and an Asia Cup title. These achievements are still much much more than the revered 90's side who are thought of as an attacking bunch of cricketers. The 90's team apart from one tri series victory in Australia in 1996 against a good WI and Australia side achieved zilch except winning some mickey mouse tournaments in Sharjah.

The problem with Pakistan cricket has never been Misbah-ul-Haq. The problem is the toxic system in place that inhibits genuine talent.

 

[Hawkeye]

You can call anyone good or bad by providing selective examples. Misbah lost tests here & there but before him, Pak was losing at home and after his departure, things have been worse except for a short period when he coached the side.

Between 1995 to 2010: Pak lost 10 series at home

After Misbah's captaincy tenure: Pakistan lost 2 series within 2 years

After Misbah's coaching tenure: Pakistan has lost 2 series in a year

So, Pakistan with Misbah as coach & captain: Lost 0 series. They won 17 matches & lost 4. The W/L ratio is 4.25

Pakistan without Misbah as coach & captain (since 1995): Lost 14 series. They won 26 matches & lost 25. The W/L ratio is 1.04.

Stats suggest that Misbah was 4 times better than the rest.

Super post.

Should be POTW.

 

[PakHammer]

Misbah will not return if Rameez is the chairman.

But one feels that Rameez is on his way out so

 

[Heisenberg111]

Misbah will be a good coach for Tests but terrible for LOI formats.

 

[Heisenberg111]

However, despite the lack of resources, Misbah in the ODIs achieved a series win over India in India, SA in SA and an Asia Cup title. These achievements are still much much more than the revered 90's side who are thought of as an attacking bunch of cricketers. The 90's team apart from one tri series victory in Australia in 1996 against a good WI and Australia side achieved zilch except winning some mickey mouse tournaments in Sharjah.

It would be foolish to compare the Pakistan ODI team of the 90's to Misbah's ODI team. 90's team won a World Cup and was runner up in 1999 apart from winning 2 Australasia cups.

90's ODI team was only behind Australia and South Africa while Misbah's ODI team was ranked no.8

No comparison between the two whatsoever.

 

[Savak]

Not a huge Misbah fan especially in ODI and T-20 Cricket. But the man knew his stuff on UAE and Pakistani wickets. He would never have allowed wickets unsuitable for Pakistani bowlers. He would have also have ensured we picked competent spinners and pacers to pick 20 wickets. He definately would not have picked Salman Ali Agha and would have selected a proper batsman in his place. Only downside is he would have stuck with Azhar Ali.

 

[Rana]

It would be foolish to compare the Pakistan ODI team of the 90's to Misbah's ODI team. 90's team won a World Cup and was runner up in 1999 apart from winning 2 Australasia cups.

90's ODI team was only behind Australia and South Africa while Misbah's ODI team was ranked no.8

No comparison between the two whatsoever.

Hilarious comparison

Misbah’s ODI team achieved more than Wasim Akram’s side?

 

[Kianig89]

Haha let's take too step back and bring Misbah ridiculous

 

[Heisenberg111]

Hilarious comparison

Misbah’s ODI team achieved more than Wasim Akram’s side?

Its funny I know, Wasim Akram in the 2nd best captain of all time for Pakistan in ODI's, behind only Imran Khan.

 

[Kroll]

Hilarious comparison

Misbah’s ODI team achieved more than Wasim Akram’s side?

Hahaha, don't want to be talking about Misbah of all people but these Misbah threads bring comic relief when needed most.

 

[Rana]

Its funny I know, Wasim Akram in the 2nd best captain of all time for Pakistan in ODI's, behind only Imran Khan.

Wasim Akram’s ODI side was a global, iconic brand. There will never be an ODI team like that from Pakistan ever again.

 

[topspin]

There's no cure for the delusion you find from Misbah fans.

If he was Captain or Coach, Pakistan would be playing Azhar Ali in this test match. It would've been even worse.

Misbah's cheerleaders are always quick to remind us of their hero's record in UAE but fail to mention he did it courtesy of the chucking services of Saeed Ajmal, prime Yasir Shah and an All-Time Great (ATG) player of spin in Younis Khan.

I don't rate Sarfraz and Babar Azam as captains but what I would say is, the outcomes in those series played in the UAE would've been no different if they had the same calibre of players at their disposal.

Not only have Pakistan become a weak defensive side but they've also become a bunch of timid kittens (who nobody fears) as a result of Misbah's leadership. This school of thought of his has influenced the way Babar captains the team and how the current crop of team plays.

When I'm reading stuff like "Misbah knows red ball cricket..." etc, it makes me wonder whether some of you have amnesia. It wasn't long ago when he was our coach and we were all here desperately hoping for him to get sacked.

It appears some of us have already forgotten the embarrassment we endured in Australia when he was captaining the side in 2016 and also when he was coaching the side in 2019. During the former, Ian Chappell and the rest of the comm. box couldn't hide their disgust for Misbah's tactics. It was clear for everyone to see that he was the worst ever captain for tests played in Australia. The selections for the 2019 series were nothing short of atrocious. He was Head Coach and Chief Selector so no one was more worthy of blame than he was.

Pakistani coaches are still stuck in the 90s which is why the PCB needs to hire a competent overseas coach who is somewhat in touch with the modern game. If this means we have to bend over backwards to bring back Mickey Arthur then so be it, as he's levels above any Pakistani coach especially Misbah who is not a qualified coach and nor does he have sufficient experience to fulfil the role.

Guys like Hawkeye and Major have always supported Misbah more than the Pakistan team so it's hard to take such a thread seriously.

 

[topspin]

Hilarious comparison

Misbah’s ODI team achieved more than Wasim Akram’s side?

Deadwood would say so.

 

[topspin]

What happens when Misbah passes away? You have to move on at some point.

Misbah is a deaf king among blind men as far as Test cricket is concerned, but you can’t keep going back to the same people.

I know right. This obsession with Misbah by the likes of Hawkeye is nothing short of unhealthy and bordering on creepy it has to be said.

I could understand if Misbah was in the class of Wasim Akram, Virat Kohli, Imran Khan but this guy was serial bottler who had a low cricketing IQ and also had immense struggles in white ball cricket + tests played outside of UAE.

 

[GLORY OF '92]

Wasim Akram’s ODI side was a global, iconic brand. There will never be an ODI team like that from Pakistan ever again.

They won nothing so it doesn't matter.

Misbah is a legend and one of the few intellectuals in Pakistan cricket who can solve problems. I'd give him a chance as Test coach without doubt.

 

[topspin]

Hahaha, don't want to be talking about Misbah of all people but these Misbah threads bring comic relief when needed most.

I don't know about you but I couldn't stop laughing reading this thread. I was struggling to compose myself even while I was trying to address it just earlier.

 

[GLORY OF '92]

I know right. This obsession with Misbah by the likes of Hawkeye is nothing short of unhealthy and bordering on creepy it has to be said.

I could understand if Misbah was in the class of Wasim Akram, Virat Kohli, Imran Khan but this guy was serial bottler who had a low cricketing IQ and also had immense struggles in white ball cricket + tests played outside of UAE.

Sorry but Misbah is a legend. Only a lack of talent at his disposal stopped him from dominating away from home too.

All Pakistanis owe Misbah immensely for restoring pride and dignity after the 2010 spot fixing shame.

What he has done for us can never be repaid.

 

[Kroll]

Sorry but Misbah is a legend. Only a lack of talent at his disposal stopped him from dominating away from home too.

All Pakistanis owe Misbah immensely for restoring pride and dignity after the 2010 spot fixing shame.

What he has done for us can never be repaid.

All Pakistanis owe Misbah nothing, just because he didn't indulge in cheating? He's not the saviour he's made out to be. Thankfully, most Pakistanis were able to see through the deceit.

 

[Hawkeye]

Not a huge Misbah fan especially in ODI and T-20 Cricket. But the man knew his stuff on UAE and Pakistani wickets. He would never have allowed wickets unsuitable for Pakistani bowlers. He would have also have ensured we picked competent spinners and pacers to pick 20 wickets. He definately would not have picked Salman Ali Agha and would have selected a proper batsman in his place. Only downside is he would have stuck with Azhar Ali.

Credit where due, [MENTION=2501]Savak[/MENTION].

We can disagree on ODI but I'm glad you acknowledge he knew his Test cricket.

Guy still is the best Test cricketing brain in the country.
There's no reason we can't utilize him.

His brain works like a fast computer when it comes to devising strategies for 4 to 5 days of a Test match.

About Azhar - he has served us well but time to replace him with a better young batter.

 

[Hawkeye]

Misbah-ul-Haq was a bonafide giant of Pakistan. Never lost a Test series at home as a captain or coach.

Misbah's biggest strength was his ability to extract the best out of the available resources at hand.

Pakistan's fast bowling resources from 2010 to 2016 were at an absolutely all-time low. So he pivoted to spin where he knew he had Hafeez/Afridi to work with. Inducted Ajmal and then later on Yasir to create a lethal spinning attack which ultimately won Pakistan innumerable matches.

Also the hate he gets for the ODIs is simply unwarranted. The ODI team from 2011-2015 was genuinely terrible because of a lack of talent at his disposal. Captains with their tactical nous can slightly raise the floor of the team but they cannot raise the ceiling. The ceiling will ultimately be always raised by the quality of individual players. Would Ben Stokes or Eoin Morgan be able to take the England ODI World Cup 1999 team to the semis then? Never in a million years. The same Eoin Morgan flopped miserably with the 2015 ODI team.

However, despite the lack of resources, Misbah in the ODIs achieved a series win over India in India, SA in SA and an Asia Cup title. These achievements are still much much more than the revered 90's side who are thought of as an attacking bunch of cricketers. The 90's team apart from one tri series victory in Australia in 1996 against a good WI and Australia side achieved zilch except winning some mickey mouse tournaments in Sharjah.

The problem with Pakistan cricket has never been Misbah-ul-Haq. The problem is the toxic system in place that inhibits genuine talent.

Good post, [MENTION=141811]shariqnoor[/MENTION].

The post by [MENTION=147715]RyanRyan10[/MENTION] has all the stats which actually tell the true picture.

We can praise him all we want, but sometimes it takes hard facts to answer the critics, and those stats prove how tactically good Misbah has been in Tests, specially at home.

Made us the Test fortress that touring teams couldn't breach.

 

[Markhor]

As a consultant for Asian Test series yes. He never lost a home Test series as captain and coach. But no more than that.

Misbah himself oversaw some appalling tactical and selection missteps:

- 2019 Australia tour when we thought it a good time to debut Naseem Shah and Musa Khan (and recall Imran Khan snr). We didn't bowl a right-arm seamer around the wicket to David Warner in the 1st Test, despite being tormented by Broad from that angle in the Ashes.

- 2020 Manchester Test when we failed to defend 277. Most glaring omission was not attacking Chris Woakes with short balls.

- Persisting with Imran Butt despite only one good FC season.

- Lumbering us with the Statpadding Duo of Babar and Rizwan as our T20 openers.

 

[Hawkeye]

As a consultant for Asian Test series yes. He never lost a home Test series as captain and coach. But no more than that.

Misbah himself oversaw some appalling tactical and selection missteps:

- 2019 Australia tour when we thought it a good time to debut Naseem Shah and Musa Khan (and recall Imran Khan snr). We didn't bowl a right-arm seamer around the wicket to David Warner in the 1st Test, despite being tormented by Broad from that angle in the Ashes.

- 2020 Manchester Test when we failed to defend 277. Most glaring omission was not attacking Chris Woakes with short balls.

- Persisting with Imran Butt despite only one good FC season.

- Lumbering us with the Statpadding Duo of Babar and Rizwan as our T20 openers.

We lost in much worse manners abroad when we had superstars in the team like Wasim/Waqar/Akhtar/Inzi etc., so let's not go there..

We lost in WAY horrible manners at home when superstars like Wasim/Waqar/Akhtar/Inzi etc. were there.

If we had the same talent as the 80s/90s team, I feel like we would have won away too under Misbah. But, that's debatable and theoretical.

For now, I'm sure you'd agree he can only bring positive results for the Test team.

 

[Pakpak]

There's no cure for the delusion you find from Misbah fans.

If he was Captain or Coach, Pakistan would be playing Azhar Ali in this test match. It would've been even worse.

Misbah's cheerleaders are always quick to remind us of their hero's record in UAE but fail to mention he did it courtesy of the chucking services of Saeed Ajmal, prime Yasir Shah and an All-Time Great (ATG) player of spin in Younis Khan.

I don't rate Sarfraz and Babar Azam as captains but what I would say is, the outcomes in those series played in the UAE would've been no different if they had the same calibre of players at their disposal.

Not only have Pakistan become a weak defensive side but they've also become a bunch of timid kittens (who nobody fears) as a result of Misbah's leadership. This school of thought of his has influenced the way Babar captains the team and how the current crop of team plays.

When I'm reading stuff like "Misbah knows red ball cricket..." etc, it makes me wonder whether some of you have amnesia. It wasn't long ago when he was our coach and we were all here desperately hoping for him to get sacked.

It appears some of us have already forgotten the embarrassment we endured in Australia when he was captaining the side in 2016 and also when he was coaching the side in 2019. During the former, Ian Chappell and the rest of the comm. box couldn't hide their disgust for Misbah's tactics. It was clear for everyone to see that he was the worst ever captain for tests played in Australia. The selections for the 2019 series were nothing short of atrocious. He was Head Coach and Chief Selector so no one was more worthy of blame than he was.

Pakistani coaches are still stuck in the 90s which is why the PCB needs to hire a competent overseas coach who is somewhat in touch with the modern game. If this means we have to bend over backwards to bring back Mickey Arthur then so be it, as he's levels above any Pakistani coach especially Misbah who is not a qualified coach and nor does he have sufficient experience to fulfil the role.

Guys like Hawkeye and Major have always supported Misbah more than the Pakistan team so it's hard to take such a thread seriously.

This times a million. POTW for me. This entire defensive, timid and cowardly mindset came from him. His coaching stint was a horror show alone.

I really don't even bother watching highlights of our series win vs Eng in UAE as for me any series with Ajmal and Hafeez has a * next to it. And the moment Ajmal stopped chucking his effectiveness went down the drain.

Right now our team generally is total garbage, led by a comedy chairman and a spineless clueless timid captain. We either someone competent or get used to this. Arthur, whatever he was, put Misbah's coaching ability to shame.

 

[Rana]

As a consultant for Asian Test series yes. He never lost a home Test series as captain and coach. But no more than that.

Misbah himself oversaw some appalling tactical and selection missteps:

- 2019 Australia tour when we thought it a good time to debut Naseem Shah and Musa Khan (and recall Imran Khan snr). We didn't bowl a right-arm seamer around the wicket to David Warner in the 1st Test, despite being tormented by Broad from that angle in the Ashes.

- 2020 Manchester Test when we failed to defend 277. Most glaring omission was not attacking Chris Woakes with short balls.

- Persisting with Imran Butt despite only one good FC season.

- Lumbering us with the Statpadding Duo of Babar and Rizwan as our T20 openers.

I don’t know if you noticed, he is ultra defensive of the T20i opening duo on the Pavilion show when the other 3 cricket experts are going hammer and tongs at them for their defensive approach as Powerplay exponents. He also would sarcastically taunt the others if their stats would show up, century stands etc.

As decent and respectable he may be, I’m pretty sure he can irk off many people with his attitude. I had mad respect for Wasim Akram (who we all know is an absolute savage) would just respectfully smile at Misbah’s taunts and sarcastic remarks.

 

[Pakpak]

I know right. This obsession with Misbah by the likes of Hawkeye is nothing short of unhealthy and bordering on creepy it has to be said.

I could understand if Misbah was in the class of Wasim Akram, Virat Kohli, Imran Khan but this guy was serial bottler who had a low cricketing IQ and also had immense struggles in white ball cricket + tests played outside of UAE.

This as well.

Wasim, Kohli, Tendulkar, IK even Waqar, Anwar etc are legends of the game who have either won trophies or won victories on back of their own performances. fan boy is cringy stuff anyway but being a fan boy of them would be understandable.

I don't get the obsession with Misbah at all. Won no trophies, bottled one final and with Younis was an embarrassment in another WC semi final some years later. Humiliated in 2015 WC, humiliated in CTs....his only achievement is winning on the back of a chucker in Ajmal. Even if we count his Test achievements then yeah he was a good captain. But nothing ever to illicit such fawness that OP does, its totally baffling. Just your run of the mill moderately successful captain in Tests (at home) and an embarrassment in white ball cricket.

 

[ZaidTR]

No Misbah Tuktuk should concentrate on his business degree. It’s 2023 almost we don’t want to go back in defensive mind set

 

[Hyder]

If i trust anyone in Pakistan on having any strategy its Misbah
But keep him away from loi teams
Get some LOI coach meanwhile give teats to Misbah.
Unpopular opinion but i think if imam cements his place in team he can be a good candidate for captaincy.

 

[TheSultan]

Misbah’s success in UAE and a couple of series in Pakistan were down to the players and their skill level.

He had younis arguably the best player of spin in the world since the turn of the century. At the very least an ATG player of spin. Ajmal legal action or not was lethal. Yasir had a purple patch. Even sarfraz had a purple patch.

His only notable home victory as coach was against SA and that was down to reverse swing. Quite obviously nothing to do with Misbah himself as he has shown no inclination to base a strategy around fast bowling.

On the other hand he was abysmal in Sena as both captain and coach. So even if you want to bring him in to win home series (which is certainly not a guarantee) and sacrifice away series, how is that helping Pakistan cricket?