Pakistan vs South Africa | 2007 Series | 1st Test | Karachi | 01/10/07 | Day 2

[Hash]

127 for 5 at close

123 to avoid following on.

Will need Malik and Butt to score centuries, as people above have already said. Hopefully Butt will be fine by tomorrow.

Overall it was good to restrict the saffies to 450 when they could easily have still been batting now if things hadn't gone our way. But despite the openers getting us off to a flier we have thrown it all away. I don't blame all our batsman though...

Kamran- marginal LBW, possibly going down leg.

Hafeez- sensational catch by Kallis. Can't really blame Hafeez for that though the shot could have better. But I'll give Hafeez the benefit of the doubt.

Younis- ball kept very low. No fault of Younis.

Faisal- idiot.

Misbah- what the hell was he doing?

So the last two wickets are shockers. But the others we couldn't really do much about. The pitch has definitely started to misbehave a bit but it still seems decent to bat on. If Malik and Butt can get their eyes in then there is no reason why we can't get to 300 or so.

 

[NeVerMind]

From 71/0 in 14 overs to 127/5 in 40 overs.. that is shocking. We had such a good start for once but couldn't do anything to follow it up.

For some reason, I still don't think we're out of this game. We'll need a miracle though.

That's the spirit Easa. However, whatever happens, I would like to see Inzy and MoYo return in the next match.

 

[NeVerMind]

127 for 5 at close

123 to avoid following on.

Will need Malik and Butt to score centuries, as people above have already said. Hopefully Butt will be fine by tomorrow.

Overall it was good to restrict the saffies to 450 when they could easily have still been batting now if things hadn't gone our way. But despite the openers getting us off to a flier we have thrown it all away. I don't blame all our batsman though...

Kamran- marginal LBW, possibly going down leg.

Hafeez- sensational catch by Kallis. Can't really blame Hafeez for that though the shot could have better. But I'll give Hafeez the benefit of the doubt.

Younis- ball kept very low. No fault of Younis.

Faisal- idiot.

Misbah- what the hell was he doing?

So the last two wickets are shockers. But the others we couldn't really do much about. The pitch has definitely started to misbehave a bit but it still seems decent to bat on. If Malik and Butt can get their eyes in then there is no reason why we can't get to 300 or so.

I'll take you up on the Kamran Akmal and Mohammed Hafeez dismissal though. Kamran may have been unlucky but both he and Hafeez looked all at sea as soon as Harris came on to bowl. At international test level, you are likely to face both pace and spin bowlers and only able to cope with one set of bowlers do not make a great batsman. It was patehtic watching Hafeez bat against Harris. He was cutting when he should not have, coming forward when he should be defending, etc. It was only a matter of time.

 

[Hash]

I'll take you up on the Kamran Akmal and Mohammed Hafeez dismissal though. Kamran may have been unlucky but both he and Hafeez looked all at sea as soon as Harris came on to bowl. At international test level, you are likely to face both pace and spin bowlers and only able to cope with one set of bowlers do not make a great batsman. It was patehtic watching Hafeez bat against Harris. He was cutting when he should not have, coming forward when he should be defending, etc. It was only a matter of time.

I don't disagree with you. I was merely talking about their dismissals.

 

[Hash]

Actualyl I do disagree with you about Kamran.

He had hardly faced Harris and he did the right thing by having a look at him before taking him on like he was taking on the quickies.

 

[Bobaran]

From 71/0 in 14 overs to 127/5 in 40 overs.. that is shocking. We had such a good start for once but couldn't do anything to follow it up.

For some reason, I still don't think we're out of this game. We'll need a miracle though.

Yeah, and this time we won't have Inzi and Yousuf to fix things up....

 

[NeVerMind]

I don't disagree with you. I was merely talking about their dismissals.

My point is, that I blame the batsman! come on, seriously. Hafeez bowls spin himself but as soon as he faces one, he has no clue what to do. I recall Taufeeq Umar doing the same in the last test match he played. It must be easy for the opposition. Just bring on a spinner for our openers. Only a Mohali can save us now.

 

[Hash]

Yeah, and this time we won't have Inzi and Yousuf to fix things up....

But we have rain!

COME ON RAIN!

RAIN DANCE TIME!

 

[Hash]

My point is, that I blame the batsman! come on, seriously. Hafeez bowls spin himself but as soon as he faces one, he has no clue what to do. I recall Taufeeq Umar doing the same in the last test match he played. It must be easy for the opposition. Just bring on a spinner for our openers. Only a Mohali can save us now.

Hafeez did look like he was struggling against Harris...I didn't disagree with that.

 

[Usman Chadda]

Faisal Iqbal is a twit, all I am saying after this day's play. Not only did the idiot get out playing a terrible shot, he also slowed down the innings considerably. 7 runs off 24 balls and then throwing it away playing a drive to a ball that was never there to drive, shocking!

Need centuries from Sallu and Malik and a half-century from Rehman to stay in this match. Very unlikely indeed. But stranger things have happened in Pakistan cricket so I am not giving up hope on these guys

 

[NeVerMind]

Actualyl I do disagree with you about Kamran.

He had hardly faced Harris and he did the right thing by having a look at him before taking him on like he was taking on the quickies.

I knw you would catch me on that. And as unfair as it sounds, I do not think Akmal would have lasted much longer. Plus it's raining down here in london. wish I oculd somehow export it to Karachi.

 

[Hash]

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/PKXX0008.html

no chance of rain sadly!

 

[Safar55]

Strange things do happen...but one thing we can rely on is the inconsistency of our players...

 

[iafzal]

One positive of the day is that we may not have to deal with Faisal Iqbal for a while after his wonderful performance today.

 

[Hash]

One positive of the day is that we may not have to deal with Faisal Iqbal for a while after his wonderful performance today.

what? You mean Faisal Iqbal will be dropepd?

NOOOOOOOO

He is so good though!

In all seriousness though, what will Miandad's goondas do if Faisal gets dropped?

 

[the Great Khan]

One positive of the day is that we may not have to deal with Faisal Iqbal for a while after his wonderful performance today.

dont be too sure knowing our selectors!!...how we have missed the big man today!!

 

[infamous9383]

what a horrandeous display of batting from Pakistan. They should hold their head in shame. The Hafeez dismissal killed me becasue he attempted a suicide shot that they were waiting for.

 

[infamous9383]

People took SA too lightly becasue they thought they couldn't play spin. Who's struggling against spin now.

 

[iZeeshan]

Wow, Pakistan really bowed out on this one. All they do now is hope that Malik and Butt stick tomorrow (if he comes back), avoid follow-on, and just wait it out.

Pathetic display of batting. Such a shame.

 

[Lightning]

What

I went to sleep thinking SA will pile up 550+ but they were bowled out for 450. Well done bowlers.

Then Pak bats 5 down! What is wrong with these guys. They're going to screw our proud record in Karachi...

Unbelievable, what the hell happened?

 

[deviously~fading~away]

i've just poppd home for lunch from work so hvn't seen the game. From the performance of our batsmen, I take it that this pitch has remarkably transformed into the most hostile batting conditions known to man. either that or we're pathetic

i said it yesterday, just wait till our batsman bat on this pitch...they would make it look like a bowling paradise!
PS- A miracle by our batting & bowling line up will save us in the 2 inning

 

[filosofee]

i've just poppd home for lunch from work so hvn't seen the game. From the performance of our batsmen, I take it that this pitch has remarkably transformed into the most hostile batting conditions known to man. either that or we're pathetic

Our batsmen need to ask themselves why their frame of mind was still in slog-zone, that Twenty20 final was over last Monday!

 

[Saj]

Any chance of rain for the next 3 days ?

 

[Wasim_Waqar]

This is what happens when you go in with a defensive minset in terms of producing a dead pitch to get away with a draw and going in with only two fast men when you have a tradition of great fast bowlers.

SA are simply putting on pressure with weight of runs: did Pakistan not realise that they might lose the toss and this might happen? This has all got me very angry. I guess the stat will be out of the last 3 tests played at home (inc. this one)- W1, D1, L1 lol

Pakistan have made me feel sick reading the scorecard of this match. Bunch of moddlycoddled babies.

It's about time the likes of Hafeez, Iqbal, Akmal and a few others became men like Australia, SA and India. Not babies. Otherwise we will get nowhere in the test match arena. We are 6th (joint 7th with NZ) now and at this moment do not deserve to be higher

 

[Nakhuda]

It could be due to the holy month but i am finding this Pak-RSA series to be extremely tedious if not outrightly boring!.The coverage of ARY is always third class nevertheless from the little i've seen Pak's performance has been abysmal with the usual dropped catches and batting collapse.
I believe we can still save this Test if we bat sensibly but won't bet on it!
Thank Allah next months tour of India will be covered by Sky and not this joke of a channel that is ARY!