Pakistan's fast-bowlers - Why don't they last long?

[Geil]

Pakistan has abundance of talent when it comes to Fast bowlers and they unleash their young budding talented bowlers at a very young age and if you look back after wasim waqar retirement the players that comes to the mind are Shoaib Akhtar Umar Gul Mohammad Sami Mohammad Amir Mohammad Asif who all announced themselves in international cricket with lot of promise and as potential next Wasim and Waqar for the Pakistan

What they could achieve is play not more than 50 tests for Pakistan and even if you look at the most wickets in both Test and ODI cricket in recent time or say after Wasim Waqar era as they are Fast bowlers who played the most and also the top most wicket takers for Pakistan and performed and became legends

why there isn"t at least a player who has played maybe close 60-70 test matches or upto 250 ODI and performed for Pakistan,What could be the reasons? Lack of oppurtunity? Fitness? Fading away because of bad coaching? or something else.

Now we have Shaheen Shah Afridi Naseem Shah Haris Rauf and many more talented gifted young fast bowlers will they also have the same fate or what could PCB and coaching staff do to make Fast Bowlers who could play longer and perform for Pakistan

Is it just not possible because Fast bowlers are fragile be it Pakistan or any other country and only very selective few lasts longer????

 

[MenInG]

Its the nature of the business! Too much stress on bodies and too many expectations from all of us for them to take a 5fer in every innings.

 

[Arya]

I have noticed that modern Pakistani fast bowlers haven't been able to sustain their pace after 10 Tests. It's either the case of them performing 120% of their ability in the first few matches and burning out, or the support staff has failed miserably in managing their workload and recovery.

 

[Geil]

If you try to look at other countries you find JM Anderson (ENG) DW Steyn (SA) SCJ Broad (ENG) MG Johnson (AUS) Z Khan (INDIA) B Lee (AUS) M Morkel (SA) I Sharma (INDIA) TG Southee (NZ) TA Boult (NZ) CS Martin (NZ) A Flintoff (ENG/ICC) VD Philander (SA) PM Siddle (AUS)

These Fast bowlers have all played more that 60 test matches minimum mostly after the year 2000 and some are still playing.You have players from India RSA Australia New Zealand England and even Srilanka has Suranga Lakmal who has played 61 test matches and still playing.The only teams which are like Pakistan are West Indies and Bangladesh.Surely Pakistan would look at them as top 6 test nation and compare themselves with the teams like India RSA Australia New Zealand England .There must be some reason or explanation for Pakistan not able to produce Fast bowlers who could lasts longer

 

[Ryw]

Very interesting topic, IMO the reason Pak fast bowlers don't last nowadays is amount of cricket and lack of rest in between.

In Wasim Waqar era there was less workload on them as compared to modern day era, another reason is PCB or our think tank overuse our express fast bowlers in meaningless matches even dead rubbers.

Human muscles are not built for too much workload and stress hence Pak bowlers don't last long nowadays

 

[Manunited18]

Very interesting topic, IMO the reason Pak fast bowlers don't last nowadays is amount of cricket and lack of rest in between.

In Wasim Waqar era there was less workload on them as compared to modern day era, another reason is PCB or our think tank overuse our express fast bowlers in meaningless matches even dead rubbers.

Human muscles are not built for too much workload and stress hence Pak bowlers don't last long nowadays

It has to be their training , recovery , and diet, the amount of cricket now adays this has to be spot on

 

[Geil]

Are you specifically talking about only Pakistan Fast Bowlers who cannot handle stress and expectation being the reason for them not lasting longer as every other nation except Sri Lanka West Indies and Bangladesh had atleast two Fast bowlers after 2000 who have player minimum of 60 test matches.

 

[Geil]

Very interesting topic, IMO the reason Pak fast bowlers don't last nowadays is amount of cricket and lack of rest in between.

In Wasim Waqar era there was less workload on them as compared to modern day era, another reason is PCB or our think tank overuse our express fast bowlers in meaningless matches even dead rubbers.

Human muscles are not built for too much workload and stress hence Pak bowlers don't last long nowadays

we have Shoaib Akhtar 46 matches and Umar Gul 47 matches after Wasim Waqar. This problem needs to be addressed hope Naseem Shah Shaheen Shan Afridi and other young Fast bowlers do not end up like Akhtar Gul Amir Asif with only lasting 40s 30s test matches in their career

 

[Rellu_Katta]

likes of SSA, Naseem Shah, Harris Rauf and Hussnain too shld b blocked from playing meanigless T20z and ODIz ... having said that, they shld be over compensated somehow, maybe special contracts? high salary in PSL or somehow....

the spineless aamir and wahab and musa and faheemz and ammad butt should be more than enough for the T20z and useless odiz..

protect ur crown jewles

 

[tyron_woodley]

It has to be their training , recovery , and diet, the amount of cricket now adays this has to be spot on

that's why modern era is the toughest era to play cricket in. Far harder to succeed now than in 80s and 90s. That is the truth.

 

[Hitman]

Until 10 years ago, the joke was that Indian bowlers came with an expiry date. Which was so true back then.

 

[Geil]

likes of SSA, Naseem Shah, Harris Rauf and Hussnain too shld b blocked from playing meanigless T20z and ODIz ... having said that, they shld be over compensated somehow, maybe special contracts? high salary in PSL or somehow....

the spineless aamir and wahab and musa and faheemz and ammad butt should be more than enough for the T20z and useless odiz..

protect ur crown jewles

if you even look at Pakistan ODI cricket what you find is after Wasim Waqar the most played matches and also performing by taking most wickets by a fast bowler are Abdul Razzaq 261 Shoaib Akhtar 158 Umar Gul 130 Mohammad Sami 87 Wahab Riaz 89 Junaid Khan 76. These are some fast bowlers who have played very few number of ODI matches after Wasim Waqar so it is just not Test Matches it is also ODI .I have not seen T20Iss but for both Tests and ODIs Pakistan are not able to make Fast bowlers who could lasts longer.To me it is so very shocking as Pakistan is Known as producing great Fast Bowlers in the World.Apart from Razzaq we dont have anyone who have aleast played 250 ODIs

 

[Geil]

that's why modern era is the toughest era to play cricket in. Far harder to succeed now than in 80s and 90s. That is the truth.

Even with modern era standards every nation like India Australia England RSA New Zealand have atleast two fast bowlers in the modern era who have played minimum of 60 test matches and Pakistan has none that is very unbelievable achievement

 

[Manunited18]

that's why modern era is the toughest era to play cricket in. Far harder to succeed now than in 80s and 90s. That is the truth.

I don't agree, the modern era has more options in international cricket to make a living, the bowlers in the 80's -90's had to play rigirous county or first class cricket with their commitment to international cricket yet in my opinion were far better

 

[Geil]

It has to be their training , recovery , and diet, the amount of cricket now adays this has to be spot on

Yes it could be the reason and also could it be that our Coaches or even the fast bowlers themselves are not being educated when it comes to taking care of their body and being fit or how to go about being fit for longer duration or another reason could be they just don't have the discipline and hunger for the game after tasting success at very young age and not wanting that urge to keep up the hard work and play longer

 

[Geil]

Until 10 years ago, the joke was that Indian bowlers came with an expiry date. Which was so true back then.

yes 10 years ago it was said that Indian bowlers cant bowl fast or their body is not built like a fast bowlers because majority of them are vegetarian but vegetarian or not India is certainly far ahead in producing fit fast bowlers who play long and perform long for India and also it can be said they are competing with the fast bowlers of Australia England where as Pakistan is way below and just about better than Sri Lanka West Indies and Bangladesh

 

[Hitman]

yes 10 years ago it was said that Indian bowlers cant bowl fast or their body is not built like a fast bowlers because majority of them are vegetarian but vegetarian or not India is certainly far ahead in producing fit fast bowlers who play long and perform long for India and also it can be said they are competing with the fast bowlers of Australia England where as Pakistan is way below and just about better than Sri Lanka West Indies and Bangladesh

Can't believe people still believe that Indians are all vegetarians. You'd barely find 1 person in my state, that too once in a while who is a vegetarian.

 

[Titan24]

They dont work hard on fitness as Wasim and Waqar did. Its a tough job and requires a high level of fitness to do it year after year. Shaheen and Naseem look like hard working youngsters so hopefully they can change that.

 

[Geil]

Can't believe people still believe that Indians are all vegetarians. You'd barely find 1 person in my state, that too once in a while who is a vegetarian.

I do not know if people around the world still think that majority of Indians are vegetarians or not but certainly 10 years ago this was debated during discussions on why Indian fast bowler cannot bowl fast or lose their pace after a year or two

 

[Geil]

They dont work hard on fitness as Wasim and Waqar did. Its a tough job and requires a high level of fitness to do it year after year. Shaheen and Naseem look like hard working youngsters so hopefully they can change that.

What does it need for a fast bowler to be able to last longer?

good fitness which could be acheived by being discipline i guess

consistent performance which could be acheived only if you have that urge of that hunger to perform always by doing hardwork

Talent and skills we have so much in our fast bowlers but good fitness and consistency we dont have in our modern Fast bowlers after Wasim Waqar

Certainly hoping that naseem shan and shaheen shah afridi does not end up being players who would play upto 50 tests in their career.I would certainly wants them to play up-to at least 70 tests matches if not more

 

[ElRaja]

which pakistani test pacer in the last ten years has justified a long test career but has been sidelined due to mismanagement of injury?

amir and asif could have played 60, 70 tests by now if they didnt do what they did.

wahab riaz had the pace and the durability but not the quality, junaid khan was arguably hard done by when he was dropped, and that leaves umar gul and rahat ali, both who had consistent test performances but were just not good enough, ever.

abbas has played 20 odd tests in 3 years and his level has been pretty consistent in terms of durability.

the only one i can kind of think of is maybe hasan ali, and his deterioration has as much to do with his own mental approach than physical injuries.

there is literally no one else who has justified a long term test spot over the last ten years. so the issue is more a quality thing, and cycling players till pak get lucky than a exhaustion thing.

 

[Geil]

which pakistani test pacer in the last ten years has justified a long test career but has been sidelined due to mismanagement of injury?

amir and asif could have played 60, 70 tests by now if they didnt do what they did.

wahab riaz had the pace and the durability but not the quality, junaid khan was arguably hard done by when he was dropped, and that leaves umar gul and rahat ali, both who had consistent test performances but were just not good enough, ever.

abbas has played 20 odd tests in 3 years and his level has been pretty consistent in terms of durability.

the only one i can kind of think of is maybe hasan ali, and his deterioration has as much to do with his own mental approach than physical injuries.

there is literally no one else who has justified a long term test spot over the last ten years. so the issue is more a quality thing, and cycling players till pak get lucky than a exhaustion thing.

Shoaib Akhtar Umar Gul Mohammad Amir Mohammad Sami Wahab Riaz Junaid Khan Shabbir Ahmed cant include Asif because he is responsible for his own fall but atlease 2 or maybe one player could have been a bowler who could have played more than 50 tests surely

as u have already pointed out the reasons for amir and asif wahab riaz junaid khan and Gul not being quality bowlers but could we blame the Fast bowling coaches staff and PCB too because when Wasim and Waqar left Pakistan had the resource the brains the understanding of being a good fast bowler

Who do we have as fast bowling coaches in Pakistan Waqar Younis Aaqib Javed Kabir Khan Azhar Mahmood and who else could it be? Only these four comes to my mind and they are certainly not educating young Fast bowlers on how to keep up that hunger of performing and lasting longer

 

[Bewal Express]

Every fast bowler is injured for different reasons for example with Shoaib Akhtar the problem was gluttony and then trying to get fit within a 2 week period before a series. The late Bob Willis said that the best way for fast bowlers to stay fit was lots of running.

 

[Savak]

Very interesting topic, IMO the reason Pak fast bowlers don't last nowadays is amount of cricket and lack of rest in between.

In Wasim Waqar era there was less workload on them as compared to modern day era, another reason is PCB or our think tank overuse our express fast bowlers in meaningless matches even dead rubbers.

Human muscles are not built for too much workload and stress hence Pak bowlers don't last long nowadays

Take a leaf out of India. They probably play even ten times more Cricket than us but the likes of Shami, Bhumra, Sharma, Saini, Thakur are not only able to bowl at higher avg speeds but can also play a lot of cricket as well. Its all about the quality of your training, nutrition and rest/recuperation management.

 

[Geil]

Take a leaf out of India. They probably play even ten times more Cricket than us but the likes of Shami, Bhumra, Sharma, Saini, Thakur are not only able to bowl at higher avg speeds but can also play a lot of cricket as well. Its all about the quality of your training, nutrition and rest/recuperation management.

you make a good point a fast bowler has to take care of himself he should know the quality of training,nutrition and when to rest with the management supporting them but none of this seems to be in the present Pakistan fast bowling culture hope to see a change in this

 

[Rayyman]

Lack of fitness and mismanagement. Case in point- Amir, who was over-bowled and did not maintain his body correctly.

Hasan Ali overtrained. Faheem has a poor diet.

Shaheen is being over-bowled currently. He played meaningless T20Is vs BD and now will play PSL.

 

[Savak]

Lack of fitness and mismanagement. Case in point- Amir, who was over-bowled and did not maintain his body correctly.

Hasan Ali overtrained. Faheem has a poor diet.

Shaheen is being over-bowled currently. He played meaningless T20Is vs BD and now will play PSL.

Cant blame the players too much. The Indian IPL players make around $1 - 3 million a season and they can easily afford to just play in the IPL and rest in the off season, that is a life changing sum of money to get every year. In Contrast the Pakistani players have to end up playing 3-4 global T-20 leagues to make $750,000 a year which means zero time for rest. Economics is to blame as well

 

[tyron_woodley]

I don't agree, the modern era has more options in international cricket to make a living, the bowlers in the 80's -90's had to play rigirous county or first class cricket with their commitment to international cricket yet in my opinion were far better

fair enough. Good players from either ers would succeed anywhere. Its tougher now in my opinion Only because of the workload. Too many games. t20 plus t20 franchise games. Then you have a champions trophy every now and then. bilateral odi's. test series. Just way too much.

You are right. back then they played more first class games but you don't think international players play domestic?
Indian players still play ranji. Australians play shield. Pakistani players play in quetta league.

That's why I find modern era to be the hardest era to succeed. Besides the rules were entirely different back then. Only players that have the ability to adapt would succeed.

 

[King Khan]

I believe there are several reason and not just one. All of the above have contributed to it, but I believe the following also greatly affected our pace factory

- The type of balls being used in domestic games. Its a known fact that the type of balls we used before allowed for some of these military medium pace bowlers to thrive. There was no need to bend your back to try and get wickets but when they would come to play on international pitches and bowl kookabura balls, those bowlers become useless. Add to that the negative reaction some fans and press give (Rahat Ali case in point) that they are seen to be TTFs, they are not allowed to progress.

- The pitches in domestic games. Another factor that has always been there but has compounded the issue further is the poor quality pitches we have. The risk of injury is much higher compared to the rewards of getting wickets as compared to bowling with the less effort at medium pace, it doesn't make it worthwhile to bend your back to get wickets. Whereas a pitch with pace and bounce it would be worth putting in the effort as the reward of wickets would be higher.

- Playing in UAE. The main reason is how extremely slow those pitches are for fast bowlers. Pakistan pitches are slow, but not as bad as the dubai and abu dhabi. So much so that you have to play two or three spinners. Therefore you are immediately restricting the the number of opportunities you can give to your young fast bowlers and therefore selection becomes really difficult as who you chose (or dont choose) will reduce opportunities for fast bowlers. They then will not gain confidence that you get from playing "at home" as opposed foreign tours, where you are likely to be embarrassed. Bowlers like Naseem Shah would get blasted in Australia and then go to a "home" series in UAE. He would be lucky to play (Abbas and Shaheen would be the two pacers), and even if he did play he would find it a lot more difficult to get the returns we saw in Pindi test and thus not give him the confidence to bowl fast.

Thankfully the PCB had introduced Kookaburras in domestic thus made it harder for bowlers to get easy wickets with medium pace. Also, the return of Test cricket to Pakistan will allow our more young pacers to be given opportunities to play and gain confidence on pitches they are familiar with.