Saleem Elahi vs Imam-ul-Haq: Who has the better ODI debut 100 vs Sri Lanka?

[The_Odd_One]

On Sept 29, 1995, debutant Saleem Elahi scored a century against SL.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/series/...nka-1st-ODI-sri-lanka-in-pakistan-odi-series/

22 years later, another debutant, Imam-ul-Haq achieved a similar feat when he hit a century in his very first ODI.

Both of these matches were very similar. SL posted a subpar score and Pakistan chased chased it very easily.

Saleem scored 102* of 133 balls chasing 234. Imam scored 100 of 125 chasing 209.

Which inning do you think was better?

 

[Shafi]

Comparing Sri Lanka in 1995 and 2017, Saleem Elahi Is far ahead. But Imam-ul-Haq has potential to be even better than Elahi

 

[cricketAXEpert]

Imam ul Haq was dropped twice. Saleem Elahi's inning was it chanceless? Is the main question.

However the Ironic realty is that Saleem Elahi's career was an unsuccessful one. So first match centuries are no Guarantee of a good career.

 

[msb314]

Imam ul Haq was dropped twice. Saleem Elahi's inning was it chanceless? Is the main question.

However the Ironic realty is that Saleem Elahi's career was an unsuccessful one. So first match centuries are no Guarantee of a good career.

Not Saieem Elahi's fault as he was wrongly discarded and should have had far more opportunities over the likes of hacks like Farhat, Nazir, Taufiq Umar etc.

 

[cricketAXEpert]

Not Saieem Elahi's fault as he was wrongly discarded and should have had far more opportunities over the likes of hacks like Farhat, Nazir, Taufiq Umar etc.

Yes, Not Saleem Elahi's fault but back then Saeed Anwar and Amir Sohail were openers (saleem Elahi debut was in 1995). so there was competition for openers slot. But the main reason was that the Odi side was 90% same as the test side. And saleem Elahi was horrible in tests He averaged only 18.95 after 13 test matches. Just one 50 in 24 test innings. Saleem Elahi did better in Odi with an average of 36. but his terrible test performance cost him his place on the squad. The era of ODI specialist was just starting when Saleem ELahi's career ended.

 

[Monsee]

Zaheer Abbass (at that moment in time he wanted to continue in ODI's but selectors and captain didn't want him in the team any longer), Saleem Elahi, and many others were wrongly dropped for good when they could have continued on in ODI's due to their better ability in shorter version of the game. The fact that Saleem Elahi scored a century against SA in SA and also averaged 36 despite having an on and off career tells you he was not a bad player for ODI's.

 

[ExpressPacer]

Zaheer Abbass (at that moment in time he wanted to continue in ODI's but selectors and captain didn't want him in the team any longer), Saleem Elahi, and many others were wrongly dropped for good when they could have continued on in ODI's due to their better ability in shorter version of the game. The fact that Saleem Elahi scored a century against SA in SA and also averaged 36 despite having an on and off career tells you he was not a bad player for ODI's.

Zaheer Abbas retired from ODI's in 85 bro?

 

[The_Odd_One]

Zaheer Abbass (at that moment in time he wanted to continue in ODI's but selectors and captain didn't want him in the team any longer), Saleem Elahi, and many others were wrongly dropped for good when they could have continued on in ODI's due to their better ability in shorter version of the game. The fact that Saleem Elahi scored a century against SA in SA and also averaged 36 despite having an on and off career tells you he was not a bad player for ODI's.

Same with Basit Ali who was a better ODI batsman than test.

 

[Usman Chadda]

Saleem Elahi was the ultimate flat track bully. A bit of movement and his feet were jammed together, refusing to move even an inch. I remember him getting exposed ruthlessly against Caddick and Gough in England in 2001.

Taufeeq Umar was a massive upgrade on Saleem Elahi at that time. Rightfully discarded when Pakistan was finally starting to get young, attacking openers.

 

[Monsee]

Zaheer Abbas retired from ODI's in 85 bro?

I didn't say he was around when Saleem Elahi played, I merely suggested he wanted to continue playing the shorter version and retire from Tests only but no one had the vision to let him continue. This despite the fact that he has the 2nd highest average from amongst players in those days (after Viv), his impact in ODI's was so high that his test average is 3 points less (47 versus 44) and his SR was almost 85 in those days (almost unheard of for most players back then)!

He was probably one of the very few players in ODI's that could score well against the giant WI's team and averages close to his career average against them too...that is some achievement

 

[Zaz]

Salim elahi was definitely someone that shouldve played more odis than he did

He was a great timer of the ball, yes his footwork wasnt great but on flat tracks it wasnt needed

Unfortunately the era of the 90s and 00s is littered with players that shouldve had more of a run and others that shouldve played much less

 

[moghul]

Technically , Saleem Ilahi was not of international class at all. Imam is far better technically and has a potential to become a solid test and ODI batsman. Also , education helps developing self confidence and for that reason Imam has better chance than what Saeed Iahi had , to have a loner career. I'm not saying this because Imam spoke English yesterday, education is more than that but I heard Imam took his schooling more seriously.

 

[Yaasir]

Imam was dropped twice. So definitely Saleem Elahi 100 was better. Plus I'm sure the Sri Lankan bowling attack was much better in 1995 than the current bowling attack which is a complete joke.

 

[KyoOne]

Elahi

 

[amvbfm]

I watched both innings but don't remember how good Elahi's was in terms of quality. What I do remember is that on the whole, Elahi was a pretty limited batsman, a FTB suited for ODIs in Asian conditions. Personally, I rate him as the least talented of the Elahi brothers. Imam, on the other hand has shown much more talent the few times that I've watched him. Also, contrary to what some people have said, SL's bowling was not a whole lot better in 95. Wickramasinghe was similar in class to Lakmal/Pardeep and Pushpa (a Waqar clone), had pace but little else. Looking at the scorecard, the only decent bowler in that lineup was Dharmasena. The bowling only started improving once Vaas and Murali became regulars, and even then, during the first one or two years of their emergence as a world class team it was their formidable batting unit that won them most matches.

 

[hamaadqureshi819]

Technically , Saleem Ilahi was not of international class at all. Imam is far better technically and has a potential to become a solid test and ODI batsman. Also , education helps developing self confidence and for that reason Imam has better chance than what Saeed Iahi had , to have a loner career. I'm not saying this because Imam spoke English yesterday, education is more than that but I heard Imam took his schooling more seriously.

So speaking English means that you are educated. By that logic every non English speaking person is uneducated.

 

[MenInG]

So speaking English means that you are educated. By that logic every non English speaking person is uneducated.

Its the contact with the media which defines how far people can get ahead nowadays. English helps in that case.

 

[maxamax]

Imam ul Haq was dropped twice. Saleem Elahi's inning was it chanceless? Is the main question.

However the Ironic realty is that Saleem Elahi's career was an unsuccessful one. So first match centuries are no Guarantee of a good career.

Yes I have noticed that many players who score 50s/100s on debuts usually fade away.

 

[hailian]

I watched the Saleem Elahi innings live back in university days. That a a nice fluent knock. The best thing was he wasnt nervous and kept playing shots fluently.