Muhammad10
T20I Debutant
- Joined
- Jul 7, 2013
- Runs
- 6,284
Writing for Sky Sports, Saj Sadiq reckons that judging by Sami Aslam's composure that belies his age, Pakistan may well have solved their opening conundrum.
The recently-concluded Test match at Edgbaston ended in a glorious victory for England as they turned around the fate of the game after facing a potentially hazardous position in the early part of the five-day battle.
For Pakistan however, the memories of the third Test will be filled with disappointment and regret as apart from some individual flashes of brilliance, their bowlers and batsmen by and large failed to seize the moment and allowed the game to drift away.
While there was plenty of blame laid at the feet of the much-vaunted bowling attack, it was the general consensus that the visiting batsmen were unable to hold their own on a pitch which offered very little by way of demons. There were of course some exceptions such as the 20-year-old opening batsman, Sami Aslam, who was playing in only his third Test match and his first outside Asia.
Aslam's re-appearance in Test cricket after more than a year in the wilderness was significant. His scores of 82 and 70 in what eventually proved to be a losing cause demonstrated his talent and temperament as mayhem ensued all around him on day five.
What was not so obvious by looking at the scorecard was the startling fact that Sami, whose cricketing heroes are Virat Kohli and Joe Root, was only brought in as a replacement after the consecutive failures of another young opening batsman, Shan Masood.
One can only imagine the silent jubilation in the England camp at the sight of a nervous, inexperienced opener walking in to bat at Edgbaston. This would also have surely turned into celebration of equal magnitude at the sight of Mohammad Hafeez departing for an unceremonious duck, leaving the novice at the mercy of some of the world's top bowlers on the final day.
With just two Test matches previously to his name against Bangladesh last year where the young batsman had failed to impress, Sami, armed with composure which belied his age, and skills which could easily rival the best youngsters in the game, proceeded to rescue Pakistan from a precarious 0-1.
By the time he was run-out in the first innings for a well composed 82 with the Pakistan score on 181-2, Sami had presented ample proof of his ability and finally announced his arrival on the international scene.
If further proof was needed of his suitability for the much-maligned opening position for Pakistan at the top of the order, it was provided in even more dire circumstances in the ill-fated second innings, where at one point with the team score at 125-5, his contribution was 70 with the other five batmen having contributed a paltry 54 runs amongst themselves, plus one extra.
The Pakistan opening conundrum has been a source of great pain for many years since another left-hander Saeed Anwar decided to hang up his boots and has no doubt presented the Pakistani selectors with many sleepless nights.
The demise in form Hafeez in conditions other than the UAE has assumed ominous proportions, so the arrival of Sami represents nothing short of a breath of fresh air for Pakistan cricket.
Sami's rise to fame as an opener in Edgbaston may appear to have come out of the blue but the fact is that he had always been identified as one of the country's top talents from a tender age where he captained the Pakistan Under 19s. If anything, his failure to score big in Test matches against Bangladesh was a major disappointment for those who had seen his rise from a young age.
His performance at Edgbaston was, in a way, confirmation of his unquestionable talent, with Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq highly impressed with Sami's discipline and temperament which saw the young batsman hold his own under tremendous pressure from the opposition.
Despite Pakistan's capitulation in Birmingham, the current series - which stands 2-1 in favour of the hosts - is far from over with one Test to be played at The Oval. The spoils for the victor may well be no less than the much coveted number one ranking in Test cricket.
While England can claim a psychological and score-line advantage, their think-tank would have surely identified Sami as a viable threat to their strategies for the grand finale. From a Pakistan point of view, Sami's emergence as a dependable opener who could blunt the England new ball bowling attack could not have come at a better time.
The struggling middle-order's prayers may well have been answered with the arrival of a young man on the scene who has all the hallmarks of a calming influence at the top of the order which has been missing for many years.
It may have been a long time coming, but if Sami can maintain his composure and find able support from the Pakistani batsmen, then come 15 August, Pakistan may well find themselves celebrating more than a Test victory at The Oval.
http://www.skysports.com/cricket/ne...-pakistans-opening-conundrum-says-sajid-sadiq
The recently-concluded Test match at Edgbaston ended in a glorious victory for England as they turned around the fate of the game after facing a potentially hazardous position in the early part of the five-day battle.
For Pakistan however, the memories of the third Test will be filled with disappointment and regret as apart from some individual flashes of brilliance, their bowlers and batsmen by and large failed to seize the moment and allowed the game to drift away.
While there was plenty of blame laid at the feet of the much-vaunted bowling attack, it was the general consensus that the visiting batsmen were unable to hold their own on a pitch which offered very little by way of demons. There were of course some exceptions such as the 20-year-old opening batsman, Sami Aslam, who was playing in only his third Test match and his first outside Asia.
Aslam's re-appearance in Test cricket after more than a year in the wilderness was significant. His scores of 82 and 70 in what eventually proved to be a losing cause demonstrated his talent and temperament as mayhem ensued all around him on day five.
What was not so obvious by looking at the scorecard was the startling fact that Sami, whose cricketing heroes are Virat Kohli and Joe Root, was only brought in as a replacement after the consecutive failures of another young opening batsman, Shan Masood.
One can only imagine the silent jubilation in the England camp at the sight of a nervous, inexperienced opener walking in to bat at Edgbaston. This would also have surely turned into celebration of equal magnitude at the sight of Mohammad Hafeez departing for an unceremonious duck, leaving the novice at the mercy of some of the world's top bowlers on the final day.
With just two Test matches previously to his name against Bangladesh last year where the young batsman had failed to impress, Sami, armed with composure which belied his age, and skills which could easily rival the best youngsters in the game, proceeded to rescue Pakistan from a precarious 0-1.
By the time he was run-out in the first innings for a well composed 82 with the Pakistan score on 181-2, Sami had presented ample proof of his ability and finally announced his arrival on the international scene.
If further proof was needed of his suitability for the much-maligned opening position for Pakistan at the top of the order, it was provided in even more dire circumstances in the ill-fated second innings, where at one point with the team score at 125-5, his contribution was 70 with the other five batmen having contributed a paltry 54 runs amongst themselves, plus one extra.
The Pakistan opening conundrum has been a source of great pain for many years since another left-hander Saeed Anwar decided to hang up his boots and has no doubt presented the Pakistani selectors with many sleepless nights.
The demise in form Hafeez in conditions other than the UAE has assumed ominous proportions, so the arrival of Sami represents nothing short of a breath of fresh air for Pakistan cricket.
Sami's rise to fame as an opener in Edgbaston may appear to have come out of the blue but the fact is that he had always been identified as one of the country's top talents from a tender age where he captained the Pakistan Under 19s. If anything, his failure to score big in Test matches against Bangladesh was a major disappointment for those who had seen his rise from a young age.
His performance at Edgbaston was, in a way, confirmation of his unquestionable talent, with Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq highly impressed with Sami's discipline and temperament which saw the young batsman hold his own under tremendous pressure from the opposition.
Despite Pakistan's capitulation in Birmingham, the current series - which stands 2-1 in favour of the hosts - is far from over with one Test to be played at The Oval. The spoils for the victor may well be no less than the much coveted number one ranking in Test cricket.
While England can claim a psychological and score-line advantage, their think-tank would have surely identified Sami as a viable threat to their strategies for the grand finale. From a Pakistan point of view, Sami's emergence as a dependable opener who could blunt the England new ball bowling attack could not have come at a better time.
The struggling middle-order's prayers may well have been answered with the arrival of a young man on the scene who has all the hallmarks of a calming influence at the top of the order which has been missing for many years.
It may have been a long time coming, but if Sami can maintain his composure and find able support from the Pakistani batsmen, then come 15 August, Pakistan may well find themselves celebrating more than a Test victory at The Oval.
http://www.skysports.com/cricket/ne...-pakistans-opening-conundrum-says-sajid-sadiq
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Lets hope he does better.
