Should Pakistan just play regular proper batsmen instead of power hitters in the middle order?

[Savak]

Is it better for Pakistan to pick proper technically correct players like Haris Sohail, Kamran Ghulam, Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood in the middle to lower order?

The experiment of Iftikhar, Khusdil, Haider Ali and Asif Ali is clearly not working. You can only play one mercurial tulla in the team but not three in one go, these players are just too inconsistent and neither do they have the ability to strike big from the get go in one go and these guys will not succeed in Australia.

Maybe we should now try to go with proper technically correct batsmen who can play proper cricket in the middle and maybe this will give Babar, Rizwan less stress up the order and the ability to play with more freedom?

Food for thought

 

[Dr_Bassim]

Yeah we might then chase 200 regularly in 30 overs.

 

[hitthestump]

Lol. Just last year people were complaining about Malik and Hafeez being in the team and how we needed "hitters". The cycle repeats itself.

All our middle order options are rubbish so it doesn't really matter. There is no winning strategy out there that anyone is missing or combination that is going to massively change results.

Our only hope in t20's is with Rizwan and Babar making enough runs that our bowlers can defend. Anything from the middle order is just a bonus.

 

[Savak]

Lol. Just last year people were complaining about Malik and Hafeez being in the team and how we needed "hitters". The cycle repeats itself.

All our middle order options are rubbish so it doesn't really matter. There is no winning strategy out there that anyone is missing or combination that is going to massively change results.

Our only hope in t20's is with Rizwan and Babar making enough runs that our bowlers can defend. Anything from the middle order is just a bonus.

Lets think of it this way. The likes of Khusdil, Asif, Haider can win one game out of ten but in 9 games out of 10 they will fail badly. Maybe if there are no alternatives then you might as well just play proper batsmen who can be trusted to stay longer at the wicket.

 

[Dr_Bassim]

Lol. Just last year people were complaining about Malik and Hafeez being in the team and how we needed "hitters". The cycle repeats itself.

All our middle order options are rubbish so it doesn't really matter. There is no winning strategy out there that anyone is missing or combination that is going to massively change results.

Our only hope in t20's is with Rizwan and Babar making enough runs that our bowlers can defend. Anything from the middle order is just a bonus.

So you mean to say that if Babar and Rizwan don't play Pakistan cannot win the match through batting?

Why not test that theory by dropping them for the next 5 matches and giving others a go?

We already know they are going to open in the World Cup.

What is the harm?

 

[MenInG]

If we play "proper" batters then we go into the Test mode.

We just need luck to find that one big hitter a-la-Brevis or Tim David type.

 

[Minnowbasher]

Need Haris Sohail

 

[Rana]

It’s funny how advocates of Babar/Rizwan/Shan trio supremacy have an issue with Saud+Kamran Ghulam slotting in at 4 and 5

 

[Rana]

If you really want to accept your failure as a white ball unit:

1. Babar
2. Rizwan
3. Shan
4. Kamran Ghulam
5. Saud Shaqeel
6. Harris Sohail (power hitter spot)

 

[Rana]

If we play "proper" batters then we go into the Test mode.

We just need luck to find that one big hitter a-la-Brevis or Tim David type.

Why for those positions and not in powerplay positions?

 

[Ashmal]

Need Haris Sohail

Nah...he's been tried back in 2019 and failed miserably.

That's after ignoring his very fragile body.

 

[Blistering Barnacle]

The top 4 at least should be specialist batsmen who are good enough to face high pace and bounce in Australia.

Shan should be at 3, he has shown his form in T20s and now in a T20 international also.

Now we need a no. 4 and potentially a no. 5 that are specialist batsmen, not all rounders. All rounders should start around 6.

 

[Duckworth Lewis]

Power hitters who can deliver are rare. David Miller, Pandya, Tim David, Livingstone types. Even Russell cannot be relied upon these days. You cannot fill the middle order with such hitters who click occasionally. If power hitters win T20s, West Indies should be the best T20 side which isn't the case. What you require is batsmen in the mould of Butler, Bairstow, Roy, Prime Kohli, ABD etc who can hit around safely which Babar and Rizwan are incapable of against decent bowling attacks. Pakistan's batting talent had always been painfully bad compared to top teams. Without Babar, Rizwan and filling the batting with guys like Sharjeel and domestic hacks will ensure Pakistan getting bundled out for 130s more often. You simply don't have the luxury to drop Babar and Rizwan. Fakhar should be in. A player like Kushdil shouldn't even see international cricket. Shoaib Maqsood or Azam Khan could have been given a few more chances. The best Pakistan can afford ATM IMO is:

Babar
Rizwan
Shan
Fakhar
Haider
Ifthikar
Shadab
Nawaz(Ideally a fast bowling allrounder in Australia but don't see any)

You cannot simply have Ifthikar, Asif Ali, Kushdil in the same lineup.

 

[daytrader]

Nasser Hussain "all the way through in this series we've spoken about how the Pakistan middle-order haven't had a chance and how Rizwan and Babar hold the batting together at the top of the order. Well, now's the middle-orders chance"

 

[Grunge101]

To the OP, this was exactly my point when I made the thread about how our top order might be influencing the middle order.

I for one am completely on board with this idea. Let's look at it this way.

Scenario 1
We have to chase a target around 200 or need to make one around that figure batting first on a flat deck. We simply need to accept that were going to lose in that situation 8 times out of 10. It doesn't matter who we put in the middle order. The hacks we currently have are simply not reliable enough and we play more regular batsmen, they won't have the game to score at 10 RPO. That is just how it is, time to accept this and move on.

Scenario 2
We're chasing 160-170 or looking at that as a par score batting first. There is where having reliable batsmen in the middle order will make a difference. You will have a much more dependable chance of winning those games. If we have these hacks instead of them, it simply means another guaranteed failure if the openers fail.

I would want atleast two from Shan, Malik, Ghulam, Sohail in the middle order. Shadab has a better chance at consistency than Iftikhar or Khushdil. He can fill up one slot and we can have Asif to be fill up in the hope that he might click at the end sometime and score a quick 15-20.

Compare the over combination to Iftikhar-Khushdil-Nawaz-Asif, there really should be no question as to what has more chance of working.