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South Africa vs Pakistan | 2nd Test | Cape Town | Jan 3-7, 2019 | Pre-Match Thread

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1. Imam
2. Shan
3. Azhar
4. Harris
5. Babar
6. Sarfraz / Rizwan would be a wish but won't happen
7. Shadab
8. Faheem
9. Amir
10. Abbas
11. Shaheen

Hassan has to sit out and Yasir shah should be wrapped for dubai or rank turners
 
Imam
Azhar
Shan
Harris
Babar
Fakhar
Sarfraz
Faheem
Amir
Abbas(subject to fitness)/Hassan(if Abbas isn't fit and the wicket isn't conducive to spin)/Yasir(if it is indeed spin friendly)
Shaheen
Reading the pitch correctly will be crucial here.
 
1. Imam
2. Shan
3. Azhar
4. Haris
5. Babar
6. Asad
7. Faheem
8. Sarfraz
9. Amir
10. Yasir
11. Shaheen
12. Abass


If Haris is atleast 85 % fit play him else don't risk his career. Also he shouldn't bowl in next 2 Tests as a safety precaution.

If Haris is not fit than give Asad another match.


If Pitch has nothing for spinner for first 4 days than rest Yasir and give Hasan another match.
 
Pakistan needs both Shaheen and Hasan (for his valuable runs as well, as Abbas is another bunny). I would drop Yasir. Haris can bowl off spin.

Imam-Ul-Haq
Azhar Ali
Shan Masood
Babar
Haris
Asad
Sarfaraz
Hasan
Amir
Shaheen
Abbas
 
MenInG said:
Options are limited but Abbas and Haris are a must for the team - Shafiq needs to be dropped for his own sake
Click to expand...

Agreed. I would drop Shafiq for Haris Sohail.

I would also drop Yasir Shah for Mohammad Abbas. You may recall on other threads I was against this as I thought it was too risky not to play a spinner but after looking at some stats for matches in Cape Town in recent times I don't think a spinner will play a huge role so I wouldn't play either Shadab or Yasir. I'd play a 4 man pace attack and Haris Sohail + Azhar Ali + Shan Masood can turn their arm over. Anyway, if we are to lose, it would be because of our batting and not cos of our bowling.


I would open with Imam and Shan and play Zaman at 6.
 
ads101 said:
Masood opens, Fakhar removed from opening.

If Haris plays, play him at 6 if Haris isn't fit, Fakhar at 6. That's all the changes I would make. You can't drop captain midway through the series lol with no real other captaincy alternative, wait at least till the end of tour (despite the fact I agree Sarfraz should lose test captaincy after this series).
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So you wouldn't pick Abbas? Also still keeping Shafiq?
 
Open with Imam & Azhar, drop Asad & put Fakhar at #6. Faheem should play next match to strenghten that sorry tail of our batting.

1. Imam
2. Azhar
3. Shan
4. Haris
5. Babar
6. Fakhar
7. Sarfaraz
8. Faheem
9. Hasan/Yasir
10. Amir
11. Shaheen
 
BreadPakoda said:
Pakistan needs both Shaheen and Hasan (for his valuable runs as well, as Abbas is another bunny). I would drop Yasir. Haris can bowl off spin.

Imam-Ul-Haq
Azhar Ali
Shan Masood
Babar
Haris
Asad
Sarfaraz
Hasan
Amir
Shaheen
Abbas
Click to expand...

Abbas is not a great batsman but he lets others bat and provides support. He is not someone who will throw his wicket by mindless slogging.
 
Haroon786 said:
So you wouldn't pick Abbas? Also still keeping Shafiq?
Click to expand...

When I wrote that I assumed Abbas would still be injured. I wrote a second post when I heard that Abbas should be fit, but yeah Abbas should be in for Hasan.

I'd keep Shafiq. Mainly because there is no middle order squad bat apart from Rizwan who didn't get a practice game either. I don't think Rizwan's in the squad as he's considered the best middle order bat in domestic, it's more as back up wicketkeeper and a decent bat.

I would rather save the decision to after the tour is finished, it's only 2 tests to go. If Asad and Sarfraz don't do anything, we can bring in Saad, Usman or Fawad for Asad, and Rizwan in for Sarfraz.
 
I think we should go with this team if Haris is not injured..

1) Imam Ul Haq
2) Azhar Ali
3) Shan Masood
4) Haris Sohail
5) Muhammad Rizwan
6) Fakhar Zaman
7) Sarfaraz Ahmed
8) Muhammad Amir
9) Yasir Shah
10) Muhammad Abbas
11) Shaheen Shah Afridi

We really need to think out of the box here and I'm sure In Shaa ALLAH Fakhar will play well at number 6.
 
Pakistan should go with 4 fast bowlers strategy on such pitches as Haris and Azhar can be used for 10-12 overs collectively.

Azhar
Shan
Haris
Babar
Rizwan
Fakhar
Sarfraz
Amir
Hasan
Shaheen
Abbas
 
ads101 said:
When I wrote that I assumed Abbas would still be injured. I wrote a second post when I heard that Abbas should be fit, but yeah Abbas should be in for Hasan.

I'd keep Shafiq. Mainly because there is no middle order squad bat apart from Rizwan who didn't get a practice game either. I don't think Rizwan's in the squad as he's considered the best middle order bat in domestic, it's more as back up wicketkeeper and a decent bat.

I would rather save the decision to after the tour is finished, it's only 2 tests to go. If Asad and Sarfraz don't do anything, we can bring in Saad, Usman or Fawad for Asad, and Rizwan in for Sarfraz.
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Ah fair enough regarding Abbas.

As for Shafiq, it isn't so much that I don't expect him to not perform for at least 1 innings out of the next 4, it's that if he does score a 50 he will cling onto his spot for another year as we're not playing many tests until later on in 2019. This is a concern as we have seen Shafiq being heavily inconsistent throughout his career and he seems to score a lot of dead rubber runs or runs which seem to have no impact on the end result. So him getting kicked is a long term move for me, but it seems like he'll be given the remainder of the series though.
 
Lack of batting options in the Test squad

The squad selected for the current Test series in SA is extremely thin on batsmen. Apart from the team which played the 1st Test, the only other batsman in the squad is Haris Sohail, who himself is recovering from a knee injury. So the poorly performing batsmen like Asad, Fakhar and Sarfaraz have little competition for their places.
I would like to see Sarfaraz dropped for the next match, with the in-form Muhammad Rizwan taking over w/k duties. If fit, i would like Haris in for Asad. I would also bring in Abbas for Yasir; Haris can then do some spin bowling if needed.
So my team for 2nd test:

Fakhar Zaman
Imam ul Haq
Shan Masood
Azhar Ali (capt)
Haris Sohail
Babar Azam
Muhammad Rizwan
Muhammad Amir
Hasan Ali
Muhammad Abbas
Shaheen Shah Afridi
 
01. Imam
02. Masood
03. Azhar
04. Haris
05. Babar
06. Asad
07. Sarfraz
08. Amir
09. Hasan
10. Shaheen
11. Abbas

No need of spinner, Haris and Azhar can be utilized.
 
Imam
Azhar
Shan
Haris
Babar
Fakhar
Sarfraz
Amir
Yasir/Hasan
Shaheen
Abbas
 
I would like to see visitors play Amir , Afridi , Abbas [ he IS declared fit ] , Yasir & a all rounder . You are not going to find quality in batting , at least ensure you have a potent bowling line up in place .
 
For me Fakhar has to play, ideally in his opening position.

Fakhar
Imam
Masood
Azhar
Babar
Suhail
Faheem
Safaraz
Amir
Afridi
Abbas

Replace Afridi with Shadab if we want to go in with a spinner.
 
Very interesting this :Would be stupid to not give seaming wickets to our bowlers - du Plessis .
Despite the variable nature of the pitch at Centurion causing problems to batsmen from both sides, Faf du Plessis aims to keep pushing the South African pitch curators to prepare seam friendly wickets. This has to do with the potency of his bowling attack, dominated by pacers, that has the best bowling average of 23.03 this year.

Link to article : https://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-ne...ricket-team-bowlers-faf-du-plessis-dean-elgar
 
Can't believe we wouldn't be able to win series in South Africa in this series. This was the best chance to win in South Africa. Their batting is the least strong and their batsman aren't in form. But thanks to our legend batsman in our batting order, we would produce gems in the batting like in the last game.

Pacers like always will save our team from Shame 100%
 
If we lose this series, Asad, Azhar and Sarfraz should be dropped.

We have lost matches from winning positions because of these 3 seniors not taking responsibility.
 
Last time in cape town the match was also 4-8 january where it was all about seamers so hope they look at wicket and that match highlights if they are similar the shoud go with 4 bowlers plus harris and azhar could provide 5 option if needed
 
SarfiBabarHaris said:
Btw i dont think Pakistani pacers bowled that well.

They getting too much credit.
Click to expand...

It was Fatigue of a "3 man pace attack". They did bowl well upfront in first spells. Problem was with the second spell with inadequate rest inbetween.
44/4 , and well 16/2 ( counting one for drop catch and third umpire call) and then giving it away was fatigue-factor.
 
Imam
Shan
Azhar
Haris
Babar
Rizwan
Sarfraz
Amir
Yasir
Shaheen
Abbas

That looks like team according to media reports. Fakhar can replace haris if he's unfit or I would love to see fakhar replace sarfraz. Faheem for Yasir would be great too as I see Yasir struggling
 
Imam
Shan
Azhar
Haris
Babar
Rizwan
Sarfaraz (should be his last series)
Aamir
Hasan
Shaheen
Abas

Fakhar & Shafique should be dropped.
 
Playing Yasir would be the biggest blunder

He is useless in SA as Pakistan dont stand any chance of taking match to day 4 onwards

He is a waste of space
 
I saw people write off Steyn in the match thread. Watch the Cape Town test with Vernon back. They make a lethal hunting pair.

I hope they both play and open the bowling :faf
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Mohammad Abbas bowling in the nets during a practice session at Newlands, Cape Town today (video via PCB) <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SAvPAK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SAvPAK</a> <a href="https://t.co/LkFenznpMD">pic.twitter.com/LkFenznpMD</a></p>— PakPassion.net (@PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/PakPassion/status/1080042807828664320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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I don't know how Pakistan will cope up with the attack of:

Steyn
Rabada
Olivier
Philander
Maharaj

I can't see Theunis De Bruyne playing at Cape Town. SA likely to go with 5 batsmen.

This could be an innings thrashing. Philander getting injured for the 1st Test turned out to be the biggest misfortune for Pakistan.
 
Too many passengers in the team for this tour.

Azhar , asad and sarfraz. The three most experienced in the side are unfortunately the most useless in these conditions.
 
With Haris Sohail out of the second test as well things look very bleak for Pakistan.

Philander and Steyn are hunters on this ground.
 
It will be a good follow up test for Shan Masood. South Africa continued to bowl short to him in the first test. Should expect a lot of pitched up stuff looking for outside edge or lbw
 
Pete Rose said:
It will be a good follow up test for Shan Masood. South Africa continued to bowl short to him in the first test. Should expect a lot of pitched up stuff looking for outside edge or lbw
Click to expand...

Cape Town won't have that much bounce so I expect Steyn, Philander to bowl fuller lengths outside off which has been a weakness of Shan.
 
I hope Philander is added to 11 in place of a batsmen & visitors too play Faheem besides Amir , Abbas , Afridi & Yasir . The whole talk about dropping Yasir is a bit strange .
 
ILcricket said:
I hope you do not want Shadab for his batting ability ?
Click to expand...

Shadab is an useful bat. But considering the game won't last longer than 4 days and pacers will be bowling mostly it's a waste to pick Yasir. Shadab still provides you that control with the ball + bats well.
 
I'm not sure what this nonsense is about Sarfraz putting his foot down for Asad's selection over Rizwan. Flower attested to the fact that Rizwan looked sensational in the nets, and even though I'm not a big fan of Rizwan, he should definitely be given a chance. Asad is mentally shot right now and needs a break from the game to get himself in the right frame of mind. To have him play under these circumstances, where it's clear that the coach and batting coach prefer another player over him, is wrong and Sarfraz is being a hurdle just for the sake of it. Asad is not YK or Misbah, who would respond well to such criticism. Also, Sarfraz should focus on his performances and let the coach decide what's best for the team.
 
Salman4. said:
Mickey wants to play Rizwan, Sarfraz wants to continue with Asad.
Click to expand...
Sarfraz knows that if Rizwan perform then Sarfraz himself will be dropped from the test team for Rizwan after this test series is completed. So Sarfraz is not fighting for Asad, he is fighting for himself.

After the injustices committed against Saad Ali and Mir Hamza, I am all for Sarfraz dropped all together from all forms of international cricket. Cannot tolerate such injustices anymore.
 
srh said:
Sarfraz knows that if Rizwan perform then Sarfraz himself will be dropped from the test team for Rizwan after this test series is completed. So Sarfraz is not fighting for Asad, he is fighting for himself.

After the injustices committed against Saad Ali and Mir Hamza, I am all for Sarfraz dropped all together from all forms of international cricket. Cannot tolerate such injustices anymore.
Click to expand...
Sarfraz wanted Saad Ali, team management didn't.
 
Rabada faced the media at PPC Newlands ahead of training this afternoon . This was tweeted by NewlandsCricket . Any link for this ?
There was a picture somewhere of the players at ground & the pitch though not visible was uncovered . Any reports about it ?
 
[MENTION=1650]Usman Chadda[/MENTION]

The team selections are decided by Inzamam with some compromises in all rounder and bowling departments for Coach Mickey Arthur. (Faheem Ashraf and Shadab)

Sarfraz wanted Mir Hamza in the team but the selectors picked Amir.

Rite now the situation is really dire, the team is in complete shambles. And it looks it was all pre-planned by selection committee.

They are carrying an injured bat Haris Sohail hoping he'll somehow miraculously play the next.

Selection committee knew well in advance about Haris yet no middle order reserve was selected or sent before the 2nd test.

The rumors are also well-planned.
Pakistani media has always gained from bad dressing room and team performances. They will only poison the atmosphere and play a negative role against Pakistan team.

No one is more vulnerable and cornered right now than Sarfraz. Mickey and Sarfraz are both being holed up by situation created by the selector. Both need each other and its important that they stay on the same page in decision making.
 
Khwaja78 said:
[MENTION=1650]Usman Chadda[/MENTION]

The team selections are decided by Inzamam with some compromises in all rounder and bowling departments for Coach Mickey Arthur. (Faheem Ashraf and Shadab)

Sarfraz wanted Mir Hamza in the team but the selectors picked Amir.

Rite now the situation is really dire, the team is in complete shambles. And it looks it was all pre-planned by selection committee.

They are carrying an injured bat Haris Sohail hoping he'll somehow miraculously play the next.

Selection committee knew well in advance about Haris yet no middle order reserve was selected or sent before the 2nd test.

The rumors are also well-planned.
Pakistani media has always gained from bad dressing room and team performances. They will only poison the atmosphere and play a negative role against Pakistan team.

No one is more vulnerable and cornered right now than Sarfraz. Mickey and Sarfraz are both being holed up by situation created by the selector. Both need each other and its important that they stay on the same page in decision making.
Click to expand...
I don't think so. These things are always over-blown in the media to gain traction.

Sarfraz has nobody to blame but himself for his rubbish performances since he became captain. He pushed himself into the corner, and for a non-performing captain to go head-to-head with the coach for an equally rubbish non-performing player, is unnecessary.

The decision to take unfit players to this tour is based on the desperation from the current team management for positive results. Despite the daily protests here, it's quite clear that these are the best players in Pakistan at the moment.
 
Usman Chadda said:
I don't think so. These things are always over-blown in the media to gain traction.

Sarfraz has nobody to blame but himself for his rubbish performances since he became captain. He pushed himself into the corner, and for a non-performing captain to go head-to-head with the coach for an equally rubbish non-performing player, is unnecessary.

The decision to take unfit players to this tour is based on the desperation from the current team management for positive results. Despite the daily protests here, it's quite clear that these are the best players in Pakistan at the moment.
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Media is not over-blowing only, its playing a dirty game and trying to take sides. Especially Geo. Media all over the world criticises the team performances instead of reporting leaks of the dressing room. Pakistani media has always damaged the unity of the Pakistan team going back to the 90s.

Sarfraz definitely is himself to blame but I can't blame him for selecting Imam or the rest of the failing seniors even if he has supported them. Its the chief selector Inzamam's responsibility. Rizwan's selection is a major proof he does'nt have much say in selection matters.

If Selection committee had selected the middle order and opening reserve, team management would never have carried an injured player.

New Zealand XI that defeated Pakistan 2-1 in UAE almost majority of the players[NZ A] played Pakistan A in two 4-day matches.

PAkistan A played much superior than the Pakistan national XI, they drew both the matches and easily crossed 200 which is a par score of current Pakistan team. There was no 4th innings collapse.

So its wrong to call this XI the best side right now without Abid Ali, Saud Shakeel, USman Salahuddin, etc..

Mohammad Rizwan's average in those 4-day matches was 14 compared to Saad Ali ave. 72 and Abid Ali ave. 80+ yet both not selected by the selection commte. and player with an inferior average selected for being a keeper, is open politics going on.
 
Pakistan need to bring in batsmen who are performing in domestic cricket . All the non performers should be removed immediately.
 
Khwaja78 said:
Media is not over-blowing only, its playing a dirty game and trying to take sides. Especially Geo. Media all over the world criticises the team performances instead of reporting leaks of the dressing room. Pakistani media has always damaged the unity of the Pakistan team going back to the 90s.

Sarfraz definitely is himself to blame but I can't blame him for selecting Imam or the rest of the failing seniors even if he has supported them. Its the chief selector Inzamam's responsibility. Rizwan's selection is a major proof he does'nt have much say in selection matters.

If Selection committee had selected the middle order and opening reserve, team management would never have carried an injured player.

New Zealand XI that defeated Pakistan 2-1 in UAE almost majority of the players[NZ A] played Pakistan A in two 4-day matches.

PAkistan A played much superior than the Pakistan national XI, they drew both the matches and easily crossed 200 which is a par score of current Pakistan team. There was no 4th innings collapse.

So its wrong to call this XI the best side right now without Abid Ali, Saud Shakeel, USman Salahuddin, etc..

Mohammad Rizwan's average in those 4-day matches was 14 compared to Saad Ali ave. 72 and Abid Ali ave. 80+ yet both not selected by the selection commte. and player with an inferior average selected for being a keeper, is open politics going on.
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I agree about the media taking sides, but disagree about their influence in these matters. Mickey has a firm control over this team (rightly so) and the media going all hyper is testament to the fact that Mickey does not allow outside influence to run this team. Inzi doesn't have much say in my honest opinion, and Sarfraz is gradually losing the right to voice his opinion due to his non-existent performances.

Rizwan was selected because he performed well for Pakistan A throughout this season, and has fitness levels acceptable to Mickey. Abid Ali is unlucky, but I highly doubt the current team management will give a debut to a 30 year old, with questionable fitness levels. Also it's clear Mickey doesn't rate either Saad or Usman.
 
South Africa and Pakistan face selection posers

South Africa and Pakistan must resolve selection headaches ahead of the second test starting at Newlands on Thursday.

South Africa's six-wicket win in the first test at Centurion was set up by the bowling of Duanne Olivier, who had match figures of 11 for 96.

Olivier got his chance because of an injury to Vernon Philander, who is fit again and will "definitely come back" to play at his home ground, according to captain Faf du Plessis. Philander has taken 49 wickets in nine tests at Newlands at an average of 16.55.

Despite his performance at Centurion, Olivier is unlikely to be picked ahead of Kagiso Rabada, who finished 2018 as the world's top-ranked test bowler, or Dale Steyn, South Africa's all-time leading wicket-taker.

Nor are South Africa likely to risk going into a test at Newlands without spinner Keshav Maharaj. Which means Olivier will only play at the expense of a specialist batsman, with Theunis de Bruyn the most likely to make way.

The case for South Africa picking five bowlers is strengthened by Philander's status as a reasonably reliable lower order batsman, who has scored 730 runs at an average of 27.03 in his last 21 tests, going back to November 2016. His batting average at Newlands is 33.14.

Pakistan will also be welcoming back a first-choice fast bowler in Mohammad Abbas, with captain Sarfraz Ahmed saying after Centurion that Abbas had fully recovered from a shoulder injury.

Pakistan's bowlers were impressive in the first test but the touring team's batting frailty is such that they will almost certainly have to drop a bowler, probably the talented but inexperienced Shaheen Shah Afridi, to accommodate Abbas.

Also fit after missing the first test is batsman Haris Sohail, who seems certain to return. Shan Masood, who came into the side when fellow left-hander Sohail injured a knee during the pre-match warm-up, made an impressive 65 in the second innings in Centurion.

Masood batted at No 3, but is normally an opening batsman. That means flamboyant Fakhar Zaman, who looked vulnerable against South Africa's fast bowlers, could be in danger.

Bowlers dominated at Centurion, with the match finishing before tea on the third day. There is again likely to be assistance for the fast bowlers at Newlands but without the uneven bounce which was a feature in the first test.

Pakistan will be looking for experienced batsmen like Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq to bat with more responsibility than they showed in Centurion.

South Africa will be hoping for a return to form for Du Plessis and opening batsman Aiden Markram.

Teams:

South Africa (likely from): Faf du Plessis (captain), Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Vernon Philander, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Duanne Olivier.

Pakistan (likely from): Sarfraz Ahmed (captain/wkt), Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Amir, Yasir Shah, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Umpires: Bruce Oxenford (AUS), Joel Wilson (WIN)

TV umpire: Sundaram Ravi (IND)

Match referee: David Boon (AUS)

https://supersport.com/cricket/sout...uth_Africa_and_Pakistan_face_selection_posers
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/KWXQPFEEt8">pic.twitter.com/KWXQPFEEt8</a></p>— Hassan Ali (@RealHa55an) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealHa55an/status/1080190777077178368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Abdullah719 said:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/KWXQPFEEt8">pic.twitter.com/KWXQPFEEt8</a></p>— Hassan Ali (@RealHa55an) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealHa55an/status/1080190777077178368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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This picture reminds me of main hoon na movie.
 
Abdullah719 said:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/KWXQPFEEt8">pic.twitter.com/KWXQPFEEt8</a></p>— Hassan Ali (@RealHa55an) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealHa55an/status/1080190777077178368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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WTH Faheem and Shadab :)))
 
Abdullah719 said:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/KWXQPFEEt8">pic.twitter.com/KWXQPFEEt8</a></p>— Hassan Ali (@RealHa55an) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealHa55an/status/1080190777077178368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Both Faheem and Shadab are there only for joy trip; there was no need for each of them on this tour; why you select them Inzi? :facepalm:
 
I feel the first 1-1.5 days of this game will determine how the rest of this series will go for Pakistan. Also management seem to be persisting with Shafiq :facepalm:
 
Looking forward to abbas and amir bowl in tandem. As for the match, we will likely get crushed anyway. Just enjoy the brief moments of happiness. This batting lineup can’t do jack.
 
srh said:
Both Faheem and Shadab are there only for joy trip; there was no need for each of them on this tour; why you select them Inzi? :facepalm:
Click to expand...

How will you develop players .Through our rubbish domestic setup
 
Last edited by a moderator:
It's one of those situations in which South Africa's batting was almost as terrible as Pakistan's, but I suspect that the culture of deference to "seniors" means that Pakistan will pick the wrong team.

Let's just summarise the problems in order of significance:

1. Sarfraz Ahmed has lost his confidence and while he is keeping okay, his batting is an awful cartoon caricature of its former self. He clearly has been overwhelmed by the captaincy. He needs to step down from this Test in favour of Mohammad Rizwan, but he clearly won't.

2. Yasir Shah has been an absolute disaster in all 5 Test matches that he has ever played in Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. He bowls the wrong line and sets the wrong fields, and he is a passenger - he plays in effect as a specialist batsman, and Shadab Khan could do that better.

3. Hasan Ali is just too short to succeed in these conditions. He can bowl the odd terrific ball, but his shortness means that he cannot find a stifling line and he bleeds runs far too fast - which in a low-scoring series you cannot afford to do.

4. Asad Shafiq is a mental midget..........but he has made a previous Test century on this ground against Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander on Day 1 of a Test when those bowlers were better than they are now.

5. Azhar Ali is the best batsman but he is in clear decline and was always useless in South Africa anyway. At this ground six years ago he scored 4 in 44 minutes in the first dig and in the second innings he played his best ever innings in South Africa....but got himself out for 65 at 152-7 with his team 164 ahead, with 15 overs left against the old ball, and totally reliant upon him to set a defendable score.
 
srh said:
no way; also Sarfraz as captain is part of team management along with Mickey; I think you meant to say selectors?
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Team management, as in Mickey Arthur. He doesn't rate Saad Ali, which is what pretty much every media outlet has reported.
 
I would actually go for:

1. Azhar Ali
2. Shan Masood (captain) ......I can't believe I wrote that!
3. Haris Sohail (or Fakhar Zaman if he is unfit)
4. Asad Shafiq
5. Babar Azam
6. Mohammad Rizwan (wk)
7. Shadab Khan
8. Faheem Ashraf
9. Mohammad Amir
10. Mohammad Abbas (or Hasan Ali if Abbas unfit)
11. Shaheen Shah Afridi

The batting is useless anyway, but my batsmen at numbers 7 and 8 should score runs against the old ball.

And by having 4 quick bowlers I allow Shaheen Shah and Mohammad Amir to bowl shorter, quicker spells.
 
I find the call for Yasir to be dropped ridiculous . If his past performance in SA is a criteria , why was he even selected ?
 
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