Starting XI for Pakistan's Tests vs Australia (from selected squad)

[Danyaalr01]

My XI would be:

1. Azhar Ali (C)
2. Shan Masood
3. Haris Sohail
4. Babar Azam
5. Asad Shafiq
6. Mohammad Rizwan (WK)
7. Iftikhar Ahmed
8. Kashif Bhatti
9. Shaheen Shah
10. Naseem Shah
11. Mohammad Abbas

I went with Kashif Bhatti over Yasir as Bhatti can bat, he has 2 First class centuries and averages 24. He will also provide more control than Yasir, so he will give less runs.

I have gone with Iftikhar as there are no fast bowling all rounders. With young pace bowlers, we need to ensure we have many bowling options as we don't want to injure Shaheen, Naseem or Musa. That's why I was in favour of Yamin.

I have picked Shan ahead of Imam due to Shan's better ability to play the short ball, which will be vital in Australia.

Another option is to replace Iftikhar with Imam, and put Shan at 3, Babar at 4 and Haris at 5. Asad can then go to his favorite number 6 spot, and Rizwan then goes at 7.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Imam
Shan
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Asad
Rizwan
Kashif
Shaheen
Naseem
Abbas

It's the best from the available squad. Get part time overs from haris, Shan and Azhar.

 

[Danyaalr01]

Imam
Shan
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Asad
Rizwan
Kashif
Shaheen
Naseem
Abbas

It's the best from the available squad. Get part time overs from haris, Shan and Azhar.

That was one of the 2 teams I went for, but I would swap Shan with Azhar. Azhar has done terribly at 3, Shan did well at 3 in South Africa.

 

[Canistani Hero]

Imam
Abid
Azhar
Harry
Bobby
Asad
Rizzy
Yasir
Shaheen
Naseem
Abbas

 

[Danyaalr01]

Oh, I forgot about Abid. I pick him ahead of Imam then.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

Abid
Shan
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Shafiq
Rizwan
Bhatti
Abbas
Shaheen
Naseem

 

[Amjid Javed]

Abid
Shan
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Shafiq
Rizwan
Bhatti
Abbas
Shaheen
Naseem

Top 3 could be changed around with shan or abid also at 3.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Imam has already looked like a novice against broad, Boult and in SA in his short test career and some fans want him to open in Australia

 

[Danyaalr01]

All the teams are looking identical so far, I think it's pretty clear what the best team is going to be. Let's hope Misbah sees it like this as well.

 

[Danyaalr01]

Abid
Azhar (C)
Shan
Haris
Babar
Asad
Rizwan (WK)
Bhatti
Shaheen
Naseem
Abbas

 

[Pakhs]

Imam has already looked like a novice against broad, Boult and in SA in his short test career and some fans want him to open in Australia

How about Abid? He didnt look good in England all be it in only one innings. Atleast Imam got experiencing.

 

[Omer2002]

Guaranteed team from Misbah is the following...
Imam
Shan
Azhar
babz
haris
Asad
Rizwan
Yasir
Naseem
Afridi
Abbas

Mark my word this is it no matter what anybody says or predicts

 

[Titan24]

Imam
Shan
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Asad
Rizwan
Kashif
Shaheen
Naseem
Abbas

It's the best from the available squad. Get part time overs from haris, Shan and Azhar.

Abid
Shan
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Shafiq
Rizwan
Bhatti
Abbas
Shaheen
Naseem

Top 3 could be changed around with shan or abid also at 3.

Do you guys think Haris is good enough 5th bowler to get in 10 overs? As Shaheen coming back from injury and the pace which Naseem has, I am not sure if they will be able to bowl too many overs consistently throughout the day. I like the combination which [MENTION=149684]Danyaalr01[/MENTION] has given with Azhar opening and Iftikhar coming in as he is more than useful off spinner and a pretty decent batsman with 11 100s and avg of 40 in FC.

 

[Titan24]

My XI would be:

1. Azhar Ali (C)
2. Shan Masood
3. Haris Sohail
4. Babar Azam
5. Asad Shafiq
6. Mohammad Rizwan (WK)
7. Iftikhar Ahmed
8. Kashif Bhatti
9. Shaheen Shah
10. Naseem Shah
11. Mohammad Abbas

I went with Kashif Bhatti over Yasir as Bhatti can bat, he has 2 First class centuries and averages 24. He will also provide more control than Yasir, so he will give less runs.

I have gone with Iftikhar as there are no fast bowling all rounders. With young pace bowlers, we need to ensure we have many bowling options as we don't want to injure Shaheen, Naseem or Musa. That's why I was in favour of Yamin.

I have picked Shan ahead of Imam due to Shan's better ability to play the short ball, which will be vital in Australia.

Another option is to replace Iftikhar with Imam, and put Shan at 3, Babar at 4 and Haris at 5. Asad can then go to his favorite number 6 spot, and Rizwan then goes at 7.

It is the best 11 personally I can think of with slight confusion between Shan or Imam. Bhatti and Iftikhar can keep things tight while the pacers can try to get wickets.

 

[Ahmed216]

My XI would be:

1. Azhar Ali (C)
2. Shan Masood
3. Haris Sohail
4. Babar Azam
5. Asad Shafiq
6. Mohammad Rizwan (WK)
7. Iftikhar Ahmed
8. Kashif Bhatti
9. Shaheen Shah
10. Naseem Shah
11. Mohammad Abbas

I went with Kashif Bhatti over Yasir as Bhatti can bat, he has 2 First class centuries and averages 24. He will also provide more control than Yasir, so he will give less runs.

I have gone with Iftikhar as there are no fast bowling all rounders. With young pace bowlers, we need to ensure we have many bowling options as we don't want to injure Shaheen, Naseem or Musa. That's why I was in favour of Yamin.

I have picked Shan ahead of Imam due to Shan's better ability to play the short ball, which will be vital in Australia.

Another option is to replace Iftikhar with Imam, and put Shan at 3, Babar at 4 and Haris at 5. Asad can then go to his favorite number 6 spot, and Rizwan then goes at 7.

Best possible 11 but we all know yasir shah will start and probably iftikhar will all miss out

 

[Greenstorm]

From selected squad:

Azhar
Abid
Shan
Harris
Babar
Rizwan
Iftikhar
Shaheen
Abbas
Musa
Naseem


Ideally:

Azhar
Abid
Shan
Harris
Babar
Rizwan
Shadab
Faheem
Shaheen
Abbas
Naseem/Harris

 

[Amjid Javed]

Do you guys think Haris is good enough 5th bowler to get in 10 overs? As Shaheen coming back from injury and the pace which Naseem has, I am not sure if they will be able to bowl too many overs consistently throughout the day. I like the combination which [MENTION=149684]Danyaalr01[/MENTION] has given with Azhar opening and Iftikhar coming in as he is more than useful off spinner and a pretty decent batsman with 11 100s and avg of 40 in FC.

Azhar opening and Ifti at 6 or 7 could be another good option i guess. In day night test i think would be able to get away with 4 front line bowlers.

 

[Danyaalr01]

Azhar opening and Ifti at 6 or 7 could be another good option i guess. In day night test i think would be able to get away with 4 front line bowlers.

The day-night test is kind of about luck as well, if you get to bowl at night with the new ball then you have a massive advantage.

 

[ads101]

1. Shan
2. Abid
3. Azhar
4. Asad
5. Babar
6. Haris
7. Rizwan
8. Kashif
9. Shaheen
10. Abbas
11. Imran Khan

Went with Kashif over Yasir, he's in better form and maybe since Australia haven't seen him before, won't work him out. Don't think Yasir will do anything in Australia.

Went with Imran. I don't think it's the place to debut young bowlers with little experience, especially when we're already playing Shaheen who will be under less pressure with two more experienced bowlers playing with him. I probably would have gone with Eshan Adil if available. instead of imran.

 

[Rayyman]

1. Imam ul-Haq
2. Shan Masood
3. Azhar Ali*
4. Haris Sohail
5. Asad Shafiq
6. Babar Azam
7. Mohammad Rizwan+
8. Yasir Shah
9. Shaheen Shah Afridi
10. Mohammad Abbas
11. Imran Khan

 

[IMMY69]

Abid
Shan
Barbar
Azhar
Suhail
Asad Shafiq
Rizwan

That would be my top 7.

Bowlingwise Abbas over Imran Khan.
Cannot have two trundlers in Australia and Abbas is the superior bowler.

 

[Arsal_AK]

Shan
Abid/Imam.
Azhar
Haris
Babar (I maintain that 5 is too low for him. He has to bat at 4)
Asad
Rizwan
Naseem
Shaheen
Abbas
Yasir/Kashif (I don't know about this. Yasir is going to get tonked. Might as well play Kashif, especially if he can hang around with the bat a bit.)

Iftikhar at 6 with Azhar opening or dropping the spinner? Could be possible but I don't think Iftikhar is good enough.

We can't afford to play Imran. Especially with Abbas playing. He has no pace and is going to get smashed.The last tour should be indication enough.

For the pink ball test, get Musa in too. There is no need to play Yasir or any specialist spinner.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Do you guys think Haris is good enough 5th bowler to get in 10 overs? As Shaheen coming back from injury and the pace which Naseem has, I am not sure if they will be able to bowl too many overs consistently throughout the day. I like the combination which [MENTION=149684]Danyaalr01[/MENTION] has given with Azhar opening and Iftikhar coming in as he is more than useful off spinner and a pretty decent batsman with 11 100s and avg of 40 in FC.

Ifthikar is rubbish. Period. If your fast bowlers can't bowl 18 overs a day, they shouldn't be selected in the first place. Haris, Shafiq, Azhar and even Shan can bowl a couple of overs each so that's not an issue. On the other hand, playing Ifthikar makes the batting weaker than it already is.

 

[blackanhyellow]

1) shan
2) imam
3) azhar
4) haris
5) babar
6) rizwan
7) iftikhar
8) yasir
9) shaheen
10) Abbas
11) naseem shah

 

[blackanhyellow]

Ifthikar is rubbish. Period. If your fast bowlers can't bowl 18 overs a day, they shouldn't be selected in the first place. Haris, Shafiq, Azhar and even Shan can bowl a couple of overs each so that's not an issue. On the other hand, playing Ifthikar makes the batting weaker than it already is.

Maybe but only because ifti is not yet tested. He averages the same as shafiq in first class cricket, and averages much higher than shafiq in list a.

On top of that ifti averages 27 with the ball in first class, so he is better than sohail, azhar, etc... with the ball. He can give 10 overs if needed, and actually might come in handy on a day 5 pitch.

It's not about fast bowlers not being able to bowl 20 overs a day. But what if Warner takes a liking to one of the bowlers, need to have a back up option too.

Especially if we are trying a new 16 year old fast bowler, I am sure Pakistan would feel more comfortable having some cusion.

 

[another drop catch]

01. Shan Masood
02. Imam ul haq
03. Azher Ali
04. Harris Sohail
05. Babar Azam
06. Iftikhar Ahmed
07. Mohd Rizwan
08. Yasir Shah
09. Naseem shah
10. Shaheen Shah
11. Mohd Abbas

Not selected Shafiq despite good record at number 6 because need part time spin from Ifti,Harris and Azhar combined
Also based on current form ifti can't do any worse than Shafiq

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

Ifthikar is rubbish. Period. If your fast bowlers can't bowl 18 overs a day, they shouldn't be selected in the first place. Haris, Shafiq, Azhar and even Shan can bowl a couple of overs each so that's not an issue. On the other hand, playing Ifthikar makes the batting weaker than it already is.

How so? he has had a few phenomenal seasons at FC. Batting wise he is very similar to Misbah. He knows when to block and when to hit.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Maybe but only because ifti is not yet tested. He averages the same as shafiq in first class cricket, and averages much higher than shafiq in list a.

On top of that ifti averages 27 with the ball in first class, so he is better than sohail, azhar, etc... with the ball. He can give 10 overs if needed, and actually might come in handy on a day 5 pitch.

It's not about fast bowlers not being able to bowl 20 overs a day. But what if Warner takes a liking to one of the bowlers, need to have a back up option too.

Especially if we are trying a new 16 year old fast bowler, I am sure Pakistan would feel more comfortable having some cusion.

I was under the impression that posters wanted Ifthikar in the XI as a fifth bowling option/all-rounder and from what I've seen of his bowling it's harmless pie chucking . If his batting is indeed up to scratch and is better than any other no.6 in PAK domestic then my bad. If there are better batsmen they should play ahead of this guy. Selecting him for bowling is not worth it.

 

[aloo paratha]

Shan
Abid
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Rizwan
Iftikhar
Kashif
Shaheen
Abbas
Naseem

 

[Rayyman]

Shan
Abid
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Rizwan
Iftikhar
Kashif
Shaheen
Abbas
Naseem

Asad should and will play at Brisbane. He scored a 100 there last time.

And btw he can bowl off-spin too. Opened the bowling over Mir Hamza in one of the QEA matches.

 

[blackanhyellow]

I was under the impression that posters wanted Ifthikar in the XI as a fifth bowling option/all-rounder and from what I've seen of his bowling it's harmless pie chucking . If his batting is indeed up to scratch and is better than any other no.6 in PAK domestic then my bad. If there are better batsmen they should play ahead of this guy. Selecting him for bowling is not worth it.

Well his batting cant be any worse than shafiq. He has arguably better domestic stats.

But what I am saying is he offers an edge because of his bowling. He may be a pie chucker, but is still better quality than our other part timers in azhar, haris, etc...

I definitely would not select ifti just solely on his bowling.

Shafiq is I think the better fielder though so he will be missed for that.

 

[gazza619]

You have to take a chance with Yasir now that he has been picked in the test squad.

1. Imam
2. Abid
3. Azhar
4. Babar
5. Haris
6. Asad
7. Rizwan
8. Yasir
9. Shaheen
10. Abbass
11. Naseem

 

[Abdullah719]

Abid
Shan
Haris
Azhar
Babar
Iftikhar
Rizwan
Naseem
Musa
Shaheen
Abbas

I really would've liked to see Sameen Gul in the squad. At almost 21, he has a couple more years of experience than the trio of teens. This lineup just seems very unlikely, it's extremely rare for a team to field three teenage fast-bowlers and I don't see Imran Khan having much impact either. Most likely one of the spinners will play, and Iftikhar will give way for Asad.

 

[fluke]

This would be the perfect eleven in my opinion

Imam ul Haq
Azhar Ali
Babar Azam
Haris Sohai
Asad Shafiq
Abid Ali (Wicket Keeper)
Iftikhar Ahmed
Yasir Shah / Kashif Bhatti
Shaheen Shah
Mohammad Abbas
Naseem shah

I would prefer abid ali and use him as keeper batsman. He has better technique in batting than Rizwan as well and I don't think so he is as bad as Sarfraz while with the gloves

 

[babajee]

Really wish one of Yamin/Amad were selected. Would have given us good balance.

 

[Danyaalr01]

Another thing could do is try Kashif Bhatti at 7 in the warm ups, if he does well then they could bat him at 7, that will allow them to play 4 quicks. If Shadab was playing this would be easier to do as his batting is much better.

Pakistan have to back their top order, this will give them confidence.

I'm not in favor of Yasir playing because he will get smashed and will not get any wickets. Bhatti, being a left arm orthodox bowler, will provide more control and less likely to get smashed, ha can bat too.

 

[Sunny_majoka]

Shan
Abid/Imam.
Azhar
Haris
Babar (I maintain that 5 is too low for him. He has to bat at 4)
Asad
Rizwan
Naseem
Shaheen
Abbas
Yasir/Kashif (I don't know about this. Yasir is going to get tonked. Might as well play Kashif, especially if he can hang around with the bat a bit.)

Iftikhar at 6 with Azhar opening or dropping the spinner? Could be possible but I don't think Iftikhar is good enough.

We can't afford to play Imran. Especially with Abbas playing. He has no pace and is going to get smashed.The last tour should be indication enough.

For the pink ball test, get Musa in too. There is no need to play Yasir or any specialist spinner.

This will be likely eleven but I am afraid our two young bowlers Shaheen and Naseem will be overworked. They should not bowl more than 12, overs a day each.

 

[Square Drive]

Shan
Azhar
Haris
Babar
Shafiq
Rizwan
Iftikhar
Kashif
Shaheen
Naseem
Abbas

 

[Hadi Rizvi]

Shan
Azhar
Haris
Babar
Shafiq
Rizwan
Iftikhar
Yasir
Abbas
Shaheen
Naseem

I've no idea why we selected Kashif for this tour.

4 fast bowlers for pink ball test. So Yasir out for that.
Imran in for pink ball test. Musa is too big a gamble for pink ball test.
Atleast Imran will fully utilize the conditions.

I trust Shan more than Abid on bouncy wickets

 

[Danyaalr01]

Shan
Azhar
Haris
Babar
Shafiq
Rizwan
Iftikhar
Yasir
Abbas
Shaheen
Naseem

I've no idea why we selected Kashif for this tour.

4 fast bowlers for pink ball test. So Yasir out for that.
Imran in for pink ball test. Musa is too big a gamble for pink ball test.
Atleast Imran will fully utilize the conditions.

I trust Shan more than Abid on bouncy wickets

I would go with Bhatti over Yasir for the Gabba. Yasir is going to get tonked, Bhatti being a left arm orthodox bowler will have more control than Yasir, and that's bascially all you need from a spinner in Australia. Kashif is a bowling all rounder, so he will add depth to the batting. But Kashif shouldn't be in the line up after this, we need someone fresh like Zafar Gohar.

 

[Hadi Rizvi]

I would go with Bhatti over Yasir for the Gabba. Yasir is going to get tonked, Bhatti being a left arm orthodox bowler will have more control than Yasir, and that's bascially all you need from a spinner in Australia. Kashif is a bowling all rounder, so he will add depth to the batting. But Kashif shouldn't be in the line up after this, we need someone fresh like Zafar Gohar.

Test debut for a 33 yrs old spinner at Gabba? I'm totally against that. Atleast Yasir has performed in the past. Yasir should be persisted with.

 

[Danyaalr01]

Test debut for a 33 yrs old spinner at Gabba? I'm totally against that. Atleast Yasir has performed in the past. Yasir should be persisted with.

But Yasir has been dreadful in the three similar countries NZ, AUS and SA. I would have preferred if Gohar or Shadab got picked, but that's not the case.

 

[KyoOne]

We should go with 5 bowlers like India, especially since most of the pacers are teenagers.

Out of this squad, I'll select the following:

Shan Masood (plays short-ball well)
Abid Ali (looks great prospect from his ODI performances)
Azhar Ali (c)
Babar Azam
Haris Sohail
Mohammad Rizwan
Kashif Bhatti
Mohammad Abbas
Musa Khan
Naseem Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi

Though short on experience, but we know pretty well what experience did the last time we toured Australia.

There's no timid batsmen (Shafiq, Imam), or the reckless one (Iftikhar) and the trundler selected for being a good boy (IK snr). Yasir doesnt merit a place in non-Asian conditions

 

[Danyaalr01]

We should go with 5 bowlers like India, especially since most of the pacers are teenagers.

Out of this squad, I'll select the following:

Shan Masood (plays short-ball well)
Abid Ali (looks great prospect from his ODI performances)
Azhar Ali (c)
Babar Azam
Haris Sohail
Mohammad Rizwan
Kashif Bhatti
Mohammad Abbas
Musa Khan
Naseem Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi

Though short on experience, but we know pretty well what experience did the last time we toured Australia.

There's no timid batsmen (Shafiq, Imam), or the reckless one (Iftikhar) and the trundler selected for being a good boy (IK snr). Yasir doesnt merit a place in non-Asian conditions

I was thinking of this as well, but what is Bhatti's batting like. His stats are decent, but can he play quick, short bowling. This line-up would have worked so much better if Shadab was at 7 with the 4 pacers at 8-11.

 

[hadi123]

I'm sure there'll be some tour games which could change the final XI. But my team would be

1) Abid Ali
2) Imam-ul-Haq
3) Azhar Ali (C)
4) Babar Azam
5) Haris Sohail
6) Asad Shafiq
7) Mohammad Rizwan (WK)
8) Kashif Bhatti
9) Naseem Shah
10) Shaheen Afridi
11) Mohammad Abbas

 

[KyoOne]

I was thinking of this as well, but what is Bhatti's batting like. His stats are decent, but can he play quick, short bowling. This line-up would have worked so much better if Shadab was at 7 with the 4 pacers at 8-11.

And the irony is that all five of our pacers are total duds with bat, especially the "senior" IK, who holds the record of not scoring runs for most consecutive innings in test cricket before he made 6 runs once

 

[chacha kashmiri]

Imam
Abid
Azhar
Babar
Haris
Shafiq
Rizwan
Shah
Shaheen
Abbas
Imran

The team picks itself
The only debates are Shan against Abid- I go with abid purely on form
And yasir vs Bhatti vs iftikhar- yasir because of his stamina and weight training, he will give rest to the pacers by bowling constantly from one end
And also naseem vs imran khan- this depends on shaheen shah staying fit and whether Pakistan have the luxury of bowling someone in very small bursts at very high pace. If not Imran khan Jnr is a decent alternative

 

[Danyaalr01]

And the irony is that all five of our pacers are total duds with bat, especially the "senior" IK, who holds the record of not scoring runs for most consecutive innings in test cricket before he made 6 runs once

I'm pretty sure Musa and Naseem can bat. They have a couple of decent knocks in U19.

 

[RyanRyan10]

Imam Ul Haq
Shan Masood
Azhar Ali(c)
Haris Sohail
Babar Azam
Asad Shafiq
Mohammed Rizwan(wk)
Yasir Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Mohammed Abbas
Naseem Shah

 

[Mirpur express]

Cahca Ifti will be the first name on the team sheet

 

[Mobashir]

Don't think Kashif Bhatti has been selected as an all rounder (number 7) nor as a wicket taking option. He has been selected as a number 8 batsman and a defensive spinner. That really suits Misbah's philosophy.

My XI will be :
Shan Masood
Imam ul Haq
Azhar Ali
Babar Azam
Haris Sohail
Asad Shafik
Mohammad Rizwan
Yasir Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Mohammad Abbas
Naseem Shah

 

[Hasan123]

Azhar
Abid
Shan
Haris
Babar
Shafiq
Rizwan
Kashif (due to Yasir poor record in Australia)
Abbas
Shaheen
Naseem