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"The previous management did not ask the players about their fitness levels. Some of the players couldn’t even run 2 km": Wahab Riaz

Wahab was also part of that team who didnt bother focusing on their fitness but now criticizing that management to score some points.
 
Was this the same Chief Selector who in a press conference on Dec 18th said:
"We have watched Azam Khan very closely. At times, you have to prefer skills over fitness.
Click to expand...

Please make your mind up Wahab. Either fitness is integral to selection or not.
 
I don’t support the inclusion of Azam
Khan but those criticising Wahab for selecting him should remember Azam was never selected on the basis of his fitness because they thought his power hitting alone was sufficient. Pakistan didn’t think his fitness would be an issue because he wasn’t going to be running around the field keeping wicket behind the stumps.

I thought Wahab did a good job with the selections for the Australia tour.
 
But selects Azam Khan. The moment he selected Azam Khan, he lost all right to talk.
How on earth can he get selected!
 
Tbf the fitness has been a real issue. Our players let the whole country down during the WC with their pathetic diets.

I know there is hypocrisy because he selected an airship to play NZ, but it doesn’t mean Wahab shouldn’t be calling this out.

The players need to be whipped into shape and fast.
 
hitthestump said:
Tbf the fitness has been a real issue. Our players let the whole country down during the WC with their pathetic diets.

I know there is hypocrisy because he selected an airship to play NZ, but it doesn’t mean Wahab shouldn’t be calling this out.

The players need to be whipped into shape and fast.
Click to expand...

What gets me is the lack of desire to be in shape. You would think as a young man in the public eye, you would want to be in peak shape?

Apart from the bowlers and Rizwan and couple others, they are all out of shape. Either skinny, skinny fat or overweight.

Throughout the WC all they did was cut cakes, who cuts cakes as a grown man anyway? It's what children do. And going out to restaurants. It was like they were on holiday.

Disgusting levels of accountability and desire to be an athlete. These things come from within. As a teenager they should be in peak fitness and stay there until they retire, that is the bare minimum.
 
Well the whole national t20 tournament is a farce

The leading pace bowlers taking wickets are 2 bowlers who are clearly very old

One is a newbie shahab khan he looks like a wrinkles version of junaid khan but posseses non of the skill or talent of junaid in his initial years, he is a proper halwa trundler who does nothing with the ball the crown on his head is also thinning and going bald he was leading wicket taker and plays for abbotabad. On his cricinfo page his age and birth is not even recorded , maybe a hair transplant in a few months he will forge his age and say he is 24/25 yrs old.

Then the other one is sohail khan who plays for karachi who was a very talented bowler but is clearly now 40 and lost his pace , but can utilise his natural skills and experience but either way he isn't remotely fit to play for Pakistan again but its a shame because he possessed all the ingredients to have been a top bowler for Pakistan back in the days


As for karachi whom were the winners the best karachi batsmen wasn't even selected for t20 squad which is omair bin yusuf.
 
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Azam Khan should not be bothered by his fitness in the T20 format. He can keep the wickets for 20 overs easily. I guess his power-hitting and recent form makes him worthy enough of selection. If inzamam can play for so long then Azam can as well.
 
Why hasnt PCB announced any replacement for Abrar yet for T20s against NZ? We desperately needed to try new spinners to try our bench strength..after pathetic performances of our spinners even in spin friendly conditions in world cup..Why are we not trying new spinners?

@Saj any info why they havent announced replacement for Abrar?
 
topspin said:
I don’t support the inclusion of Azam
Khan but those criticising Wahab for selecting him should remember Azam was never selected on the basis of his fitness because they thought his power hitting alone was sufficient. Pakistan didn’t think his fitness would be an issue because he wasn’t going to be running around the field keeping wicket behind the stumps.

I thought Wahab did a good job with the selections for the Australia tour.
Click to expand...
Power hitting? Where did Azam prove to be a power hitter?
Flat_Track_Bully said:
What gets me is the lack of desire to be in shape. You would think as a young man in the public eye, you would want to be in peak shape?

Apart from the bowlers and Rizwan and couple others, they are all out of shape. Either skinny, skinny fat or overweight.

Throughout the WC all they did was cut cakes, who cuts cakes as a grown man anyway? It's what children do. And going out to restaurants. It was like they were on holiday.

Disgusting levels of accountability and desire to be an athlete. These things come from within. As a teenager they should be in peak fitness and stay there until they retire, that is the bare minimum.
Click to expand...
Agree, they have been pathetic and Babar as Captain set the tone during the WC. He was there on a holiday him and Shadab have regressed so much, even fitness wise.
 
BouncerGuy said:
Azam Khan should not be bothered by his fitness in the T20 format. He can keep the wickets for 20 overs easily. I guess his power-hitting and recent form makes him worthy enough of selection. If inzamam can play for so long then Azam can as well.
Click to expand...
You seriously comparing Azam Khan to Inzamam? And what power hitting form?
Azam Khan is not just overweight he is overhyped to the moon. Do see him in national jersey is a disgrace.
 
BouncerGuy said:
Azam Khan should not be bothered by his fitness in the T20 format. He can keep the wickets for 20 overs easily. I guess his power-hitting and recent form makes him worthy enough of selection. If inzamam can play for so long then Azam can as well.
Click to expand...
Inzamam was fairly lithe when he debuted. His fitness did become slack as the 90s progressed but cricket was still in a semi-amateur phase compared to now when fitness is a prerequisite for any top player.

Despite that, Inzamam still scored a Test triple century in a baking hot Lahore; 184 in Bangalore etc. If Azam Khan can do that then we make comparisons.
 
Farah Sohail said:
Why hasnt PCB announced any replacement for Abrar yet for T20s against NZ? We desperately needed to try new spinners to try our bench strength..after pathetic performances of our spinners even in spin friendly conditions in world cup..Why are we not trying new spinners?

@Saj any info why they havent announced replacement for Abrar?
Click to expand...
It is because of the Visa issue..
 
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Wahab is exposing himself. He played because management was casual in fitness standards. It's desi culture, the only time Rohit Sharma was fit when Kohli was captain with no nonsense approach on YoYo scores for fitness levels. I still remember Yuvi, Gambhir etc whining when they were dropped. Virat made watching test cricket exciting. Now it's again bore fest
 
topspin said:
I don’t support the inclusion of Azam
Khan but those criticising Wahab for selecting him should remember Azam was never selected on the basis of his fitness because they thought his power hitting alone was sufficient. Pakistan didn’t think his fitness would be an issue because he wasn’t going to be running around the field keeping wicket behind the stumps.

I thought Wahab did a good job with the selections for the Australia tour.
Click to expand...
But himself is saying that fitness is important. You can't pick Azam and also claim that fitness is important.
 
pakistani pride said:
But selects Azam Khan. The moment he selected Azam Khan, he lost all right to talk.
How on earth can he get selected!
Click to expand...
One must however not forget that we had someone by the name Inzamaam Ul Haq who played for Pakistan. When he made his debut not many rated him and he had a disastrous start to his world cup campaign. But his then skipper backed him and rest is history. We cannot write off Azam Khan unless we see him performing in international cricket and after he has had his fair share of matches.
 
Bewal Express said:
But himself is saying that fitness is important. You can't pick Azam and also claim that fitness is important.
Click to expand...

It’s obvious that Azam Khan isnt serious about playing for Pakistan.
Having said that he earned his selection for the 3 match series against Afghanistan. There was no harm in giving him a chance in a meaningless bilateral series like this. It’s just a shame for him and Pakistan that his batting and wicket-keeping were a joke.
 
T20 is a shorter format and you don't need to be slim-smart to make yourself useful for this format. Azam can do just okay in this format and his fitness is not suitable yet for the longer formats though but T20s? yes, he can play that format without much difficulty.
 
So who will take responsibiity for picking Azam Khan in this series? I hope Wahab isn't involved if he's going to talk about fitness.
 
I'll say this again , there's not enough intelligence between Wahab and Hafeez to select the right team or right strategy.

Easy to sit on TV channels and criticise and bring out conspiracy theories.

Mo Wasim Jnr. was a better CS than any Pakistan selector in recent times.

Also take a punt on Malik as Director or whatever role Hafeez has right now.

Hafeez is behaving like a headmaster with his fines and nonsense being imposed on grown men .

Malik is a massively flawed guy but from whatever I've heard from him , he's someone who knows enough or at least knows who to get on board to get work done.

Hafeez and Wahab will only give you excuses.
 
BouncerGuy said:
T20 is a shorter format and you don't need to be slim-smart to make yourself useful for this format. Azam can do just okay in this format and his fitness is not suitable yet for the longer formats though but T20s? yes, he can play that format without much difficulty.
Click to expand...
Bro. You do need fitness no matter what format.

The shorter the format the more fit you need to be. I keep giving the example of the world cup 2019 final 5 overs where every fielding and throw was spot on and it bought the margins down to the barest.

Also, seeing a azam khan in the national jersey is itself a joke and its embarrassing.

He also is not the best keeper, he is being made to keep wickets so that he doesnt have to move around the field more and can be adjusted.

So you see because he is unfit, we are weakening our keeper position which is crucial for diving. Because he cant dive, he is force to move behind the stumps as the ball is bowled

This is just like having a football game of 30 mins and the kid is made keeper cause he cant run on the field. Works in the back yard, but when playing international football and players can curve the ball, that goalkeeper wpnt be able to dive.

Same is keeping in international.

Also he is scared of the fast ball as we saw in psl. Even the nz players when miced up said our plan os to bowl bouncers and short to azam because he feels uncomfortablr. That is research.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
So who will take responsibiity for picking Azam Khan in this series? I hope Wahab isn't involved if he's going to talk about fitness.
Click to expand...

I feel embarrassed when commentators joke about him coming to the crease, and it does not look good.

This is international sports for gods sake. Gimmicks like these can work in domestic cricket cause you face some bad captains and bowlers. At international, no way.

His batting avg is of single digit on 7 games now
 
Major said:
Bro. You do need fitness no matter what format.

The shorter the format the more fit you need to be. I keep giving the example of the world cup 2019 final 5 overs where every fielding and throw was spot on and it bought the margins down to the barest.

Also, seeing a azam khan in the national jersey is itself a joke and its embarrassing.

He also is not the best keeper, he is being made to keep wickets so that he doesnt have to move around the field more and can be adjusted.

So you see because he is unfit, we are weakening our keeper position which is crucial for diving. Because he cant dive, he is force to move behind the stumps as the ball is bowled

This is just like having a football game of 30 mins and the kid is made keeper cause he cant run on the field. Works in the back yard, but when playing international football and players can curve the ball, that goalkeeper wpnt be able to dive.

Same is keeping in international.

Also he is scared of the fast ball as we saw in psl. Even the nz players when miced up said our plan os to bowl bouncers and short to azam because he feels uncomfortablr. That is research.
Click to expand...
I don't think he did a bad job at keeping. The only thing we needed was his power-hitting game which he badly failed at. If he can bring his power game 100 percent then there is no one stopping him from keeping his spot in the t20 side.
 
BouncerGuy said:
I don't think he did a bad job at keeping. The only thing we needed was his power-hitting game which he badly failed at. If he can bring his power game 100 percent then there is no one stopping him from keeping his spot in the t20 side.
Click to expand...
Bro, even if he bats well, if he doesnt keep well enough than whats the point?

The reason why he is keeping is not because he is a good keeper. Its because he cannot be adjusted anywhere else in the field due to his fitness.

Its like having kamran akmal as a keeper.

The issue is, ok, maybe azam did not drop a catch, but he doesnt stop the ball with his hands, he infact throws his body to the ball and uses his body to stop the ball. That is not how a proper keeper keeps wickets.

Look at dhoni and his game against Bangladesh where he won the game on that run out. If dhoni wasted time on stopping the balll with his body they would had los.

His keeping isnt good. Commentators will give praise that he stopped the ball, but a professional keeper will trll you he is throwing his body in hope to stop the ball.

When you have someone like Rizwan in the team, this becomes a joke.

Cosgrove was a very good aussie batter. But because he was fat the aussies never removed Gilchrist and replace him with Cosgrove
 
Cosgrove might be a good batter but he could never match the class of Gilchrist both as a batter and a keeper. Rizwan might be the best all-format batter but Pakistan needed a power-hitter down the order and that is why Azam was brought in. If he is unable to do his job, he should be dropped as well. No need to keep him in the squad if he is afraid of the ball.
 
stevewittry said:
One must however not forget that we had someone by the name Inzamaam Ul Haq who played for Pakistan. When he made his debut not many rated him and he had a disastrous start to his world cup campaign. But his then skipper backed him and rest is history. We cannot write off Azam Khan unless we see him performing in international cricket and after he has had his fair share of matches.
Click to expand...
Just look at Inzi in 92 he was younger and at that time quite lean to be honest. Azam is not INT standard. Should stick to leauge cricket.
 
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BouncerGuy said:
Cosgrove might be a good batter but he could never match the class of Gilchrist both as a batter and a keeper. Rizwan might be the best all-format batter but Pakistan needed a power-hitter down the order and that is why Azam was brought in. If he is unable to do his job, he should be dropped as well. No need to keep him in the squad if he is afraid of the ball.
Click to expand...
what power hitter? He cant play pace. How do you expect him to survive with his body shape? He cant even move to sight the ball.
 
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Major said:
Bro. You do need fitness no matter what format.

The shorter the format the more fit you need to be. I keep giving the example of the world cup 2019 final 5 overs where every fielding and throw was spot on and it bought the margins down to the barest.

Also, seeing a azam khan in the national jersey is itself a joke and its embarrassing.

He also is not the best keeper, he is being made to keep wickets so that he doesnt have to move around the field more and can be adjusted.

So you see because he is unfit, we are weakening our keeper position which is crucial for diving. Because he cant dive, he is force to move behind the stumps as the ball is bowled

This is just like having a football game of 30 mins and the kid is made keeper cause he cant run on the field. Works in the back yard, but when playing international football and players can curve the ball, that goalkeeper wpnt be able to dive.

Same is keeping in international.

Also he is scared of the fast ball as we saw in psl. Even the nz players when miced up said our plan os to bowl bouncers and short to azam because he feels uncomfortablr. That is research.
Click to expand...
Correct Azam Khan on record has said in PSL he was scared to face a old and retired Sami, cause of the pace.
 
Yet the current regime picks Azam Khan.

Pakistan Comedy Board.
 
Azam khan will soon be history if he is not willing to improve his skills. The way he batted in the first match was not good at all and if he continues that stuff, he will soon be discarded.
 
BouncerGuy said:
Azam khan will soon be history if he is not willing to improve his skills. The way he batted in the first match was not good at all and if he continues that stuff, he will soon be discarded.
Click to expand...
Sadly he wont. Our fickle fans will once again get impressed by his boundaries and our ex cricketers that get infouenced by social media will again be selecting him

Azam khan is the new imran farhat for us
 
Major said:
I feel embarrassed when commentators joke about him coming to the crease, and it does not look good.

This is international sports for gods sake. Gimmicks like these can work in domestic cricket cause you face some bad captains and bowlers. At international, no way.

His batting avg is of single digit on 7 games now
Click to expand...

The NZ commentators were trying not to laugh whenever the cameras cut to him. 🤣
 
Look at this OZ team. Every player is fit and athletic.

1705444503291.png

This is the benchmark. Until Pakistan can field an entire squad with this level of fitness then there will be no consistent success.
 
We can get body builders and power lifters in our team and it won't change a thing because the real problem is the lack of talent and not fitness. Our best domestic performers are no way near International level players from other nations.
 
Yuvi in a recent interview said that Pakistan team that won icc champions final against India was one of the fittest team he has ever played against.
 
For sure, rameez was trying to run cricket as what imran khan did during his last few playing years.
IK asked ramiz to give full authority to babar and dont ask any question. IK is responsible for our cricket disaster as he condemn international players playing PSL calling them phateechard, destroyed and ruined FC by banning departments resulting job loss for hundereds of professional cricketers and handing over PCB to a ramiz
 
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So the time is up now Azam khan and Iftikhar to leave this team now. They both have been pathetic and iffi was not even trying to run which shows his fitness along with azam khan who was meant to be a big hitter but could not clear the boundary that were shorter than normal ones.
 
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