"The sort of cricket England and a few others are playing, they are one step ahead": Mohammad Wasim

[MenInG]

"The sort of cricket England and a few others are playing, they are one step ahead": Mohammad Wasim

Mohammad Wasim speaking to a TV channel

"We often talk about the brand of cricket we play, and how we eventually have to play the modern form of T20 cricket"

"Obviously, the sort of cricket England and a few others are playing, they are one step ahead of us in terms of their approach. For us, it will take time to be fully converted into this brand of cricket, because for it you need certain players to be fully ready."

"But if you talk about a winning formula, we need our middle-order complementing the top order. We did get success from it as well. Our [2021 T20] World Cup went well, our home series have been good, and our success rate has been up. At the moment, the best policy for us is to mix and match [in terms of batting approach]."

"It reflects in my selection, but whatever the final strategy is, it is down to the captain and coach"

"The vision about my selection is based on the thought that if the low-value wickets in the lower-middle order are used, then we can get better results. We did see some valuable contributions from Asif [Ali], Khushdil [Shah] and Iftikhar [Ahmed], but I think we need to have more consistency from them."

"I think maybe there isn't a clear message, or there is a problem in the lower-middle order as they are valuing their wicket a bit more than they should, which is a problem,"

"The partnership between Shan and Khushdil wasn't impressive, it was going nowhere. The big advantage while chasing is that they know the target and it's easier to set a pattern and plan accordingly."

"If you want to play like this, or want to play this sort of cricket, then we don't need better-equipped players to get in. You will get such resources anyway. It all comes down to what is your game plan."

"Every team has its stronger links and weaker ones, and ours is bowling; our batting does need to improve for us to win games. As coach [and not as selector], I would love to see Shadab and Nawaz bat higher, and I had this discussion with the management, and you will see it happening going forward."

"It might give some shape to the middle order and it's not for the sake of change but based on the skillsets they bring. Both can play spin well, bat at a high strike rate, rotate the strike, and accelerate the score."

"It does look sometimes like the top order doesn't trust the middle order, but you can improve this"

"As a batter, you get disappointed, but at the same time, you have to look up to the other group as well. I am sure coaches have spoken and this isn't a good message that the top-two wickets falling result in the entire team getting out. So there is a need to show more faith on the others."

"Last year, changes were made mainly because of injuries and we have encountered similar issues again"

"We are constantly monitoring. I would say that this is the same squad will be part of the World Cup, but in light of injuries, we will definitely consider replacements if needed."

"You can't say anything about changes during a series, and if there is a plan, we won't talk about it in public. Because the situation is fluid around the injuries. At the same time, we have backed these boys for a year now and we will still back them. But we are looking into who is expected to be fit and who will be unavailable and who can be a replacement."

 

[BunnyRabbit]

This guy is such a pathetic individual.

He clearly wants to get the head coach job of the team as well.

In addition to that, he has no qualms in throwing the team under the bus while defending his selections.

Seems like he wants to impose his strategy on the team through his selections rather than what the management wants.

 

[MenInG]

Strange - he is saying they are a step ahead but our Head Coach is saying let nature take its course...

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

Chief selector undermining his own team?
Wow

 

[Rana]

Thanks chief selector sab

Maybe you can explain the vision of recalling Shan Masood to the domestics and bat at number 4? Surely you knew what you were doing with him before making this statement on Modern cricket?

 

[pakfan54588]

Yes we don't have any exceptional talent for middle order in domestic cricket but lack of experiment in middle order is failure of team management and cheif selector .We are stuck with ifti,khushdil, due to lack of options

 

[KingOfPakBreakfast]

This guy is such a pathetic individual.

He clearly wants to get the head coach job of the team as well.

In addition to that, he has no qualms in throwing the team under the bus while defending his selections.

Seems like he wants to impose his strategy on the team through his selections rather than what the management wants.

He was asked questions about team strategy and gave an honest yet tactful answer. Don’t see how that’s pathetic at all.

The whole point of the strategy is for the middle order to have a high s/r rather than a high average, and we didn’t see that approach against England, which he’s addressed.

Also, the selection is done with agreement of the captain and coach, who set the strategy. If u think Babar isn’t setting the strategy than I don’t know what to tell you.

 

[KingOfPakBreakfast]

Thanks chief selector sab

Maybe you can explain the vision of recalling Shan Masood to the domestics and bat at number 4? Surely you knew what you were doing with him before making this statement on Modern cricket?

Shan was doing well both in the Vitality Blast and in the National T20 when he was recalled, the idea bring that he would replicate Fakhar’s role. It didn’t come off, however as ever in this forum, hindsight is 20-20.

 

[Rana]

Our top 3 is the most one dimensional top 3 in T20 history

The chief selector holds the power to change this or make this happen

He allows it and now he is crying about how we are one step behind others

Maybe he should also make these statements before he announces a squad:

“Before I announce the squad, you should know that we are one step behind others when playing modern cricket. That being said, he is the squad for the World Cup”.

 

[The cricket enthusiast]

Soo to sum it up .
"Our team is not Good enough compare to other's so don't keep your hope's high"

 

[TheSultan]

What a stupid and confused statement.

If you actually believe that, why have you filled your team with 3 useless hacks?

I would not agree but I would have more respect for this sort of statement if they filled the middle order with 3 accumulators and said look we just don’t have the players to play modern cricket so we are doing the next best thing and filling it with capable batsmen who we believe can get us to a good competitive total that we are confident our bowlers can defend.

 

[Asif321]

Wasim is a confused fellow . Even when he talks he doesn’t have clear answers .

 

[Colorblind Genius]

When deyhaati type lallu panju people are placed on professional jobs, and they are to publicly talk, then such idiocy doesn’t take long to expose.

If any of you have taken any management/leadership skill learning courses then you must have learned that you never throw your team under the bus (specially in front of others).

A professional leader would’ve used more articulate words to express this concern - something like, “modern day cricket is super competitive in top teams and sharpening our approach and skill is an evolving and continuous process that we engaged in”

Would IK utter such words about his team?

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

He is saying this:

I gave the team with a thought process A - high value wickets openers, low value, hell for leather batsmen at the bottom, and then back your strength of bowling to do their magic.

But team think tank has though process B - high value wickets all the way to no 11, no acceleration at any point, dot balls, fear of failure and then leave a mountain for lower order batsmen and bowlers to climb.

He is right.

England, when they changed their white ball cricket, had many of the same resources as before, they just went with a different strategy. Pakistan's strategy is defensive - and so are the results.

If Fakhar is at 3, Shadab and Nawaz at 4 and 5, and then lower order of Asif, Iftikhar, + someone like Haider, Azam, Haris with a license to kill, the same team performs entirely differently. Could lose some games but can win the big one's.

Pakistan can keep rearranging the deck chairs on Titanic, fact is, there is a limited pool of players and they have to work them into a winning system. People cried for Haider, Shadab, Dahani and others, results aren't much different.

So I am with Wasim - roughly same resources, but a different strategy.

 

[Nasty Naz]

Did people even listen to what he actually said or is it more fun to simply whine & complain?

Domestic of devoid of any decent middle order. It simply cannot play the India/England/Australia play because they have so many good batsmen. Pakistan's approach is to essentially Babar/Rizwan to carry the innings for the first 10 overs and middle order to come in & blast away. That's why they're all a bunch of power hitters with low averages. Since everyone is such a genius here, why don't you guys list the players that should play? We all wanted Shan in the squad and the results are there to see. Maybe now, people will start clamoring for some new flavour like Azam Khan only to call him mota & parchi first match he fails. Such a toxic fan base in Pakistan. Losing their minds to play for players to play modern cricket when they simply don't have the resources or talent to pull it off. Hate to break it to you but there's no Buttler/Stokes/Livingstone/Brooks etc somewhere in Pakistan waiting to be picked.

Is it the most ideal approach? Of course not. Pakistan are essentially lowering the ceiling of consistently having 200+ scores unlike other teams but they are raising their floor so they are generally a good bet to at least get around 160-170 and back their bowlers to defend it. For the most part, it has worked as we have seen them get into the semi's last year, finals in Asia Cup and had two chances to win the series vs England as a result. At best, Pakistan can tweak their approach a bit and give Shadab a bigger look in the middle order, especially against spin which he dominates. A tweak in approach when batting first is particularly needed and sure, we all want Babar/Rizwan to play a bit more aggressively early on but the issue is, if early wickets fall like we saw in the last match, Pakistan are completely hopeless. Contrast that with the India/SA match where after early wickets, SA are already done and still played super aggressively and got close to winning the match. Pakistan's middle order simply doesn't have the capability to do that.

Based on what they have currently & in domestic, they won't be able to do better - at least right now. Pakistan's upcoming players are a bit more dynamic but it takes some time. There's no instant flick of the switch to become a powerhouse.

 

[KingOfPakBreakfast]

When deyhaati type lallu panju people are placed on professional jobs, and they are to publicly talk, then such idiocy doesn’t take long to expose.

If any of you have taken any management/leadership skill learning courses then you must have learned that you never throw your team under the bus (specially in front of others).

A professional leader would’ve used more articulate words to express this concern - something like, “modern day cricket is super competitive in top teams and sharpening our approach and skill is an evolving and continuous process that we engaged in”

Would IK utter such words about his team?

If you watch the actual show (Sports Lounge on Geo), you’ll in fact see that he was incredibly tactful and supportive of the team in general whilst also being constructive.

Easy to jump to judgments when reading the transcription on a forum.

 

[Mamoon]

When deyhaati type lallu panju people are placed on professional jobs, and they are to publicly talk, then such idiocy doesn’t take long to expose.

If any of you have taken any management/leadership skill learning courses then you must have learned that you never throw your team under the bus (specially in front of others).

A professional leader would’ve used more articulate words to express this concern - something like, “modern day cricket is super competitive in top teams and sharpening our approach and skill is an evolving and continuous process that we engaged in”

Would IK utter such words about his team?

The obsession with Imran is baffling. What does he have to do this with this thread?

Imran used worse words for the foreign players who toured Pakistan for PSL final in 2017, players who helped bring international cricket back to Pakistan.

Furthermore, he was not generous about giving his team credit for the 1992 World Cup win and made it all about himself, so he is not the best example to use here. This obsession with Imran would be better served in a different context.

 

[Mamoon]

It is difficult to make sense of what he is trying to say but from what I could gather, it seems that he is implying that as a selector he can pick players for a role but if the players do not execute that role then it is the captain and the coach’s headache to deal with it.

He is not wrong to be honest. Iftikhar and Khushdil are crap players but he obviously picked them with the intention that they would be utilized as sloggers. Now if they do tuk-tuk and play for themselves you have to blame the coach and the captain for this strategy.

Wasim is trying to save his job now because when the team loses, it is easier to sack the selector than the coach and the captain and it is less costly too. There is no doubt the axe would fall on his head long before it does on Saqlain and Babar.

 

[Markhor]

This guy is such a pathetic individual.

He clearly wants to get the head coach job of the team as well.

In addition to that, he has no qualms in throwing the team under the bus while defending his selections.

Seems like he wants to impose his strategy on the team through his selections rather than what the management wants.

Not sure how you got that impression from the interview. Wasim has minimal input as Ramiz has given Babar Azam total authority over tactics and selections with Saqlain a rubber stamp coach.

Ramiz is Imran's disciple in having little time for coaches or selectors and believes in an all-powerful captain. However you cannot recreate the Imran captaincy model with someone who's marginally better than Azhar Ali.

Wasim would make a better head coach than Saqlain. He gave his Northern players defined roles and promoted youth.

Saqlain was a decent interim appointment post-Misbah, but isn't an international head coach and more akin to a roadside soothsayer and philosopher who you pay £1 to predict your future wife over a cup of tea.

 

[sweep_shot]

England are better in terms of batting. But, in bowling, Pakistan are either ahead or it's a tie. England's LOI bowling isn't that great currently.

 

[PakHammer]

Misbah was chief selector and coach at the same time. Might as well let Wasim do both roles as he talks a good game!

 

[Gayle_Force]

At least he is speaking the truth so that should be commended. It is very clear that the roles players are selected for and the execution by the players is completely different. The least they can do is rectify this communication gap before World Cup starts.

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Not sure how you got that impression from the interview. Wasim has minimal input as Ramiz has given Babar Azam total authority over tactics and selections with Saqlain a rubber stamp coach.

Ramiz is Imran's disciple in having little time for coaches or selectors and believes in an all-powerful captain. However you cannot recreate the Imran captaincy model with someone who's marginally better than Azhar Ali.

Wasim would make a better head coach than Saqlain. He gave his Northern players defined roles and promoted youth.

Saqlain was a decent interim appointment post-Misbah, but isn't an international head coach and more akin to a roadside soothsayer and philosopher who you pay £1 to predict your future wife over a cup of tea.

Neither of Wasim or Saqlain are head coach material. Saqlain is a spin coach.

Best way is to get a guy with experience of having coached an FC who knows the modern aspects of coaching and can adapt to Pakistani Cricket.

 

[Kianig89]

These statements of Mr. Wasim defies logic what was he trying to say do he really believes that with the likes of Khusdil and Iftikhar we can improve our brand of cricket strange

 

[Saj]

Seems like a lot of statements and finger-pointing.

Not much acceptance of responsibility.

Who is insisting on picking so many out of form players and players who are simply not good enough for international cricket?

 

[Colorblind Genius]

If you watch the actual show (Sports Lounge on Geo), you’ll in fact see that he was incredibly tactful and supportive of the team in general whilst also being constructive.

Easy to jump to judgments when reading the transcription on a forum.

Agreed.
I didn't watch the show.

However, as Saj posted above, it does seem to have a tasteless practice of finger pointing and missing the sense taking responsibility, yet happily taking the fat pay check.

 

[Colorblind Genius]

The obsession with Imran is baffling. What does he have to do this with this thread?

Imran used worse words for the foreign players who toured Pakistan for PSL final in 2017, players who helped bring international cricket back to Pakistan.

Furthermore, he was not generous about giving his team credit for the 1992 World Cup win and made it all about himself, so he is not the best example to use here. This obsession with Imran would be better served in a different context.

Perhaps replace IK with Misbah if you are "baffled" and trying to understand the point here?

 

[KingOfPakBreakfast]

Neither of Wasim or Saqlain are head coach material. Saqlain is a spin coach.

Best way is to get a guy with experience of having coached an FC who knows the modern aspects of coaching and can adapt to Pakistani Cricket.

Wasim is actually someone who’s coached FC (a lot) and has developed players a lot as well. It was under him that Haider looked the most promising, Haris Rauf began to show progress and Rohail Nazir was playing his best. He’s also the guy who promoted young Mubasir Khan, the then 17 year old from the junior division to the QEA first team for Northern.

It’s why I was gutted when he was made selector only, because he’s actually somebody who’s tactically sound and develops players in that he could have done the coach and chief selector combined role very well.

 

[shamaan]

What contribution did you get from Khushdil !

 

[TheSultan]

Actually - I have re-read his statement in full (rather than just the headline - my bad) and he’s actually making some good points.

Fair enough.

 

[srh]

slow batting again from openers in power play. Why dont they just break this opening partnership which is costing games ?

 

[Kianig89]

Yes Eng are one step ahead its like Barcelona and Stoke City, Bayern and West Ham