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[VIDEOS] Is Abdullah Shafique the most highly-rated young Pakistani batter of recent times?

He had a fanstastic opportunity to score a Test hundred against a good Australian attack and propel his career. Better luck next innings or Test match now
 
ElRaja said:
commenting on his mental strength after hes played 5 fc games, lol, fwiw if he could average 40 (like shafiq did before he completely lost it) whilst opening hed walk into any international test team.
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gazza619 said:
I would happily take an average of 38 for a Pakistan test opener.
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When Shafique opened against NZ in T20s, he was bricking himself. Even in the PSL, he always looked nervous.

Yesterday, he lost the plot when he was getting close to 50 and starting hacking around just so that he could get over with it.

Now opening in T20s and batting against this Australian attack might be outside his comfort-zone, but there is sufficient evidence that he is not very confident and therefore, there are question marks on his long-term future at this level.

Opening in Tests in Asian conditions isn’t that difficult a job. The ball only swings for half an hour unless the conditions are overcast and there is considerable grass on the wicket.

Had Shafiq opened in Tests he would have produced pretty much the same numbers.

Hafeez averaged 50+ as an opener and UAE and we will know how good his technique and composure was against the moving ball.

If Abdullah Shafique doesn’t average 45+, then the hype is not justified. Well it rarely is for Pakistani players, since most of the hype is due to desperation because the vast majority of our players are mediocre.
 
Bewal Express said:
It was noticeable but the problem that he is trying to solve still remains and on wickets where the ball seams, he will be more vulnerable than most batsman to LBWs
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Agreed. Also seems to play away from his body which also needs to be rectified. He young so let’s hope he works hard, with the presence of Yousuf can help him overcome these faults or at least improve.
 
First International century for Abdullah.

hopefully the first of many more to come, a promising start to his Intl. career.

Justifying the hype and talent so far.
 
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Highlights of his maiden test 100
 
He seems to have a mature head on his shoulders for his age. No showbaazi or extravagance
 
He’s a good fielder too. This boy should play 10+ years of Test cricket
 
In the Babar Azam mould of only letting his bat do the talking but I think he has more talent than Babar Azam.
 
Brilliant by the lad( on a flat track). IA he kicks on and becomes the World class opener we haven't had since Saeed Anwar over 2 decades ago.
 
Good start of his career on flat wickets, I will wait for him to perform in SENA before labelling him as the next Bradman. We need another Majid Khan or M Yusuf not Azhar Ali or Yunis Khan, king of UAE.

That's why its important to give young players debut in home condition.
 
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moghul said:
Good start of his career on flat wickets, I will wait for him to perform in SENA before labelling him as the next Bradman. We need another Majid Khan or M Yusuf not Azhar Ali or Yunis Khan, king of UAE.

That's why its important to give young players debut in home condition.
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Younis Khan has a century in every test playing nation he's many tiers above Azhar Ali. He was the King of UAE but scored centuries everywhere.
 
- Flat wicket
- No scoreboard or match pressure
- Aussies giving nowhere near full effort
- Mainly part time bowlers bowling

I understand that Abdullah can only beat what's in front of him but this was far from an innings with meaning. A very large spoon of salt is neccesary based on today's work.
 
moghul said:
Good start of his career on flat wickets, I will wait for him to perform in SENA before labelling him as the next Bradman. We need another Majid Khan or M Yusuf not Azhar Ali or Yunis Khan, king of UAE.

That's why its important to give young players debut in home condition.
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lol Abdullah should pray to have a career anywhere close to Younis Khan.
 
moghul said:
Good start of his career on flat wickets, I will wait for him to perform in SENA before labelling him as the next Bradman. We need another Majid Khan or M Yusuf not Azhar Ali or Yunis Khan, king of UAE.

That's why its important to give young players debut in home condition.
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Younis khan has a century in every test nation he also averages 51 away from home !
 
How did this guy get a place in the international team despite not even playing 10 games of domestic?
 
hitthestump said:
- Flat wicket
- No scoreboard or match pressure
- Aussies giving nowhere near full effort
- Mainly part time bowlers bowling

I understand that Abdullah can only beat what's in front of him but this was far from an innings with meaning. A very large spoon of salt is neccesary based on today's work.
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All these are fair points and give context to the innings but you still have to score them and PK players are always under pressure from fans and media. This is a great start to his career and IA he becomes the player we all want him to be .
 
realitygaf said:
did you wake up and post this after day 5 without watching the highlights??
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I saw a inexperienced batsmen getting out trying to hit a 6 during a test match on what was one of the flattest tracks produced in the last few years.

You don’t fast track people into the international side, that defies the whole point of domestic cricket. This is no longer the 80’s era.
 
Concerned said:
I saw a inexperienced batsmen getting out trying to hit a 6 during a test match on what was one of the flattest tracks produced in the last few years.

You don’t fast track people into the international side, that defies the whole point of domestic cricket. This is no longer the 80’s era.
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You do if you're desperate. This is also why we've fast tracked a bunch of rookie fast bowlers over the past few years.

If we had star perfomers in domestics it'd be easy but we don't. Domestic first class cricket is pretty mediocre in Pakistan. We are left taking punts on guys like Shafique hoping they'll come good rather than letting them actually develop.

Of course there are more misses (Naseem, Hasnain, Musa etc) than wins (Shaheen)
 
Mamoon said:
When Shafique opened against NZ in T20s, he was bricking himself. Even in the PSL, he always looked nervous.

Yesterday, he lost the plot when he was getting close to 50 and starting hacking around just so that he could get over with it.

Now opening in T20s and batting against this Australian attack might be outside his comfort-zone, but there is sufficient evidence that he is not very confident and therefore, there are question marks on his long-term future at this level.

Opening in Tests in Asian conditions isn’t that difficult a job. The ball only swings for half an hour unless the conditions are overcast and there is considerable grass on the wicket.

Had Shafiq opened in Tests he would have produced pretty much the same numbers.

Hafeez averaged 50+ as an opener and UAE and we will know how good his technique and composure was against the moving ball.

If Abdullah Shafique doesn’t average 45+, then the hype is not justified. Well it rarely is for Pakistani players, since most of the hype is due to desperation because the vast majority of our players are mediocre.
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How has Gill done in tests in India ?
 
shamaan said:
How has Gill done in tests in India ?
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Gill scored a high class 91 vs same attack at their home Gabba.. where Australia had not lost for last 30 years.. on a wearing last day pitch.. with the pressure of chasing the target and series on the line.
Abdullah had no stakes.. a benign and a dead pitch and aussies bowling part timers most of the time to preserve their energy.
There is no comparison as of now.
 
shamaan said:
Younis khan has a century in every test nation he also averages 51 away from home !
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Quality, not quantity/stats matters for me. Just an example, in his last tour to England , YK failed miserably in 6 innings but scored a century in the flattest wickets in England Oval. That was typical of YK. Credit goes to him for not missing any opportunity to score runs on flat wickets , his fitness and concentration on the game was amazing , not his skill to play quality fast/swing bowling. Was very good in SC wickets , India-SL, BD and of course UAE.
 
hoshiarpurexpress said:
Gill scored a high class 91 vs same attack at their home Gabba.. where Australia had not lost for last 30 years.. on a wearing last day pitch.. with the pressure of chasing the target and series on the line.
Abdullah had no stakes.. a benign and a dead pitch and aussies bowling part timers most of the time to preserve their energy.
There is no comparison as of now.
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But even Yasir Shah has a 100 in Australia.
You would expect Gill to do better on a wearing pitch as he's brought up on these pitches but then again looking at his record in India it doesn't surprise me.
 
moghul said:
Quality, not quantity/stats matters for me. Just an example, in his last tour to England , YK failed miserably in 6 innings but scored a century in the flattest wickets in England Oval. That was typical of YK. Credit goes to him for not missing any opportunity to score runs on flat wickets , his fitness and concentration on the game was amazing , not his skill to play quality fast/swing bowling. Was very good in SC wickets , India-SL, BD and of course UAE.
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Younis khan has a 175 against Australia in Australia.
Younis did score 218 against England but on the same pitch England only managed 328 & 253.

Thiers many other instances when he has performed marvellously
 
All eyes on him to see if he can repeat his performance of the 1st Test.

6gerskH.jpg
 
Not impressed!

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MenInG said:
Not impressed!

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An absolute waste of a wkt
To get run out in a test match is criminal

What was the need? This isnt a odi or t20
 
Mentally weak like Asad Shafiq. Expect a lot of soft dismissals from him.
 
He was batting so well, especially against Cummins who was bowling a brilliant spell. Great signs for the future.
 
Like how he is playing:

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Hes showing more grit then others here. Has done well in his short test career.
 
Amazing how he’s playing so much more positively since Azhar got out
 
Well done young man

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He must be winning the respect of some great Test cricketers out there

Amazing grit and determination
 
To become a world class batsman , you need to have good technique and got to be mentally strong. Abdullah has passed the mental strength test by batting like this on 4th inning while facing huge score board pressure against a very good bowling attack . His technique will be tested in SENA , not there yet, but, so far so good. Very very promising young player.
 
Hes playing each ball on its merit and playing very straight. great fighting knock so far.
 
Spotlight is on Babar after that century but we shouldn't forget how well Shafique played. Faced 226 balls and was totally solid for 225 of them. He really has a brilliant technique and a fighting spirit at just 22 years of age.

Hopefully can go on to make it count tomorrow.
 
More talented than Babar Azam

He has played 3 FC games and has a better defense than any of the Pakistani batters. in fact in this entire series he hasn't been dismissed by the bowler. One run out and one caught trying to hit a 6
 
Guys like Warner, Smith, Labushange, Cummins, Starc will all remember a young 22 year old from Pakistan who stood and fought.

Massive respect
 
moghul said:
Quality, not quantity/stats matters for me. Just an example, in his last tour to England , YK failed miserably in 6 innings but scored a century in the flattest wickets in England Oval. That was typical of YK. Credit goes to him for not missing any opportunity to score runs on flat wickets , his fitness and concentration on the game was amazing , not his skill to play quality fast/swing bowling. Was very good in SC wickets , India-SL, BD and of course UAE.
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That Oval pitch on which Younis scored 200 was the quickest and bounciest pitch in that whole series.
Sky Sports showed Hawkeye data which proved the above.

Younis was not the greatest player of pace but let's not go overboard and discredit him by making these false claims.

He was decent enough against pace....you don't score 10K runs if you can't play pace
 
Future looks bright for Abdullah.

A 22 year old playing his first big series against a great attack and he has looked very confident and displayed immense grit and mental strength.

Credit should be given to the team management as well for identifying his talent and fast-tracking him
 
Good innings from him today - proper test match batting. Showed grit and determination. Needs to go on and get 130+ tomorrow.
 
Mamoon said:
Mentally weak like Asad Shafiq. Expect a lot of soft dismissals from him.
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Nah, not a softie like Asad Shafiq and scores runs that actually matter.

Shafiq would only perform once a series, that too when we had no use of those runs.

This other Abd Shafique is playing one heck of a knock in a situation where we required him to stick around. He’s done just that.

That too in his first few Tests.

Of course, more tests await him. But the signs look much better than Asad Shafiq.
 
What's the feeling guys? I haven't seen much to make a judgement, the only bit I saw was the drop by Smith of Cummins. Does he give the aura of certainty?
 
I rate his gritty inns today way above his 1st hundred he got on rawalpindi highway.
 
Great knock of eating up balls and scoring at a low rate

Sometimes I feel Babar plays test cricket like one days

He needs to slow down a little bit

Strike rate of 50 is fine in test cricket normally. In this situation a strike rate of 30-40 would be ideal
 
Great knock of eating up balls and scoring at a low rate

Sometimes I feel Babar plays test cricket like one days

He needs to slow down a little bit

Strike rate of 50 is fine in test cricket normally. In this situation a strike rate of 30-40 would be ideal
 
Very promising start to his test career and I'm sure he will take this confidence when playing in SENA on his way to become a world class batsmen .

That's why its important to give a young player debut in home condition. Debut in foreign countries are never good , Umar Amin is the prime example.

Had Green was given debut on SC wickets , he would have vanished by now, but after getting enough experience of test cricket at home , he is good on any conditions.

We missed the chance to give Saud SHakeel or Gulam debut against Australis and suck with the "legend" .
 
arif_2021 said:
Great knock of eating up balls and scoring at a low rate

Sometimes I feel Babar plays test cricket like one days

He needs to slow down a little bit

Strike rate of 50 is fine in test cricket normally. In this situation a strike rate of 30-40 would be ideal
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I do not understand this thinking. Why?

Why would anyone target a particular max strike rate. Babar has only done well because he has looked to score runs when available. Otherwise he would be a sitting duck like Azhar Ali.

In Azhar and Shafique’s partnership they were both playing scared cricket with a wicket an inevitability
 
He has looked very assured at the crease displaying good technique, temperament and when he has played shots they have looked good. He played some sublime on drives. I hope he build on this and looks to make runs and not always defensive, gritty innings. This innings it has been required so fair enough.

Moreover, he didn’t just rest on that inconsequential 1st test century like Imam and Azhar did.
 
To do what he has done in the current innings shows what a fine batter he can become.

I just hope he can make a big 100 and Pakistan draw the match as it could turn out to be the innings that launches a great career.
 
Babar has always rated him in his interviews over the last year or so hence skipper judgment is good enough for me.
 
Abdullah has shown what proper batsmen look like.

Perhaps time to get rid of the dancing Fawad and oldie Azhar and get some proper young batsmen.
 
Apart from running between the wickets, hes not set a foot wrong. He keeps the basics of batting right, good stride forward and play straight. No feeling or fishing at the ball. Yes he will get tested in SENA. Next 8 tests are in Asia so he has ideal technical ability and tempremant for these conditions.
 
I have more faith in this lad as a Test opener than most of his colleagues.

Several of the other potential Test openers are fair weather batters who will score runs on flat decks when the going is easy.

This guy looks like he can handle pressure and will only get better.
 
Saj said:
I have more faith in this lad as a Test opener than most of his colleagues.

Several of the other potential Test openers are fair weather batters who will score runs on flat decks when the going is easy.

This guy looks like he can handle pressure and will only get better.
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I am watching his innings now as i didn't get a chance earlier. Looks to watch the ball carefully and looks solid at the crease.
 
Saj said:
I have more faith in this lad as a Test opener than most of his colleagues.

Several of the other potential Test openers are fair weather batters who will score runs on flat decks when the going is easy.

This guy looks like he can handle pressure and will only get better.
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Other big difference is hes got out to a poor dismissal driving against spin in bangladesh and any other false shots hes played like he did in 1st inns in pindi hes been quick to correct those mistakes. some so called senior players keep playing same stupid shots.
 
Saj said:
I have more faith in this lad as a Test opener than most of his colleagues.

Several of the other potential Test openers are fair weather batters who will score runs on flat decks when the going is easy.

This guy looks like he can handle pressure and will only get better.
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He was looking like someone playing his 91st test . Didn't look like a rookie at all.
 
Amjid Javed said:
Other big difference is hes got out to a poor dismissal driving against spin in bangladesh and any other false shots hes played like he did in 1st inns in pindi hes been quick to correct those mistakes. some so called senior players keep playing same stupid shots.
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True.

Looks like he's got some batting intelligence and game-awareness.
 
Anyone who is experienced in understanding test cricket knows that batting is a component of both runs and time

Scoring fast increases risk.
Scoring slow creates pressure.

Best is an approach in between based on the situation at hands.

Babar plays more risky shots or poorer shots than prime kohli or Williamson or root

That results in less time on crease and less impact overall

You can’t influence anything if you’re outside the ground

In this game if Babar scores a 150 off 300 balls, it’s less valuable than Abdullah shafique scoring 125 off 450 balls.

Since the prime objective is occupation of crease and limiting turnover of batsmen

These are nuances of test cricket many people don’t understand
 
realitygaf said:
More talented than Babar Azam

He has played 3 FC games and has a better defense than any of the Pakistani batters. in fact in this entire series he hasn't been dismissed by the bowler. One run out and one caught trying to hit a 6
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Babar has more shots but Abdullah Is very talented.
 
Ashmal said:
Future looks bright for Abdullah.

A 22 year old playing his first big series against a great attack and he has looked very confident and displayed immense grit and mental strength.

Credit should be given to the team management as well for identifying his talent and fast-tracking him
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Babar rates his very highly he may be the one who asked him to be in the squad.
 
And this is why he is rated very highly.He showed resilence,grit and determination and looked like has played 50+ matches.Needs to get 100+
 
He is the best talent we've had since Babar. He has the technique and temperament to be an all format star. Need to ensure he gets as many chances as possible.
 
His anxiousness to achieve a personal milestone may now cost Pak the match.
 
unlucky Abdullah Shafique, the pressure got to him, but still a top knock. He is the best test match opener in Pakistan at the moment despite only played 6 FC matches approx.
 
What I like about Shafiq is his temperament ; his batting skills are at par with more than good batsmen..
But he has good match awareness (except for silly shots to get reach milestones)

Hope he remain grounded, and it will be good if our local media does not chase him and portray him to be next captain
 
Sad end to an excellent innings

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FN89o32akAMsGxc
 
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He played well, batted time. A poor shot to end his inns. But an excellent inns for team though.
 
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