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

Ability to understand his game and temperament

The best thing about him seems a couple of things.

1. He does not get bothered about what is being thrown at him. He plays to his strengths. The height is he played with Azhar(very slow) and Babar(average) but he changed nothing about his own game.

2. He is a quick learner. He got out to a rash shot in Rawalpindi first inning. He didn't play a single in the air shot in the second inning of Pindi test.
Scoring a 90 with only 6 boundaries is itself a sign of how reselient he is.

I hope he becomes someone who along with Babar guides world cricket for the next decade.
 
Missed out on a 100 but he did his job and broke the back of the Australian bowlers.
 
Let's not forget this guy's effort amidst all the rightful praise for Babar and Rizwan.

Not bad for someone already labelled as another Asad Shafiq by a certain individual.
 
Markhor said:
Let's not forget this guy's effort amidst all the rightful praise for Babar and Rizwan.

Not bad for someone already labelled as another Asad Shafiq by a certain individual.
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He’s played exceptionally well. Asad Shafiq will struggle to play an innings like this only the Gabba one was good after 100 of innings.
 
Amjid Javed said:
He played well, batted time. A poor shot to end his inns. But an excellent inns for team though.
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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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Amjid Javed said:
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.
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Amjid Javed said:
I rate his gritty inns today way above his 1st hundred he got on rawalpindi highway.
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[MENTION=135038]Major[/MENTION]

Am i discrediting our batsmen?
 
Brilliant find for Pakistan, hope he can get chances for Pakistan in ODI's as well, potentially he could become the best opener Pakistan has ever produced but he will have to stay grounded, he has passed his 1st test brilliantly his next test would be to score in SENA.
 
ChTab said:
Brilliant find for Pakistan, hope he can get chances for Pakistan in ODI's as well, potentially he could become the best opener Pakistan has ever produced but he will have to stay grounded, he has passed his 1st test brilliantly his next test would be to score in SENA.
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Let's wait 3 years before we know where we are with him. It's a good start and let's hope he doesn't become a long list of talented but unfulfilled players
 
Was angry at how he fell for Cummins trap. He deserved a century for the effort he put in.
 
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Justifying the tag in a big way - another 50 to his name in Tests and could well end up with a hundred in the 3rd Test vs Australia also
 
He has the next 3 series in Asia to keep bedding a place in the side. Then toughter tests will come.

i think if he can play county cricket in the summer that would help his development alot.
 
Good review by Australia

FOhSyTZXsAIvEFZ


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MenInG said:
Justifying the tag in a big way - another 50 to his name in Tests and could well end up with a hundred in the 3rd Test vs Australia also
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Agree on the county cricket part.

The biggest issue these days are players getting tagged with a certain brand of cricket and then not getting the visibility and credit they deserve. This guy clearly has all gears similar to Babar. In fact his power game has more potential than Babar.

It is important he plays all formats because T20s is here to stay and his image and fame will very much be dependent on that.

The issue will remain his batting position in white ball cricket. Maybe for ODIs he can easily be opener but for T20s ideally he should open with Rizwan with Babar at 3 and Fakhar in the middle order.
 
Needs to show more intent and be confident In playing his shots and showing attacking intent .

Batting at a strike rate in the 30s on this pitch isn't the best advertisement.
 
Tabishbeigh said:
21 ? No . Talented? Yes
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This age thing is useless.
If we go with the ages we think they are at then Azhar Ali is around 40 years old, Hafeez played test cricket until he was 45, Malik still playing limited overs stuff at the age of 50 and Fawad just be approaching 50 too.

So lets put this age stuff to bed
 
Even after facing 200 deliveries he looks confuse at the crease never a fan of these type of slow starters
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Only gain in this historic series so far is <a href="https://twitter.com/imabd28?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@imabd28</a> &#55357;&#56845; rest is history of draw games <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PAKVSAUS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PAKVSAUS</a></p>— Mohammad Hafeez (@MHafeez22) <a href="https://twitter.com/MHafeez22/status/1506522480261099525?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 23, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
only positive for pak out of this tournament, openers can afford to bat at mid 40s s/r, there job is different to rest of the team, however its obvious he has the skills to up the pace when needed but clearly didnt feel pak were in a good enough position for him to take risks, and he was right.

hope he kicks on.
 
Scoring a fourth innings ton is no small feat. Scoring one that wins your side the match is an even bigger feat. Carrying your bat after scoring an unbeaten ton in a winning runchase is something most players aren't able to do in their entire careers.

This is one of the finest knocks ever played by a Pakistani batter. The fact that it was played by a 22 year old playing his 6th test is not just remarkable but telling of the massive potential this young talent possesses.

For context, Younis Khan scored 5 fourth innings centuries in his career, but only 1 in a win. Ponting, Sarwan, Gavaskar had 4 each while Tendulkar scored 3 - all of them in losing causes. Greame Smith is the only one to score all 4 of his fourth innings centuries in winning causes.

And at 22, playing his 6th test Abdullah Shafique has one match-winning 4th innings century to his name too. Hopefully the first of many.
 
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Didn't realise he was just 22..uff..looks like we have found a real world class opener..just now need imam to get a bit more consistent and our 1 down position sorted..really think shan could do wonders at one down in test cricket..
 
the Great Khan said:
Didn't realise he was just 22..uff..looks like we have found a real world class opener..just now need imam to get a bit more consistent and our 1 down position sorted..really think shan could do wonders at one down in test cricket..
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I thought the same with Sami Aslam

We need to be patient. There will be many challenges. The away tour to NZ, South Africa, England, Australia. A lot of players are lost during a rut of bad form on these tours and losing confidence at home.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
Scoring a fourth innings ton is no small feat. Scoring one that wins your side the match is an even bigger feat. Carrying your bat after scoring an unbeaten ton in a winning runchase is something most players aren't able to do in their entire careers.

This is one of the finest knocks ever played by a Pakistani batter. The fact that it was played by a 22 year old playing his 6th test is not just remarkable but telling of the massive potential this young talent possesses.

For context, Younis Khan scored 5 fourth innings centuries in his career, but only 1 in a win. Ponting, Sarwan, Gavaskar had 4 each while Tendulkar scored 3 - all of them in losing causes. Greame Smith is the only one to score all 4 of his fourth innings centuries in winning causes.

And at 22, playing his 6th test Abdullah Shafique has one match-winning 4th innings century to his name too. Hopefully the first of many.
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Khan I believe has one of the best averages in history in the 4th innings and he has been instrumental in games won away from home for Pakistan

The hundreds in the 4th innings during games won is a good metric but it wont pick up some of the best performances of Khan’s career away from home, he top scored (range 50-99) in the 4th innings of games won in places like South Africa and New Zealand, also Lanka to from top of my head, just some notable performances in games won where the knock was as impactful as a hundred would be in a similar scenario. Khan was on another level with respect to the best ever in Tests when it came to games won.

Having said that, hundreds can be rare for a variety of reasons given how tough it can be in the final few days and also chasing big totals. It is a special effort from Abdullah no doubt about that, hopefully he goes on to do well for Pak for many years
 
Top knock this, with help a lot with self confidence, well done to him important win as well!
 
Lahore, 20 July 2022: Abdullah Shafique – the centurion from Galle Test hails from Sialkot a city known for producing and exporting sports goods to the world. His father Shafiq Ahmed was a former first-class cricketer and had featured in 26 first-class matches. The opening batter played his club cricket at the Amir Waseem Cricket Academy in Sialkot and graduated to the top level in domestic cricket by representing Sialkot Region at the U16 and U19 level.

He was picked for the Pakistan U19 tour of Sri Lanka in October 2015 and two ACC U19 Asia Cups in 2016 and 2017. The U19 tournaments did not go well for the batter as he managed to score only 63 runs from seven matches.

The introduction of the new domestic structure in 2019 forced a new opening for Abdullah. After being initially overlooked for selection in the first XI and Second XI sides, the right-handed batter was picked in Central Punjab Second XI on the recommendation of a three-member independent panel consisting of former Test cricketers Misbah-ul-Haq, Nadeem Khan and Rashid Latif, who were tasked to review and finalise the six cricket association sides.

Abdullah made the most of the opportunity and racked up two centuries and a half-century to record 545 runs in six matches at an average of 68.13 in the three-day Second XI tournament in 2019-20 season.

His excellent showing earned him a spot in Central Punjab’s star-studded First XI team and Abdullah made sure he grabbed the spotlight with a 209-ball 133 on his first-class debut in December 2019. On 30 September 2020, Abdullah smashed 11 fours and four sixes in his maiden T20 appearance to score a scintillating 102 not out off 58 balls against Southern Punjab at the Multan Cricket Stadium. This helped him enter the record books as the only Pakistan batter to score centuries on first-class and T20 debuts.

The domestic heroics saw him get a spot in the Pakistan Shaheens side that toured Sri Lanka in October/November in 2021 where he scored 126 runs from two four-day matches, which included a century in the second four-day game.

In the HBL PSL, Abdullah was first picked by Multan Sultans in the 2018 Players Draft, but failed to get a game in the season. Abdullah’s first experience of the PSL eventually came with Lahore Qalandars in 2022 when he amassed 251 runs from 11 matches.

The 22-year-old made his international debut against Zimbabwe in the T20I series in November 2020, but shot to prominence in the Test format. Since his Test debut against Bangladesh in 2021, there has been no looking back for Abdullah. He has a tally of 720 runs from six Test matches – the most runs scored by a Pakistan batter after their first six Tests, surpassing the great Javed Miandad.

During the historic Australia tour to Pakistan earlier this year, Abdullah scored 397 runs from three Tests which included 136 in the second innings of the Rawalpindi Test. In the Galle Test, he tackled Sri Lanka’s wily spinners to score an unbeaten 160 off 408 balls – the second-most deliveries faced by a batter in a successful run-chase in Tests.

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Pakistans top order is all set. Imam, shafiq, fakhar(limited overs), babar and than rizwan.

Now issue is lower order :))
 
Saud Shakeel is a very good talent. Very compact technique

They also need to give Haider Ali another look and work with him. He has pure timing and power which Pakistan lacks...he needs work...maybe counseling and proper mentorship

Imagine Haider Ali/Saud Shakeel and Rizwan as part of 4-7 or 3-6 spots...in tests and ODIs...

Pakistan would be an excellent team.

Bowling looks settled.
 
The boy has the makings to be a world-class opener for many years, and has just played an all-time classic Pakistan innings.

Excited for what the future holds, hopefully a future without a one-man (Babar) batting lineup.
 
One of the best innings I've seen. It is one thing to be a Baristow Or Pant and smash the way to a hundred, but this was traditional test batting. High class, great temperament, this was something very very special.

In Abdullah Shafique, a star is born.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Pakistani batters with most runs after 11 Test innings:<br><br>Abdullah Shafique 720<br>Javed Miandad 654<br>Saeed Ahmed 619<br>Saeed Anwar 607<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SLvPAK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SLvPAK</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) <a href="https://twitter.com/SajSadiqCricket/status/1549813918239014918?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Abdullah Shafique's superb start to his Test career:<br><br>Innings 11<br>Runs 720<br>Hundreds 2<br>Fifties 4<br>Average 80<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SLvPAK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SLvPAK</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) <a href="https://twitter.com/SajSadiqCricket/status/1549814381709611026?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Great start to his Test career:

All of his matches as yet have been played in Asia so there will be tougher tests ahead. However he looks like the sort of batter who could score runs around the world given his technique and mental strength.

I just hope they keep him away from white ball cricket.
 
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Saj said:
Great start to his Test career:

All of his matches as yet have been played in Asia so there will be tougher tests ahead. However he looks like the sort of batter who could score runs around the world given his technique and mental strength.

I just hope they keep him away from white ball cricket.
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Test specialist? Or do you mean for now?

He hasn’t looked awful in the couple of T20s but again I don’t know much of his domestic record in the shorter formats and what coaches say.
 
Saj said:
Great start to his Test career:

All of his matches as yet have been played in Asia so there will be tougher tests ahead. However he looks like the sort of batter who could score runs around the world given his technique and mental strength.

I just hope they keep him away from white ball cricket.
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Surely the guy can play ODI Cricket at the very least. Given what i have seen, i have no doubts he cannot play for Pakistan in the middle order or opener in ODI Cricket partnering Imam.
 
shaz619 said:
Khan I believe has one of the best averages in history in the 4th innings and he has been instrumental in games won away from home for Pakistan

The hundreds in the 4th innings during games won is a good metric but it wont pick up some of the best performances of Khan’s career away from home, he top scored (range 50-99) in the 4th innings of games won in places like South Africa and New Zealand, also Lanka to from top of my head, just some notable performances in games won where the knock was as impactful as a hundred would be in a similar scenario. Khan was on another level with respect to the best ever in Tests when it came to games won.

Having said that, hundreds can be rare for a variety of reasons given how tough it can be in the final few days and also chasing big totals. It is a special effort from Abdullah no doubt about that, hopefully he goes on to do well for Pak for many years
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For me, YK is one of the greatest batters to ever play the game period. This stat was not meant to make light of his achievements but just show how rare a match-winning century in the fourth innings is, which (EDIT) now that I see after posting my reply is exactly what you yourself pointed out in the last para hahahh.

Bro, there are too many to count. The assurance he brought to the crease is something I really miss. During the early part of his career it was about his partnerships with Yousuf and Inzi, then it became about his partnerships with Misbah. But usually it was always him who was playing the leading role. Will never get tired of that signature shuffle across and those eyes focused and staring a hole through the red ball. What a player.

But yes, this Abdullah kid has alot of potential. If he can be half the player that YK was, I'd be more than happy
 
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arif_2021 said:
Saud Shakeel is a very good talent. Very compact technique

They also need to give Haider Ali another look and work with him. He has pure timing and power which Pakistan lacks...he needs work...maybe counseling and proper mentorship

Imagine Haider Ali/Saud Shakeel and Rizwan as part of 4-7 or 3-6 spots...in tests and ODIs...

Pakistan would be an excellent team.

Bowling looks settled.
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Saud Shakeel should concentrate on tests I don't want him in the odi team due to having similar players in the squad already.
 
He's going to have a long career and will break into the odi team within 1 year but should be kept away from t20s.
 
arif_2021 said:
Saud Shakeel is a very good talent. Very compact technique

They also need to give Haider Ali another look and work with him. He has pure timing and power which Pakistan lacks...he needs work...maybe counseling and proper mentorship

Imagine Haider Ali/Saud Shakeel and Rizwan as part of 4-7 or 3-6 spots...in tests and ODIs...

Pakistan would be an excellent team.

Bowling looks settled.
Click to expand...

Haider Ali can be a potentially Jonny Bairsow-esque No.6 for us in the future but he has a long way to go to get there. He has played a couple of crazy knocks in FC which tells me he has the potential to be that kind of a player. But he really needs to work on his shot selection and judgement. Especially in tough situations.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
For me, YK is one of the greatest batters to ever play the game period. This stat was not meant to make light of his achievements but just show how rare a match-winning century in the fourth innings is, which (EDIT) now that I see after posting my reply is exactly what you yourself pointed out in the last para hahahh.

Bro, there are too many to count. The assurance he brought to the crease is something I really miss. During the early part of his career it was about his partnerships with Yousuf and Inzi, then it became about his partnerships with Misbah. But usually it was always him who was playing the leading role. Will never get tired of that signature shuffle across and those eyes focused and staring a hole through the red ball. What a player.

But yes, this Abdullah kid has alot of potential. If he can be half the player that YK was, I'd be more than happy
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Would be amazing if Abdullah can get very close to YK, although I feel Babar could be the second to get to 10k.

YK was something else lol I don’t know why Pakistan fans under rate him so much? whenever Pak have won this century in SA, NZ, England and the WI he has been instrumental, his average across wins in foreign territory is remarkable for a Pak bat. One of the hardest working people in cricket I’ve ever seen and in asia or neutral territory he took full advantage of those conditions, many overlook what a great player of spin he was and batted with so much confidence and swagger, there was no change to the way he’d bat when close to a milestone to. Massively miss watching him in Tests
 
He has done tremendously so far and the signs are good. Still tougher tests to come for him but he undoubtedly has the potential to be a very good part of our team for years to come.
 
shaz619 said:
Would be amazing if Abdullah can get very close to YK, although I feel Babar could be the second to get to 10k.

YK was something else lol I don’t know why Pakistan fans under rate him so much? whenever Pak have won this century in SA, NZ, England and the WI he has been instrumental, his average across wins in foreign territory is remarkable for a Pak bat. One of the hardest working people in cricket I’ve ever seen and in asia or neutral territory he took full advantage of those conditions, many overlook what a great player of spin he was and batted with so much confidence and swagger, there was no change to the way he’d bat when close to a milestone to. Massively miss watching him in Tests
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Pakistani fans are just generally ungrateful lol. They have an issue with just about everyone. No one is good enough for them which is ironic considering Pakistan has only produced a handful of batters with any kind of longevity.

You nailed it on the head there with your description. Few batters had that kind of confidence against spin. When he took the charge to a spinner you just knew that the ball was going to the boundary. And yeah, more than his technique (which let's be honest, was bowling shoe ugly) it was his hardwork and unflappable temperament that made him so successful over such a long period of time. I think he very easily could have gotten to 11k runs too had he not been deliberately left out of the side because of petty politics during that Ijaz Butt era. Watching him and Babar (in his current state) bat together in Pakistan would have been truly amazing. Too bad that Babar was still finding his feet in test cricket when he was bowing out of it.

Shafique does not stand out as a Babar-esque eye-catching player. But right away, the technique looks solid and the temperament and character seems to be there. And that's far more important than being eye-catching or talented in my opinion.
 
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RedwoodOriginal said:
Haider Ali can be a potentially Jonny Bairsow-esque No.6 for us in the future but he has a long way to go to get there. He has played a couple of crazy knocks in FC which tells me he has the potential to be that kind of a player. But he really needs to work on his shot selection and judgement. Especially in tough situations.
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I'd say Haider Ali is a natural opener. That's where I see him in red ball. He has done really well in fc so far. Perhaps tests will be his best format ala Sehwag.

Hoping for a Haider-Abdullah pairing in tests.
 
Marooned said:
I'd say Haider Ali is a natural opener. That's where I see him in red ball. He has done really well in fc so far. Perhaps tests will be his best format ala Sehwag.

Hoping for a Haider-Abdullah pairing in tests.
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He could be. That's the position in which he played for Pakistan U-19s too. But I just feel that he might be more suited at No.6.

Fact is, there is literally no one like Sehwag in the centuries long history of this game. The guy was simply a freak. Close to 9k runs at an average of 49 with a SR of 82. I guess maybe you could argue that Warner is a similar kind of player. But even he does not have a strike-rate nearly as high. Being that prolific while scoring at such a SR is simply not something most players are able to do.

Anyway both guys have long careers ahead of them. It's premature to pass a judgment on them at this point. Let's see how they develop and come into their own.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
Pakistani fans are just generally ungrateful lol. They have an issue with just about everyone. No one is good enough for them which is ironic considering Pakistan has only produced a handful of batters with any kind of longevity.

You nailed it on the head there with your description. Few batters had that kind of confidence against spin. When he took the charge to a spinner you just knew that the ball was going to the boundary. And yeah, more than his technique (which let's be honest, was bowling shoe ugly) it was his hardwork and unflappable temperament that made him so successful over such a long period of time. I think he very easily could have gotten to 11k runs too had he not been deliberately left out of the side because of petty politics during that Ijaz Butt era. Watching him and Babar (in his current state) bat together in Pakistan would have been truly amazing. Too bad that Babar was still finding his feet in test cricket when he was bowing out of it.

Shafique does not stand out as a Babar-esque eye-catching player. But right away, the technique looks solid and the temperament and character seems to be there. And that's far more important than being eye-catching or talented in my opinion.
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True with not that many great batters especially this century and last 10 years or so you’d feel he would be supported. Unfortunate he lost those years to his peak and you’re right could easily have scored 11k maybe even beyond if he overstayed his welcome but am happy he went out on a high and Babar got to learn a bit from him while he was around.

Yes, temperament and character are the most important qualities and far more important then talent, even more vital with the PCB set up historically although there has been an unusual stability for a few years
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
He could be. That's the position in which he played for Pakistan U-19s too. But I just feel that he might be more suited at No.6.

Fact is, there is literally no one like Sehwag in the centuries long history of this game. The guy was simply a freak. Close to 9k runs at an average of 49 with a SR of 82. I guess maybe you could argue that Warner is a similar kind of player. But even he does not have a strike-rate nearly as high. Being that prolific while scoring at such a SR is simply not something most players are able to do.

Anyway both guys have long careers ahead of them. It's premature to pass a judgment on them at this point. Let's see how they develop and come into their own.
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Have to throw in Viv’s name among the group of devastating batters in Tests, not always easy to compare era’s but he was striking at nearly 70 which is astonishing in those days and maybe would have similar or greater success arguably in modern conditions
 
Saj said:
Great start to his Test career:

All of his matches as yet have been played in Asia so there will be tougher tests ahead. However he looks like the sort of batter who could score runs around the world given his technique and mental strength.

I just hope they keep him away from white ball cricket.
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I get an Aiden Markram/Hussey vibe from. Feel like he can be a very good no.4 or no.5 in ODIs. He is primarily a strike rotator.
 
shaz619 said:
Khan I believe has one of the best averages in history in the 4th innings and he has been instrumental in games won away from home for Pakistan

The hundreds in the 4th innings during games won is a good metric but it wont pick up some of the best performances of Khan’s career away from home, he top scored (range 50-99) in the 4th innings of games won in places like South Africa and New Zealand, also Lanka to from top of my head, just some notable performances in games won where the knock was as impactful as a hundred would be in a similar scenario. Khan was on another level with respect to the best ever in Tests when it came to games won.

Having said that, hundreds can be rare for a variety of reasons given how tough it can be in the final few days and also chasing big totals. It is a special effort from Abdullah no doubt about that, hopefully he goes on to do well for Pak for many years
Click to expand...

Watching Younis Yousaf and Inzi decimate spin in tests was a sight to behold. That half century against SA in 2007 2nd test chasing 190 odd is very underrated. It was counter attack at its best by Younis and Kamran.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
He could be. That's the position in which he played for Pakistan U-19s too. But I just feel that he might be more suited at No.6.

Fact is, there is literally no one like Sehwag in the centuries long history of this game. The guy was simply a freak. Close to 9k runs at an average of 49 with a SR of 82. I guess maybe you could argue that Warner is a similar kind of player. But even he does not have a strike-rate nearly as high. Being that prolific while scoring at such a SR is simply not something most players are able to do.

Anyway both guys have long careers ahead of them. It's premature to pass a judgment on them at this point. Let's see how they develop and come into their own.
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Sehwag was a nightmare for bowling side in Asia. Whatever you bowl, he would just hit it for a four.
 
shaz619 said:
Would be amazing if Abdullah can get very close to YK, although I feel Babar could be the second to get to 10k.

YK was something else lol I don’t know why Pakistan fans under rate him so much? whenever Pak have won this century in SA, NZ, England and the WI he has been instrumental, his average across wins in foreign territory is remarkable for a Pak bat. One of the hardest working people in cricket I’ve ever seen and in asia or neutral territory he took full advantage of those conditions, many overlook what a great player of spin he was and batted with so much confidence and swagger, there was no change to the way he’d bat when close to a milestone to. Massively miss watching him in Tests
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YK is one of the top 5 players in asain conditions.
 
shaz619 said:
Have to throw in Viv’s name among the group of devastating batters in Tests, not always easy to compare era’s but he was striking at nearly 70 which is astonishing in those days and maybe would have similar or greater success arguably in modern conditions
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Yeah you're right. And Viv succeeded just about everywhere he played. He dominated just about every bowling attack. And as a batter he had no discernable weaknesses except maybe his own overconfidence. His ODI SR of 90 is in some ways just as astonishing when you consider the fact that most batters don't have such a SR even today. Few players were as ahead of their time as him.

Sehwag, for all his brilliance struggled against the moving ball. Which is evident by his fairly poor record in South Africa, England, New Zealand.

I would add Gilchrist to this list too perhaps.
 
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Marooned said:
I'd say Haider Ali is a natural opener. That's where I see him in red ball. He has done really well in fc so far. Perhaps tests will be his best format ala Sehwag.

Hoping for a Haider-Abdullah pairing in tests.
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Have you seen Huraira play yet? I feel like he has to open in test cricket soon enough
 
Officer Barbrady said:
Have you seen Huraira play yet? I feel like he has to open in test cricket soon enough
Click to expand...

huraira, if he continues to develop, could be pakistans long term answer to the number three dilemma. hes very proactive against spinners, which could be a useful trait for a number three.
 
ElRaja said:
huraira, if he continues to develop, could be pakistans long term answer to the number three dilemma. hes very proactive against spinners, which could be a useful trait for a number three.
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Saud Shakeel and Kamran Ghullam should get first and second shot at 3 Hurraira should look to force his way in as a back up opener.
 
Overconfidence? Hope not.

He has all the skills at his disposal and will probably have learnt a lot from this mistake.
 
Abdullah, who was declared Player of the Match for his second innings knock of 160 and has amassed 720 runs in his first six Tests, advanced 23 slots to reach 16th position in ICC Test Rankings with a Pakistan record of 671 rating points. The previous best by a Pakistan batter after six Tests was Saeed Ahmed’s 614 rating points and only two batters have ever had more points after six Tests – Sunil Gavaskar (692) and Donald Bradman (687).
 
For a gritty player he has a few times now got himself out to pathetic shots.

Needs to play within his limitations and not start coming down the wicket
 
A game to bring hin back down to earth however it will be a learning curve for him time for imam ,rizwan and fawad to raise their hand.
 
Every young player will have a bad test match, 2 very poor dismissals. The very best bounce back, tough series vs england next where he will have tighten up technic and score big runs.
 
Good Learning curve for Abdullah however he has got out trying to clear the field a few times.
 
As per some reports, Abdullah Shafique may replace Imam for the 3rd ODI....
 
MenInG said:
As per some reports, Abdullah Shafique may replace Imam for the 3rd ODI....
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Would be good to see. Imam is very settled and Abdullah needs to get a shot to showcase his skills. Personally, I think it would be nice if Babar decided to rest himself for the match and give that #3 spot to Abdullah. It gives Pakistan an idea how to handle themselves incase of a Babar injury as well.
 
Nasty Naz said:
Would be good to see. Imam is very settled and Abdullah needs to get a shot to showcase his skills. Personally, I think it would be nice if Babar decided to rest himself for the match and give that #3 spot to Abdullah. It gives Pakistan an idea how to handle themselves incase of a Babar injury as well.
Click to expand...

They should play him at the opening spot it will keep players on their toes.
 
Abdullah Shafique was nearing his maiden double-century in Central Punjab’s fixture against Sindh at the Pindi Cricket Stadium. The star of Pakistan’s famous Test win at Galle in which they recorded the highest run chase at the venue this summer was not out on 189 (23 fours and three sixes), scored at a strike rate of 82. This is his highest first-class score.

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/gw85yq" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
 
Great innings on the opening day of the QEA season. By a distance CP's highest runscorer today.

One of the best young batting prospects we've produced in a long time.
 
A very good prospect in test. And he can also be groomed into a very good odi batsman as he possess a good stroke play ability all around.
 
Double hundred for Abdullah now....

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/va6def" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
 
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