What makes you think Iftikhar will be good enough to hold on his place. Or Fakhar, Imad Shadab, Haris Rauf won't suffer a rough patch.
I think Haris will be good enough to play till 2023 considering he is one of our most consistent batters.
Who will keep in this team?
Nothing much really, if there’s a better middle order option coming up I would replace Iftikhar with that person. For now, Iftikhar is one of the best number 5-6 batsmen in Pakistan. His ability to finish innings has showed great glimpses, and despite the hate he gets for how he looks, he is still “young enough” to be there in 2023 as the senior middle-order player.
Iftikhar generates a lot of power, plays around the ground, takes responsibility when wickets are down to take the game long (Pakistan vs Australia T20 2019), and hits quick-fire 10-20 runs down the order at 200 SR on a regular basis (Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ODI 2019, Karachi Kings). He also provides an off spin option as a good part timer - he has 2 wickets in 4 overs bowled in the T20 cup, and picks up wickets here and there whenever I’ve seen him being brought on. This provides good balance to a limited overs side.
The team I listed above was role-based. The only middle-order batsmen in the country right now with both power game and finishing ability are Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, and Azam Khan. You can count Haris Sohail as well, but in my eyes for all the hate Iftikhar gets, if we age both Iftikhar and Haris by 3 years, Chacha Ifti will be fitter.
Regarding the rest, my team is a simply layout of a plan. Plans are changed all the team. For example, you ask about Rauf. Right now, after Shaheen, he is the best death bowler in the country and perhaps even the best new ball
prospect. We have a serious problem with new ball bowlers about to hit us - Amir seems to be on the verge of retiring even from Limited Overs, his pace has gone down alarmingly and gets injured every 2-3 games. Who will bowl the first 10 overs alongside Shaheen?
That’s why Rauf is in my plans - I plan to develop him as a new ball bowler, which he shows potential for. The other option is Naseem Shah, who is also viable but a little bit more raw. Hasnain is not a good new ball bowler, and Akif is too raw.
Regarding Fakhar - he is already suffering a rough patch. He doesn’t make my first XI, and I will bench him for Haider Ali and Imam as my openers. I will occasionally also try out Abdullah Shafiq at the opener position. However, I retain Fakhar in the squad.
Regarding Imad and Shadab, I don’t really have much confidence in their abilities as developing spinners. Ideally, we find a better spinner - for now, there is no one who strikes me as better than them for limited overs. Zafar Gohar will be a decent backup option, and maybe Umer Khan.
I missed the keeping slot, though both Khushdil and Azam can keep.
In other words, listed by position:
Openers: Imam ul Haq, Haider Ali, Abdullah Shafiq (pick 2)
3-4: Babar Azam, Abdullah Shafiq, Haris Sohail, M Rizwan (pick 2)
5-6: Khushdil Shah, Iftikhar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Rohail Nazir, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim (pick 2)
7-8: Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Zafar Gohar, Musa Khan (pick 2)
9-11: Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Hasnain (pick 3)
These are the best performers for each position. The guaranteed spots that I am giving are Haider, Babar, Shaheen, Rauf, and Shadab. (I hope all these are self explanatory between the need for a destructive opener who isn’t limited like Fakhar, two new ball bowlers, and Shadab’s contributions with bat, ball, in the field, and as a good VC).
1. Haider Ali
2.
3/4. Babar Azam
5.
6. Shadab Khan (can be shifted between 4-7)
7.
8.
9. Haris Rauf
10. Shaheen Afridi
11.
I guess this much is settled as the backbone for anyone’s plan for 2023. Anyone who realizes that we need another new ball bowler, at least, so probably Misbah will not realize this until 2022.
The rest of the blanks you can fill in yourself. I think Imam deserves the second opener spot, personally speaking, and I don’t expect Haris to last long so I bring Shadab, Iftikhar, and Khushdil as the crux of the middle order. I will try out Azam Khan too. Iftikhar is currently in front of all these due to Khushdil’s leg-side dominant game and Azam still needs big runs at the domestic level, a little bit more consistently.
Depending on whether there is a spot in the top 4 available, I will also
like to develop Abdullah Shafiq.
Between Rizwan and Rohail, you can take your pick - I personally will go with Rohail who has a better power game which he is still developing. Or you can go with a left-field choice and make Azam Khan or Khushdil Shah the wicket-keeper, which opens up a spot for one extra batsman. This is worth trying out, the way India or England rotate their wicketkeepers even if some of them are pretty bad.
Finally, there is the question of the third pacer between Hasan Ali, Mohammad Hasnain, and Naseem Shah. Whoever progresses the fastest grabs the spot. Personally, I think Naseem would be the best of these three but he is the least developed.
Therefore my personally optimal squad would be this:
1. Haider Ali
2. Imam ul Haq
3. Babar Azam (c)
4. Abdullah Shafiq (Haris Sohail if he is fit)
5. Shadab Khan (vc)
6. Iftikhar Ahmed (Khushdil if he develops off-side game OR keeping)
7. Rohail Nazir (wk) (Azam Khan if he develops keeping)
8. Imad Wasim (Zafar Gohar if he develops his limited-overs spin)
9. Haris Rauf
10. Shaheen Afridi
11. Naseem Shah
) just realized - wrote the post operating on little sleep.
