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Waqar Younis - Performance as bowling coach

Abdullah719

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KARACHI: Pakistan bowling coach Waqar Younis says the nature of pitches in England has changed and it gives them the option of playing two spinners when the Test series begins in hot conditions next month.

Younis said the ongoing England-West Indies series has shown that the pitches at Southampton and Manchester are now slow and sluggish.

"We will see how the pitch behaves in the third Test between West Indies and England at Manchester but there is no doubt that the behaviour of pitches has changed in England," Younis said during an online media interaction.

"Early to say who will play but we have got an idea after the WI Test matches. We are trying to prepare those players who can be effective on such pitches. We are looking at all options, look at the weather as it gets hot in August and we might even have to think about playing two spinners as well," Younis said.

The former pacer said the team management will keep an eye on the third Test as well.

Pakistan's first Test against England begins from August 5 at Manchester.

Younis said he was surprised that the pacers didn't face much problems despite not using saliva to shine the ball during the England-West Indies series.

"I had doubts about what will happen to bowlers not being able to use saliva because it is a habitual thing and I have been a fast bowler myself. But I think it is working quite nicely. The difference in cricket balls also matters.

"The Duke ball is harder and it can be shined through sweat as well and the pitches were slow and sluggish in the West Indies tests but the ball did seam and move around and no bowler has complained as yet. It is workable. It did work. I feel it can be done."

Younis said Pakistan's track record in England was good and he remained optimistic that the team will not disappoint in the coming series.

"I am sure we will not let our supporters and followers down. We will try to make them proud of us with our performances."

Younis had recently termed India skipper Virat Kohli as a benchmark for youngsters to follow in fitness and performances.

Asked if any Pakistan players matched up to Kohli's fitness standards, he said, "Kohli is one of the top athletes but I think our boys are not far behind specially Babar Azam who is very fit and he is also delivering goods with his performances. Shaheen Shah is another one who is super fit."

He admitted that the players when they came to England after spending nearly three months in isolation because of the Covid-19 pandemic had been rusty.

"But right now in the training camp they are getting better and we are working hard on ensuring their fitness levels meet those standards required in world cricket," he said.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com...pinners-waqar-younis/articleshow/77085480.cms
 
Which are the two spinners he is talking about,somebody should tell him that ajmal is not available.Others whom he could haven't been picked.
He might be talking about ifti then and I think it would be an amazing decision to play him as he is one of the main spinner and since he has all those mystery deliveries.
Playing shadab and yasir is equivalent to playing only one of them, so can't do it either, I think definitely he is talking about mushy then.
 
I have no trust whatsoever in this team management to get the big tactical decisions right given their track record.

Pakistan are not only competing against England, an in-form Ben Stokes, foreign conditions, the Dukes ball, COVID restrictions - but also against their own team management's tactical ineptitude !
 
He's talking about Yasir and Kashif init. God that's gonna be interesting to see.
 
As a England fan, I feel this time England will have a massive advantage because of a competitive Windies series under their belts.
 
As a England fan, I feel this time England will have a massive advantage because of a competitive Windies series under their belts.

As an England fan, you should also be budgeting for at least one test loss even if you go on to win the series.
 
"The doors are not shut. We are hoping to utilize him well if he's up to the mark. If he's bowling really well and he can make Pakistan win, we shouldn't go back to his past. Of course, it hurt at some point but we need to move on. If he's best for the country and he can make us win, then we pick him."

Looks like Waqar is keeping the door open for Amir to potentially play Tests.
 
If he is talking about two frontline spinners, I am not sure when was the last time two leggies player in Eng together. It cant be Kashif Bhatti I think as despite him being able to bat a bit, still him and Yasir are gonna make tail pretty weak.

Chase was getting some spin on the first day itself though at Old Trafford and assistance increase as the match progressed.

If Pak has to go with two spinners than at no 6 or 7 it has to be either Shadab or Iftikhar.

Shan
Abid
Azhar (C)
Babar
Asad
Rizwan (WK)
Shadab/ Iftikhar
Yasir
Shaheen
Abbas
Naseem

I hope bowlers are being given some batting sessions and tips as well because runs from tail can be crucial and Pak hasnt been good at it.
 
We need to find a replacement for Yasir as soon as possible, and Shadab just isn’t good enough.

How exactly are we going to win with two spinners in the team??
 
"The doors are not shut. We are hoping to utilize him well if he's up to the mark. If he's bowling really well and he can make Pakistan win, we shouldn't go back to his past. Of course, it hurt at some point but we need to move on. If he's best for the country and he can make us win, then we pick him."

Looks like Waqar is keeping the door open for Amir to potentially play Tests.

It depends upon Amir I guess if he is open to that.
 
Hot? Its going to be around 20-22 C and 18-20 C towards the end of August. Two spinners and mediocre at that are just going to hand the series to England.

Younis is one of the most clueless coaches around. Does this guy ever do any homework or just dosses around all day?
 
As an England fan, you should also be budgeting for at least one test loss even if you go on to win the series.

Every elite sports teams attitude has to be to to win every competitive fixture they participate in.
 
this will be a mistake. I would play one spinner. The seamers have got the most success in the windies series so why go for two spinners? It is still relatively cooler here compared to other summers. Dunno what wiqi is going on about!!
 
The seamers will be taking the bulk of the wickets here in England so definitely no need for a second spinner. If they do go ahead with two spinners, they may as well forfeit the match now.

Yasir has been terrible for quite a long time now and Shadab is average at best. Don't we have any specialist spinners with good results domestically? What about Zafar Gohar? I'm sure he would be a better option than these two.
 
The seamers will be taking the bulk of the wickets here in England so definitely no need for a second spinner. If they do go ahead with two spinners, they may as well forfeit the match now.

Yasir has been terrible for quite a long time now and Shadab is average at best. Don't we have any specialist spinners with good results domestically? What about Zafar Gohar? I'm sure he would be a better option than these two.

yasir might get away with it if he can button up an end and allow azhar to rotate our strike bowlers. Remember the english are always jittery around reasonable spinners. Their batting isnt that great but with root and stokes they have two world class players and the others can bat around them.
 
It just Psychology...i wouldnt even with go with spinner never mind two...but four fast bowlers is a recipee for disaster
 
Every elite sports teams attitude has to be to to win every competitive fixture they participate in.

England have never really been an elite team though so . Shelling tests to west indies in home conditions is not excatly what even average teams do let alone elite teams.
 
Playing two spinners in England seems like a strange idea. West Indies did pretty good with the ball with one spinner and four pacers (including all-rounder Holder).
 
England have never really been an elite team though so . Shelling tests to west indies in home conditions is not excatly what even average teams do let alone elite teams.

And New Zealand and Pakistan and Sri Lanka and Australia and India...

If we lost a test every home series to all and sundry who tour us, there would be a riot.
 
theres no way they should be playing 2 spinners
That would be a huge mistake

Esp when they are mediocre, what trees have the spinners pulled up last time that they are thinking 2 spinners is the way to go? havent they been watching current series?
 
theres no way they should be playing 2 spinners
That would be a huge mistake

Esp when they are mediocre, what trees have the spinners pulled up last time that they are thinking 2 spinners is the way to go? havent they been watching current series?

Dude it's just mind games.
 
I'm just surprised how the team selection is actually not a rocket science at all. Infact, most of the team picks itself automatically. The most discussed positions of 7 & 8 should be Shadab and Faheem followed by Shahs (2x) and Abbas.

With this team, Pakistan attack would have a decent attack with good bit of variety as Shaheen, Abbas and Naseem are all different type of bowlers.

Iftikhar would be the worst pick Pak management can go for. The guy cannot play offside shots against red ball, at best he is good for T20 for slogging balls over midwicket or square leg region and that is not test cricket. If he is selected for bowling then that would be a bigger joke as I feel Azhar is more capable bowler than him.

Yasir should not start in first test, he should come in 2nd or 3rd test at expense of Shadab if Shadab fails. Yasir has been a disappointment in SAF and AUS (a massive disappointment) and should be benched for that horror show.

If we go by recent history then the main reason Pakistan scrapped with a 1-1 draw last time they toured England was because of Faheem and Shadab. Read any scorecard from that series and you would see their contributions with both bat and ball was the ultimate difference.
 
Misbah and Waqar are not smart enough to play mind games or do a double bluff. Remember, this is the same Waqar that played four pacers on a square turner in Kolkata.

While Misbah thought it a genius move to play Musa Khan and Imran Khan in Australia of all places.
 
Perhaps we should have an all-spin attack

7. Hafeez
8. Malik
9. Ifti
10. Shadab
11. Yasir

Waqar's genius exceeds the entire cricketing world
 
Remember this clueless coach played two spinners against India in CWC2015. Where they leaked 140 runs in 20 overs of spin , the remaining 160 was scored in 30 overs. It was the time India was struggling to score against pacers. Played a triangular series before CWC and couldn’t register a win.

Both England and Australia went with all pace attack playing 4 pacers + 1 spin AR (Moeen Ali and Maxwell) against India and getting them under 200 all out. Only once India scored 260+ due to Rohit Sharmas 130+ and lost that match too
 
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It's clearly mind game. Waqar Younis is not the unintelligent speaker he was back during his cricket days. He has come a long way now.

Pakistan are all set to further demonstrate their superiority over England by taking the inevitable win if they can somehow stop Stokes.

I see the last 10 years scorecard between these two teams as 11-3 or 10-2 by end of England summer.
 
Bluff from Waqar.

We don't have a second spinner in the squad who is ready for Test cricket.
 
If only we had an inform spinner ala Zafar Gohar who is a genuine bat as well.

Would be dumb to play two spinners @ Manchester. Southampton has traditionally been spinner friendly.
 
Bluff from Waqar.

We don't have a second spinner in the squad who is ready for Test cricket.

The question then arises if they are aware that the other spinners arent ready for tests then why wasnt another genuine test quality spinner picked?
 
Having a feeling Pakistan will misread the pitch in atleast one game. Really hope I am wrong.
 
England have never really been an elite team though so . Shelling tests to west indies in home conditions is not excatly what even average teams do let alone elite teams.

Either your bluffing or completely ignorant to the fact that England have been top of the test rankings in the last decade, and please give me a break if you mention India as a benchmark.
 
Playing 2 spinners without having a genuine pace bowling allrounder is a massive risk that England will ruthlessly expose.
 
Hopefully he's just playing mind games. Last time a team played 2 spinners in England was India at Lords 2 years ago, and we all know how that ended.
 
They don't even have one good spinner but sure let's play two and have an awful batting lineup to go along with it.

Sound strategy.
 
You never know, they can unveil MoHa from shadows as 2nd spinner on day of 1st test
 
The question then arises if they are aware that the other spinners arent ready for tests then why wasnt another genuine test quality spinner picked?

I mean Shadab, Hafeez, Imad aren't Test spinners. Bhatti hasn't played an international match yet.

Also begs the question, what if Yasir Shah gets injured.

Poor planning really.
 
Either your bluffing or completely ignorant to the fact that England have been top of the test rankings in the last decade, and please give me a break if you mention India as a benchmark.

England were on top for a year. Thats it. Between 2011-2012. Nowhere did I mention india lol. Though to be fair , since you did bring up the rankings , India were on top for 4 years - something neither your first team nor second team could manage .
 
this will be a mistake. I would play one spinner. The seamers have got the most success in the windies series so why go for two spinners? It is still relatively cooler here compared to other summers. Dunno what wiqi is going on about!!

I offer two thoughts:

1. neither spinner in the current series is test class

2. OT is already dry and wickets generally will get drier in last August.
 
Yes i would be keen on this!

7 Iftikhar
8 Shadab

Let's be honest, only our pace trio are going to do any real damage to English batsmen, so our 4th and 5th bowlers need to be able to bat.

Both spinners do bat well and give you two types of spin, Iftikhar being handy to the lefties. On days 4 and 5 Shadab will be enough of a handful.

Make it happen!
 
2 spinners would only make sense at the oval or possibly lords (mid summer).

We are playing at OT and rose bowl, niether venue warrants playing to spinners
 
"The doors are not shut. We are hoping to utilize him well if he's up to the mark. If he's bowling really well and he can make Pakistan win, we shouldn't go back to his past. Of course, it hurt at some point but we need to move on. If he's best for the country and he can make us win, then we pick him."

Looks like Waqar is keeping the door open for Amir to potentially play Tests.

I would be running him into the ground in the nets and the practice game bowling at the likes of Shan Babar Azhar Asad rizwan etc.
That also counts as utilising him well ;)
 
I offer two thoughts:

1. neither spinner in the current series is test class

2. OT is already dry and wickets generally will get drier in last August.

i did think about that after i replied. I want to wait for the final test and see what the situation is. No doubt the two spinners have been poor.
 
It's clearly mind game. Waqar Younis is not the unintelligent speaker he was back during his cricket days. He has come a long way now.

Pakistan are all set to further demonstrate their superiority over England by taking the inevitable win if they can somehow stop Stokes.

I see the last 10 years scorecard between these two teams as 11-3 or 10-2 by end of England summer.

I’ve spoken with Waqar inside the last six months. It’s like talking to an empty vessel: the lights are on but there’s nobody home.

This is a man who does no homework, no preparation, just wings it with hunches.
 
A potential 2nd spinner is still in the UK but was told he was no longer needed in the training camp.
 
How effective has Waqar been as bowling coach? are we seeing any improvements in our bowlers as the performance in 2nd innings seemed below par.

On top of that there appeared to be a complete lack of any planning as we saw against Woakes.
 
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How effective has Waqar been as bowling coach? are we seeing any improvements in our bowlers as the performance in 2nd innings seemed below par.

On top of that there appeared to be a complete lack of any planning as we saw against Woakes.

Too early to say as there was long break due to pandemic. What is very concerning is a lack of plan to woakes as mentioned. Better to judge end of series
 
He never does any opposition research. He thinks because he's a former great he doesn't need to bother with analytics or stats.

Stuart Broad literally showed the entire world in the last Ashes how to bowl to David Warner - right arm seam bowling around the wicket. We only did that in the 1st Test vs Australia when it was too late.

With Chris Woakes - he was struggling against the short ball against Australia and West Indies. We even hit him on the helmet in the 1st innings, yet never repeated the ploy in the 2nd innings. Go around the wicket with a short leg and leg slip/gully and target his ribs and armpit. But we kept bowling line and length when his strength is the offside.
 
Who needs analytics and homework on the opposition when Pakistan mein bohat tailunt hai?
 
He never does any opposition research. He thinks because he's a former great he doesn't need to bother with analytics or stats.

Totally. This has probably been biggest weakness in most of the backroom staff we have had in the last decade or so.

To be honest when we had Mickey and Azhar I thought it might improve because of their international exposure but, unfortunately I dont think they were any good with strategies and tactics as well. I have rarely seen Pakistan cricket team execute a plan against any batsman, its mostly either just basic bowling to get the batsman out or maybe seeing a few things while on the field and adjusting accordingly.

I am not exactly sure what is the use of all the analysts in the backroom when you cant even do your homework on someone like Woakes.
 
In terms of basic bowling skills and accuracy I think Waqar is generally pretty good. I dont see any problem with the development of any pacers however, lack of strategy and tactics is a big issue which can be the difference between a win or a loss. Atleast someone in the dressing room needs to add this aspect as well to get positive results.

Irrespective of how good you are, if you cant plan properly and go out in the filed with some strategy against each individual success is not gonna be a regular thing.
 
Don’t blame Waqar. He is doing really well. Bowlers are out of rhythm. Pre Covid Shaheen was a beast and unstoppable and Naseem was doing good too. The problem that Pakistan has is that our analyst Talha Butt who has been our analyst for over a decade is not good at all. It was his job to tell the captain and the bowlers the weakness of the batsmen. PCB needs to recruit and retrain our analyst. Eng has a whole team of analyst that analyze the opponents to the bone. PCB really need this.
 
Don’t blame Waqar. He is doing really well. Bowlers are out of rhythm. Pre Covid Shaheen was a beast and unstoppable and Naseem was doing good too. The problem that Pakistan has is that our analyst Talha Butt who has been our analyst for over a decade is not good at all. It was his job to tell the captain and the bowlers the weakness of the batsmen. PCB needs to recruit and retrain our analyst. Eng has a whole team of analyst that analyze the opponents to the bone. PCB really need this.

Analyst for over a decade? He’s that ancient? Has he even worked as data analyst with any franchise etc?
 
Don’t blame Waqar. He is doing really well. Bowlers are out of rhythm. Pre Covid Shaheen was a beast and unstoppable and Naseem was doing good too. The problem that Pakistan has is that our analyst Talha Butt who has been our analyst for over a decade is not good at all. It was his job to tell the captain and the bowlers the weakness of the batsmen. PCB needs to recruit and retrain our analyst. Eng has a whole team of analyst that analyze the opponents to the bone. PCB really need this.

Think just watching tv would have helped!
 
Please elaborate. What do you mean?

You don’t need to be an analyst to know what Woakes weakness is! He just had to switch on the tv and watch the west indies series and england’s first innings.

Not to mention Nasser Hussain wouldn’t stop talking about it - seems everyone knew except Misbah Waqar and Azhar
 
Please elaborate. What do you mean?

Nasser Hussain, Holding, Wasim Akram - all of them were talking about how Woakes should have been bombarded with bouncers etc - but seems our captain was not made aware of this tactic - this is something our analytical staff are supposed to be on top of.
 
You don’t need to be an analyst to know what Woakes weakness is! He just had to switch on the tv and watch the west indies series and england’s first innings.

Not to mention Nasser Hussain wouldn’t stop talking about it - seems everyone knew except Misbah Waqar and Azhar

My brother he is a coach. He is not going to go watch a match midway in a test match to see what the weaknesses are. What I am trying to say is that the analyst should have had the weaknesses and the strengths of each player of the Englands team.

Let me give you an example Englands performance analyst Nathan Leamon, who was also the chief analyst for Multan Sultans, was stating in an interview how he is always logging every part of the game and is coding it, which is very important for the team. He was stating how it is valuable to do that bc you have a value in your voice and could tell the next batsman of what is the pitch doing and how is it reacting when the ball is bowled. He was stating how you can answer 50 to 100 questions by coding and logging the game.

My point is that the analyst should have told the coaching staff what the weakness is. Your telling me if the analyst had done his hw before the series started, pak would have not gotten Woakes out. A analyst has a big voice during a match if he has data that proves it.

Oh by the way you mentioned how Nasser Hussain and the other commentators were mentioning Woakes weaknesses, the data that they use on SkySports is CricViz which was co-founded by Nathan Leamon. That's how good analytics are for England.

The sad truth is that PCB dont have good analytics. This man Talha Butt needs to be retrained.

Another thing is that the other day Waqar was using his phone to analyze Faheem Ashrafs bowling action. That should be the analyst job to record and analyze what the problems are with the bowling coach and what the solution is.
 
Nasser Hussain, Holding, Wasim Akram - all of them were talking about how Woakes should have been bombarded with bouncers etc - but seems our captain was not made aware of this tactic - this is something our analytical staff are supposed to be on top of.

Absolutely as I mentioned above replying to brother Thunderbolt14, a good analyst has a big voice during the match if he has data that backs up what he is stating. An example of this is Englands analyst Nathan Leamon.

During the recent test the analyst should have done his research before the series started and had the weaknesses of all the English players.

PCB really need to invest in sports science and hire and retrain analysts.
 
My brother he is a coach. He is not going to go watch a match midway in a test match to see what the weaknesses are. What I am trying to say is that the analyst should have had the weaknesses and the strengths of each player of the Englands team.

Let me give you an example Englands performance analyst Nathan Leamon, who was also the chief analyst for Multan Sultans, was stating in an interview how he is always logging every part of the game and is coding it, which is very important for the team. He was stating how it is valuable to do that bc you have a value in your voice and could tell the next batsman of what is the pitch doing and how is it reacting when the ball is bowled. He was stating how you can answer 50 to 100 questions by coding and logging the game.

My point is that the analyst should have told the coaching staff what the weakness is. Your telling me if the analyst had done his hw before the series started, pak would have not gotten Woakes out. A analyst has a big voice during a match if he has data that proves it.

Oh by the way you mentioned how Nasser Hussain and the other commentators were mentioning Woakes weaknesses, the data that they use on SkySports is CricViz which was co-founded by Nathan Leamon. That's how good analytics are for England.

The sad truth is that PCB dont have good analytics. This man Talha Butt needs to be retrained.

Another thing is that the other day Waqar was using his phone to analyze Faheem Ashrafs bowling action. That should be the analyst job to record and analyze what the problems are with the bowling coach and what the solution is.

Very difficult to retrain someone to this level - better off hiring 2-3 analysts from T20 leagues and forming a core team
 
Very difficult to retrain someone to this level - better off hiring 2-3 analysts from T20 leagues and forming a core team

For sure a team of analysts providing quality info to the Coach/Captain - but some oversight needed to ensure that the info provided is used and not ignored.
 
My brother he is a coach. He is not going to go watch a match midway in a test match to see what the weaknesses are. What I am trying to say is that the analyst should have had the weaknesses and the strengths of each player of the Englands team.

Let me give you an example Englands performance analyst Nathan Leamon, who was also the chief analyst for Multan Sultans, was stating in an interview how he is always logging every part of the game and is coding it, which is very important for the team. He was stating how it is valuable to do that bc you have a value in your voice and could tell the next batsman of what is the pitch doing and how is it reacting when the ball is bowled. He was stating how you can answer 50 to 100 questions by coding and logging the game.

My point is that the analyst should have told the coaching staff what the weakness is. Your telling me if the analyst had done his hw before the series started, pak would have not gotten Woakes out. A analyst has a big voice during a match if he has data that proves it.

Oh by the way you mentioned how Nasser Hussain and the other commentators were mentioning Woakes weaknesses, the data that they use on SkySports is CricViz which was co-founded by Nathan Leamon. That's how good analytics are for England.

The sad truth is that PCB dont have good analytics. This man Talha Butt needs to be retrained.

Another thing is that the other day Waqar was using his phone to analyze Faheem Ashrafs bowling action. That should be the analyst job to record and analyze what the problems are with the bowling coach and what the solution is.

Think what Nasser Hussain was saying is that Woakes weakness is well known - so if its well-known, then why werent Pakistan aware of it?
 
Not sure why England players are not being peppered with bouncers?

Same issue as Manchester
 
Key saying on TV that Pak bowlers taking their time to crank up their speed - question is, why werent they warmed up and ready to go?
 
He will always be a certified failure as coach, but PCB will hire him a thousand times before his life is over.
 
"Glorified net practice in the middle" : Nasser Hussain
 
Totally. This has probably been biggest weakness in most of the backroom staff we have had in the last decade or so.

To be honest when we had Mickey and Azhar I thought it might improve because of their international exposure but, unfortunately I dont think they were any good with strategies and tactics as well. I have rarely seen Pakistan cricket team execute a plan against any batsman, its mostly either just basic bowling to get the batsman out or maybe seeing a few things while on the field and adjusting accordingly.

I am not exactly sure what is the use of all the analysts in the backroom when you cant even do your homework on someone like Woakes.

It's rare for sure. The one that I can recall last was Amir's terrific wicket maiden against Dilshan in the 2009 WT20 final.

Also shows what a good cricketing brain Younis Khan had as well.
 
He refused to accept that Pakistan didnt bowl well to Buttler and Woakes in the 1st Test either.
 
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