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Former Pakistan great, Javed Miandad spoke exclusively to PakPassion.net about his views on the recently concluded Test series between Pakistan and Australia and subsequently, against New Zealand and also reflected upon the issues surrounding the tragic death of Australian batsman Phil Hughes.
Views on Misbah-ul-Haq’s captaincy or position in the aftermath of the Sharjah Test
My view is simple. Misbah-ul-Haq has been a consistent performer but we have to remember that it’s not just about captaining a team but also about personal performance. A captain can not only lead but he must also inspire the team with his own performance. I feel that, by and large during both series, Misbah has done well on both accounts.
I also question those who say that Misbah or Younis should be replaced. Who will take their place? You can only replace someone who is equal in terms of skills, but is there anyone like that waiting to walk in and replace these two batsmen? We don't have replacements for Misbah and Younis in Test cricket.
Pakistan’s cricket system is not capable of producing players of high quality at the rate we want it to. One must also note that older players are too scared to retire as, unlike players from other countries, they do not have ways of earning income, so they hang on to their positions. This is not an ideal situation for Pakistan cricket.
Pakistan performance in both Test series
To be totally honest, I feel that Pakistan are lucky to have escaped with a drawn series against New Zealand. One has to remember that Australia, despite their reputation, were not as strong a team as New Zealand. Apart from Clarke and possibly Smith, the batsmen they brought on the tour of UAE appeared to be ODI players; at least they played like that. Also once Pakistan won the toss, the results against Australia were foregone conclusions. What did surprise me was the fact that we did not enforce the follow-on in some of the games. The follow on actually increases the chances of your success but not enforcing it, to me, was a sign of low confidence and I have no idea why that was the case.
When they played against New Zealand, they came across better quality players and Pakistan were put under pressure. The type of innings that Brendon McCullum and his teammates played in the third Test was completely incredible. I can tell you that even I would have struggled to bat like the way they McCullum was batting which was to clear the boundary ropes with such ease. What McCullum did was to show his team how to bat under these conditions and they all took his cue.
Pakistan seemed to go into the third Test with bowlers who could bat a little bit but who were not express enough to trouble anyone. One has to remember that Test cricket is game for specialists. Especially on pitches like those in UAE, if you are very fast then your speed will be reduced to 75% so just imagine what would happen to you if you were medium-fast. The idea on these pitches should have been to nullify the effect of the opposition’s fast bowlers and to defeat them by spin. But, as we saw in Sharjah, we could not achieve that objective which is troubling.
The tragic loss of Phil Hughes and effect on the game in general
I am really saddened by what happened to this young man. I recall how I felt when I was hit in a similar way. I felt dizzy for months after that and was lucky to have escaped without too much damage. The area on the head where Phil was hit is a critical, and probably not that most well protected part, of the brain. His injury was severe and I hope and pray that the Almighty will protect all cricketers from such injuries.
The ICC, in my view has already done enough to limit the misuse of bouncers. There is a limit of two and any further restrictions will damage the game of cricket. Why, then, would you need fast bowlers in the game? In my playing days, there was no restriction on the number of bouncers. I recall having to play six bouncers, one after another whilst on the tour in the West Indies with some bouncers bowled halfway down the track as deliberate no-balls! So I am fine with the current regulations. We are all mortal and accidents do happen and cricket is not like boxing so there isn’t any reason to add any more restrictions.
The effect of the tragedy on the outcome of the third Test
Let me be blunt here. If this was so much of a problem for Pakistan then they should have not come out to bat on Day 2. However, I will admit that we cannot judge how people feel and people do react to such tragedies in different ways. New Zealand also batted on the same pitch and we can see what they did. They made our bowlers look like fools. If anything, given the current security conditions we have in Pakistan, I would have thought that our players would be better prepared mentally for such events than their Western counterparts but look at the way the New Zealand team approached the game. They were clearly the better team in the Test match and the result is a true reflection of that fact.
Views on Misbah-ul-Haq’s captaincy or position in the aftermath of the Sharjah Test
My view is simple. Misbah-ul-Haq has been a consistent performer but we have to remember that it’s not just about captaining a team but also about personal performance. A captain can not only lead but he must also inspire the team with his own performance. I feel that, by and large during both series, Misbah has done well on both accounts.
I also question those who say that Misbah or Younis should be replaced. Who will take their place? You can only replace someone who is equal in terms of skills, but is there anyone like that waiting to walk in and replace these two batsmen? We don't have replacements for Misbah and Younis in Test cricket.
Pakistan’s cricket system is not capable of producing players of high quality at the rate we want it to. One must also note that older players are too scared to retire as, unlike players from other countries, they do not have ways of earning income, so they hang on to their positions. This is not an ideal situation for Pakistan cricket.
Pakistan performance in both Test series
To be totally honest, I feel that Pakistan are lucky to have escaped with a drawn series against New Zealand. One has to remember that Australia, despite their reputation, were not as strong a team as New Zealand. Apart from Clarke and possibly Smith, the batsmen they brought on the tour of UAE appeared to be ODI players; at least they played like that. Also once Pakistan won the toss, the results against Australia were foregone conclusions. What did surprise me was the fact that we did not enforce the follow-on in some of the games. The follow on actually increases the chances of your success but not enforcing it, to me, was a sign of low confidence and I have no idea why that was the case.
When they played against New Zealand, they came across better quality players and Pakistan were put under pressure. The type of innings that Brendon McCullum and his teammates played in the third Test was completely incredible. I can tell you that even I would have struggled to bat like the way they McCullum was batting which was to clear the boundary ropes with such ease. What McCullum did was to show his team how to bat under these conditions and they all took his cue.
Pakistan seemed to go into the third Test with bowlers who could bat a little bit but who were not express enough to trouble anyone. One has to remember that Test cricket is game for specialists. Especially on pitches like those in UAE, if you are very fast then your speed will be reduced to 75% so just imagine what would happen to you if you were medium-fast. The idea on these pitches should have been to nullify the effect of the opposition’s fast bowlers and to defeat them by spin. But, as we saw in Sharjah, we could not achieve that objective which is troubling.
The tragic loss of Phil Hughes and effect on the game in general
I am really saddened by what happened to this young man. I recall how I felt when I was hit in a similar way. I felt dizzy for months after that and was lucky to have escaped without too much damage. The area on the head where Phil was hit is a critical, and probably not that most well protected part, of the brain. His injury was severe and I hope and pray that the Almighty will protect all cricketers from such injuries.
The ICC, in my view has already done enough to limit the misuse of bouncers. There is a limit of two and any further restrictions will damage the game of cricket. Why, then, would you need fast bowlers in the game? In my playing days, there was no restriction on the number of bouncers. I recall having to play six bouncers, one after another whilst on the tour in the West Indies with some bouncers bowled halfway down the track as deliberate no-balls! So I am fine with the current regulations. We are all mortal and accidents do happen and cricket is not like boxing so there isn’t any reason to add any more restrictions.
The effect of the tragedy on the outcome of the third Test
Let me be blunt here. If this was so much of a problem for Pakistan then they should have not come out to bat on Day 2. However, I will admit that we cannot judge how people feel and people do react to such tragedies in different ways. New Zealand also batted on the same pitch and we can see what they did. They made our bowlers look like fools. If anything, given the current security conditions we have in Pakistan, I would have thought that our players would be better prepared mentally for such events than their Western counterparts but look at the way the New Zealand team approached the game. They were clearly the better team in the Test match and the result is a true reflection of that fact.
same is the case for YK and Misbah, replacements wont come overnight but the selectors should give deserving guys a a good run like someone Haris Sohail
