"We needed one opener, and Imam has the best performance amongst the openers" : Inzamam-ul-Haq

[MenInG]

"We needed one opener, and Imam has the best performance amongst the openers" : Inzamam-ul-Haq

Pakistan's Chairman of Selectors Inzamam-ul-Haq has defended picking his nephew in the ODI squad for the five match series against Sri Lanka.

Imam-ul-Haq, who represented Pakistan in the Under-19 World Cup in 2014, has been picked in Pakistan's squad for the Sri Lanka series. He comes in place of Azhar Ali, who is nursing a knee injury.

Apart from that change, Pakistan have retained the same squad that won the ICC Champions Trophy in England in June.

Inzamam spoke to journalists during the second Test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan in Dubai and was asked whether it was tough for him to pick his nephew.

"If you say that he is my nephew, then the selection was tough. But if you see the performance which he has given, (they're) good. Our plan was to continue with the Champions trophy squad, but unfortunately Azhar Ali has a knee problem. So we needed one opener, and in my opinion (Imam's) was the best performance amongst the openers," Inzamam said.

Imam is considered a better player in the longer version of the game than in the shorter format, but Inzamam pointed out that Imam had the talent to succeed in the shorter forms as well.

"Look, you have to notice the talent and what he can do. His performance was good in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. Then he scored two hundreds for the Under-23 team in the triangular tournament in Bangladesh. He scored a hundred in Sialkot. Even Mickey (Arthur) and Sarfraz (Ahmed) gave (their) opinions. We all consult each other," Inzamam added.

The former Pakistan captain added that he has not given up hope on Umar Akmal, who was suspended for three matches after his outburst of coach Mickey Arthur.

"I have not spoken to him after the ban, but I tried to make him understand a few things previously. We can't shut the door on any player. His issue is fitness and now another issue is discipline. He needs to improve on these issues and then he will be considered," Inazamam summed up.

http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-new...-defends-picking-nephew-in-pakistan-odi-squad

 

[Rayyman]

Sahibzada Farhan should've been selected over Imam.

 

[hadi123]

Sahibzada Farhan should've been selected over Imam.

I would have picked him too but I am thinking that perhaps Inzamam and Co. felt one aggressive opener (Zaman) is better suited to bat with someone more steady rather than having 2 aggressive openers.

 

[Rayyman]

I would have picked him too but I am thinking that perhaps Inzamam and Co. felt one aggressive opener (Zaman) is better suited to bat with someone more steady rather than having 2 aggressive openers.

We already have 2 options for that in the squad in Shehzad and Hafeez.

And don't get that logic tbh. We have Babar, Malik and Sarfraz to play anchor role. Don't forget Australia recently won WC'15 with Finch and Warner opening.

Would've rather selected Amin or Sami instead. If not Farhan.

 

[hadi123]

We already have 2 options for that in the squad in Shehzad and Hafeez.

And don't get that logic tbh. We have Babar, Malik and Sarfraz to play anchor role. Don't forget Australia recently won WC'15 with Finch and Warner opening.

Would've rather selected Amin or Sami instead. If not Farhan.

Yes I agree, I was surprised to see Imam-ul-Haq there as I would have picked Sahibzada Farhan but I do believe Farhan attended a camp a couple of months ago so at least he is on the radar.

 

[IndYeah1]

Damn, open nepotism.

 

[Bilal7]

Makes sense. Interested to see Imam bat in an ODI. No harm done if he fails, since he is only covering for Azhar.

 

[ExpressPacer]

Not nepotism. Imam is a quality bat. Despite LOI's not being his forte, one cannot criticise this selection. Imam is one of the most talented players in Pakistan, is young and has the stats to prove his ability.

 

[Syed1]

I do not agree with Imam-ul Haq's selection but to all those mindless harping about Farhan, these are Farhan's stats so far in his career




He has played a grand total of just NINE, yes you read that correctly NINE list A matches. The PP hype machine will have you believe that Farhan has been hitting it big in domestics for the last five years.

 

[JibranAnsari]

I do not agree with Imam-ul Haq's selection but to all those mindless harping about Farhan, these are Farhan's stats so far in his career

View attachment 76695


He has played a grand total of just NINE, yes you read that correctly NINE list A matches. The PP hype machine will have you believe that Farhan has been hitting it big in domestics for the last five years.

Imam has not played for long either , a grand total of 24 od matches and his SR is good for 90s.

At least choose players who are suitable for the format.

 

[backfootpunch]

Poor selection - SR 74 in List A is worse than Azhar Ali.

Also 1 half century in last 6 games with a grand HS of 56. No basis for his selection at all.

 

[Plumb]

Let him play and then decide. Just because Sahibzada Farhan played some flashy shots makes him auto selection? Relax and lets see what Imam has to offer then make your statements.

 

[CadPakFan]

I would've just put in Inam and Farhan and take out Shezhad

 

[ask_analyse_act]

Will imam get his chance ? I don't think so, pak mgmt is very stubborn when giving chances to youngsters but when given the youngsters win them cups like CT2017.

 

[New Yorker]

Imam Ul Haq's is promising but so little more than that. Very disappointing that they would pick him over Sahibzada. As with Shan, we will now have to carry him for some time, so that he gets a "fair" chance.

 

[Khan12]

Picked for the wrong format. He is way better then no hope shan in test.

 

[New Yorker]

Let him play and then decide. Just because Sahibzada Farhan played some flashy shots makes him auto selection? Relax and lets see what Imam has to offer then make your statements.

Just some flashy shots? What are you on about? He scored five consecutive fifties including a final hundred in the Pakistan Cup. Averages more than Imam, scores faster than Imam, is more consistent than Imam, is in better recent ODI form than Imam. Meaning Imam should not have been selected over him. And Imam's own performance will not settle the matter. Until Sahibzada has had a go, the question is not merely whether Imam is good, but whether he is better than Sahibzada.

 

[New Yorker]

Not nepotism. Imam is a quality bat. Despite LOI's not being his forte, one cannot criticise this selection. Imam is one of the most talented players in Pakistan, is young and has the stats to prove his ability.

Nonsense. The possibility that it is not nepotism does not mean that it is a good decision. LOI not being his forte is but the first of many reasons to criticize his selection. Since when is Ave 36 in LA cricket an impressive stat?

 

[Abdullah719]

"Look, you have to notice the talent and what he can do. His performance was good in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. Then he scored two hundreds for the Under-23 team in the triangular tournament in Bangladesh. He scored a hundred in Sialkot. Even Mickey (Arthur) and Sarfraz (Ahmed) gave (their) opinions. We all consult each other," Inzamam added.

Performance good in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy... Irrelevant.

Hundreds in (non List-A) under-23 matches against Hong Kong and Nepal... Well done.

Inzi seems to be ignoring the main thing. Imam-ul-Haq played 13 matches in List-A cricket last season. That is, in the Regional and Departmental One-Day Cups (2016/17). He scored 414 runs in these matches. Average 32. Strike-rate 71.4!

Sorry but Imam-ul-Haq does NOT have the best performance amongst openers. The Pakistan Cup is supposed to be the premier List A tournament (where Sahibzada Farhan made five 50s in a row) and Imam-ul-Haq didn't even get to play that.

 

[amit]

Good selection. Imam ul Haq has always scored lot of runs whenever he got a chance. He did well in Emerging cup & has done well in limited overs too. Should have been selected 2 years ago alongwith his u-19 teammate Sami Aslam

Hoping Imam ul Haq takes this opportunity with both hands & does well

 

[New Yorker]

I would have picked him too but I am thinking that perhaps Inzamam and Co. felt one aggressive opener (Zaman) is better suited to bat with someone more steady rather than having 2 aggressive openers.

Sahibzada has most recently scored five consecutive 50s as an opener in LA cricket. As far as I know there is literally no more consistent opener than him in domestic LOI cricket. "Steady" doesn't have to mean slow scoring.

 

[MenInG]

More detailed quotes:

"I have selected 15 players but everyone seems to be just focusing on Imam"
"I am his uncle so there is not doubt about that for sure but his performance from last 2 years has been really good"
"Just like I pray for the success of other players, I also wish for the best for Imam"
"We will take players who are needed for the team, we will not worry about his age"
"I went on to the T10 function with the permission of the PCB"
"The news that I have acquired a T10 team is not correct although I wish I could buy a team like that, don't think that would be a bad thing"
"Its not a crime to buy a team and its possible I may get to that stage later"
"However, if I do decide to buy a team then I will always check with the PCB"
"I had 12,000 runs in ODIs as well, so I just wasn't a Test batsmen"
"Just like when Twenty20 was introduced, people had their reservations"
"In the T10 format, like a soccer game, the whole affair could be wrapped up in 90 minutes"
"This format will bring excitement to the game which is what people like to see"
"We gave Shan Masood one chance for a comeback in the Windies but every player should get more chances to deliver and we wish him and all others best"
"T10 will be subject to all ICC rules, including those about corruption"
"Sri Lanka may have Rangana Herath type bowler but we need to depend on our own strength as we too have someone like Y Shah who was fastest to 150 wkts"
"Yes we would like to have an off-spin/leg-spin combo as we did in the days of Ajmal and Afridi"
"We have been preparing Haris Sohail for a while now, including U23 and he was also part of the CT squad as well"
"We didn't just pick him up and bring him to UAE for Tests, there was a proper procedure involved in his selection"

 

[Asif khan]

Nepotism rearing its ugly head again, thank you Inzi!

 

[MenInG]

Nepotism rearing its ugly head again, thank you Inzi!

How many times will he have to defend himself?

 

[ask_analyse_act]

"We have been preparing Haris Sohail for a while now, including U23 and he was also part of the CT squad as well"
"We didn't just pick him up and bring him to UAE for Tests, there was a proper procedure involved in his selection"

Nice to hear Inzi and his team putting their money on right players... Nurture Haris' fitness then he can contribute for the next 10 years for sure.. gun batsman and a useful bowler, hope he doesnt go Hafeez or Malik's way..

 

[Arham_PakFan]

I honestly don’t think this was a case of nepotism,just bad selection.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

He always reason out for the selection eventually MICKEY wont play them... They said SRL have so many LHB so we need an offie that is why we select Bilal Asif , In the end they play only yasir (interestingly yasir was unfit and later passed the test but doesnt look like he has passed as he carries a big belly than sarfraz...

 

[hadi123]

Sahibzada has most recently scored five consecutive 50s as an opener in LA cricket. As far as I know there is literally no more consistent opener than him in domestic LOI cricket. "Steady" doesn't have to mean slow scoring.

Yes, I know, I would have picked Farhan too but I was just explaining the possible reasons for his selection from the Pakistan selectors POV.

 

[Pete Rose]

this selection shows Inzi to at best not understanding the importance of strike rates (and ignoring the malaise of Pakistan odi batting over the last 5 years) and at worst nepotism.
i am note sure, which is better.

 

[Asif khan]

How many times will he have to defend himself?

His hollow words mean nothing, it's a bizarre selection and other than it reeking of nepotism, it can't be justified.

 

[Syed1]

What would be more interesting is that if Imam fails and continues to fail does Inzi give him suspiciously more chances than any other youngster.

 

[j_kazmi]

I know every ones crying nepotism right now but let’s wait for it.

If he fails to perform and gets dropped then it won’t be much of a problem.

But I agree it’s a bit of an odd selection.

 

[Sultan Baba]

Inzamam should gave break to Umar Amin in ODI & Test

 

[New Yorker]

I know every ones crying nepotism right now but let’s wait for it.

If he fails to perform and gets dropped then it won’t be much of a problem.

But I agree it’s a bit of an odd selection.

no, the problem arises if he performs a bit, and therefore becomes undroppable for a few years. we have seen this story play out before.

 

[Ikhlaq ayoub]

If azhar is suffering from knee injury then how he's playing test matches.

 

[Abdul]

If azhar is suffering from knee injury then how he's playing test matches.

Injections.

 

[cricketAXEpert]

Even more mysterious is Shan Masood's continous selection??

 

[ahmedwaqas92]

Even more mysterious is the non-selection of Fawad who's case, for some reason unbeknownst to our intelligence, is never brought up by anyone in these Pressers......

I have come to realize that us fans don't know something these PCB insiders and journalists might know or might have agreed upon. There could be no other reason to it.

I am sorry if this might rustle some jammies but I'll call it how it is when I see someone being treated unfairly and people who have access to these avenues not bringing it up just because that will get them sidelined from certain accessible features of the PCT.

 

[aukhan]

Inzimam should have had resigned before selecting his nephew. This is nepotism.

 

[mak36]

I do not agree with Imam-ul Haq's selection but to all those mindless harping about Farhan, these are Farhan's stats so far in his career

View attachment 76695


He has played a grand total of just NINE, yes you read that correctly NINE list A matches. The PP hype machine will have you believe that Farhan has been hitting it big in domestics for the last five years.

Didn't think you would be part of the stats brigade.

After Shehzad's non-performance today, still think Farhan shouldn't have been called up?

He has already scored 2 50s in this year's QeA at excellent S/R. Granted it's a different format but it shows consistency.