"We're still playing cricket of yesteryears and that is a concern for the selectors": Inzamam-ul-Haq

[MenInG]

"We're still playing cricket of yesteryears and that is a concern for the selectors": Inzamam-ul-Haq

http://indianexpress.com/article/sp...ul-haq-to-pakistan-batsmen-australia-4420846/

Chief selector, Inzamam-ul-Haq wants the Pakistan team to change its mindset and be more positive when they take on Australia in the three-match Test series from December 15 in Brisbane.

The veteran of 120 Tests appeared concerned with the scoring rate of the Pakistan batsmen in recent matches and in their three-day tour match against a weak Australian eleven in Cairns which ended with a big win for the touring side.

“Other teams have moved on and changed their mindset and way of playing cricket. We are still playing cricket of yesteryears and that is a concern for the selectors,” Inzamam told PTI.

Pakistan’s test captain, Misbah-ul-Haq plodded for 29 balls before falling for a nought in the tour match while Azhar Ali took 209 balls to score 82 against an inexperienced attack.

Inzamam said that Pakistan had to come out of the past and try to play cricket of the present era.

“Times have changed and so has cricket nowadays scoring and strike rates are as important as anything else,” he noted.

The former captain said that Pakistani batsmen were taking too many balls in their innings and they needed to change their mindset.

“When you are worrying about losing your wicket all the time then obviously you can’t play freely and our players need to realize this. They must realize this and see how other teams are playing even test cricket now.”

He also lamented that Pakistan had unncessarily lost the second Test against New Zealand last month at Hamilton.

“We should’ve just stuck to trying to draw the match on the final day instead of deciding to go for the 360 plus target after a good opening start. A draw would also have been satisfactory result for us after losing first test,” he said.

Inzamam, one of the batting greats produced by Pakistan, said a lot would depend on the form of Younis Khan in the Test series against Australia.

He said Pakistan had not won a Test series in Australia and playing down under was always a challenging task.

“We have a good team but we need to be more positive and attacking. Younis has to get runs that is important.”

Inzamam also said that left-arm pacer, Muhammad Aamir also needed to start delivering although it was not easy to make a comeback to international cricket after five long years.

“It is difficult to settle down again and start performing like one did in the past after five years. Aamir has not performed up to expectations as yet but he has lot of talent and potential and we know he can deliver,” he added.
Pakistan plays its first Test at Brisbane under lights.

Pakistan’s last Test win in Australia came in 1995 and since then it has been whitewashed in all Test series in 1999, 2005 and 2010.
Inzamam said Australia had staged a strong comeback after a long losing streak and they would be formidable opponents in the Tests.

“Still our team has the potential to beat any side. They must just play with freedom and without any fear of losing.”

 

[Pete Rose]

Oh dear. There's plenty of red meat for everyone: attacking safety cricket and Mohammad aamir

 

[Major]

Well if this team that plays with a yeateryears strategy still ends up winning the teat mace, then i would take it.

I think its time people should embrace with pride that we play our cricket differently, we dont copy others and thats why we reached no.1

The reason of us playing slow is very simple, we cant tackle the high bounce or movement on the ball, and thats simply because how we have trained at home. Same way foreign teams cant play against spinners and yet no one points a finger at team.

Look at england, the way they tackle spin is a joke. Sweep sweep sweep.

No one gives us credit for playing spin well.

This is what i like about indian fans, they are proud about their abilities they dont downplay their team just because they cant play in other countries, they admire the fact that their team could play spin that no other non asian team could play

 

[Hawkeye]

It's true.

Shafiq, Azhar, YK have no ability to accelerate. Misbah also doesn't always score fast.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

Well if this team that plays with a yeateryears strategy still ends up winning the teat mace, then i would take it.

I think its time people should embrace with pride that we play our cricket differently, we dont copy others and thats why we reached no.1

The reason of us playing slow is very simple, we cant tackle the high bounce or movement on the ball, and thats simply because how we have trained at home. Same way foreign teams cant play against spinners and yet no one points a finger at team.

Look at england, the way they tackle spin is a joke. Sweep sweep sweep.

No one gives us credit for playing spin well.

This is what i like about indian fans, they are proud about their abilities they dont downplay their team just because they cant play in other countries, they admire the fact that their team could play spin that no other non asian team could play

As if our lot play spin any different.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

It's true.

Shafiq, Azhar, YK have no ability to accelerate. Misbah also doesn't always score fast.

Sami does?

 

[MMHS]

He is contradicting himself here.

He has identified that team is playing yesterday's cricket; but he hasn't changed the team; rather he is expecting the same players to change their style, upon which they have built career for 20 years. It's a ideological conflict in PAK team with Misbah & Azhar as Captain - and Misbah is quite successful with his tactics (albeit heavily context dependent) - I don't think without changing individuals, things will change.

Is it possible for Misbah & Azhar to change their philosophy as Captain?
Is it possible for Azhar, Sami, YK, Misbah or Sarfy to change their batting style?
Is it possible for Wahab, Sohail, Rahat or Imran to learn their bowling fundamentals from scratch?

I thought insanity is something that you do the same thing time & again & expect different result.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

He is contradicting himself here.

He has identified that team is playing yesterday's cricket; but he hasn't changed the team; rather he is expecting the same players to change their style, upon which they have built career for 20 years. It's a ideological conflict in PAK team with Misbah & Azhar as Captain - and Misbah is quite successful with his tactics (albeit heavily context dependent) - I don't think without changing individuals, things will change.

Is it possible for Misbah & Azhar to change their philosophy as Captain?
Is it possible for Azhar, Sami, YK, Misbah or Sarfy to change their batting style?
Is it possible for Wahab, Sohail, Rahat or Imran to learn their bowling fundamentals from scratch?

I thought insanity is something that you do the same thing time & again & expect different result.

He's brought in Babar, Sharjeel, Rizwan so he's trying to change the team's mentality. Can't change the team overnight. Expect Umar and Haris to come in soon.

 

[Red Devil]

He is contradicting himself here.

He has identified that team is playing yesterday's cricket; but he hasn't changed the team; rather he is expecting the same players to change their style, upon which they have built career for 20 years. It's a ideological conflict in PAK team with Misbah & Azhar as Captain - and Misbah is quite successful with his tactics (albeit heavily context dependent) - I don't think without changing individuals, things will change.

Is it possible for Misbah & Azhar to change their philosophy as Captain?
Is it possible for Azhar, Sami, YK, Misbah or Sarfy to change their batting style?
Is it possible for Wahab, Sohail, Rahat or Imran to learn their bowling fundamentals from scratch?

I thought insanity is something that you do the same thing time & again & expect different result.

These players are the best batsmen in the country, he can't possibly drop them. This is just some constructive criticism from Inzi.

 

[coy0607]

this isn't the first time Inzi has made a statement like this
he just come's out and make such statements to appease fans, but nothing is being done

if Inzi actually wanted to make a change, he would. All he is doing is making statements to shift blame

 

[MMHS]

These players are the best batsmen in the country, he can't possibly drop them. This is just some constructive criticism from Inzi.

I can't agree with your other 2 parts of the post, but the bold one is true.

First, these are definitely not the best 15-16 cricketers in PAK
Second, these players doesn't form any combination - in that case, Yasir's replacement would have been Nawaz, why Asghar was called? Rahat is the best pacer on green tops - why he was dropped from 2nd Test & to bring back back Wahab? Why players like YK, is carried in AUS/NZ on his past record despite it's clearly evident that he his past the period of facing fast ball? Why Misbah is still being carried as Captain like there is no tomorrow, when he might be at actual more than his 42 years? Why Azhar is persisted as ODI Captain (& Test as well, he led in Misbah's Captain), despite it's been evident that his game, his tactics are not suitable for ODI game or modern game?

I can go on - Inzi was brought to change the landscape of PAK cricket, not to do obvious things, which is doing constructive criticism & bunk down to pressure of picking a fixed set of players (& justify that by showing frustration at lack of talent). Honorary CS like Qasim or Mohsin were better, if PAK is to pick identical 16 players for UAE, NZ & AUS.

 

[Saj]

Isn't Inzi part of the problem though, in that he is picking the players who have this mindset.

 

[MMHS]

He's brought in Babar, Sharjeel, Rizwan so he's trying to change the team's mentality. Can't change the team overnight. Expect Umar and Haris to come in soon.

He hasn't brought any player - these were part of the team, wasn't getting chance for the Rigid Captain. Babar won't have played a single match had MoHa averaged 25 in UK (or had the been cleared to bowl); Rizwan is the 2nd WK who got a game for Misbah's absence; Sharjeel & Nawaz are carried in this team to make sure that MoHa can return - but this one we'll wait to see.

He hasn't done anything to change the formation of the team - this team selection is forcing Arthur to pick exactly those 11 Misbah wants (In fact, Zulfi played 2 Tests in UAE wgainst WI & then Asghar called to fail in AUS - it can't be worse than this. I can write it down that Zufli will play next winter in UAE).

He hasn't tried to include a single all-rounder for ANZ. Twon of Fahim, Amad & Yamin probably would have done far better in NZ for a 5-1-2-3 combination instead of dropping Yasir or play 3 pacers over 35 years of age.

Finally, he hasn't called Hamza, who had been doing everything right in A tours, in QA season; which is heart breaking for any young player.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

He hasn't brought any player - these were part of the team, wasn't getting chance for the Rigid Captain. Babar won't have played a single match had MoHa averaged 25 in UK (or had the been cleared to bowl); Rizwan is the 2nd WK who got a game for Misbah's absence; Sharjeel & Nawaz are carried in this team to make sure that MoHa can return - but this one we'll wait to see.

He hasn't done anything to change the formation of the team - this team selection is forcing Arthur to pick exactly those 11 Misbah wants (In fact, Zulfi played 2 Tests in UAE wgainst WI & then Asghar called to fail in AUS - it can't be worse than this. I can write it down that Zufli will play next winter in UAE).

He hasn't tried to include a single all-rounder for ANZ. Twon of Fahim, Amad & Yamin probably would have done far better in NZ for a 5-1-2-3 combination instead of dropping Yasir or play 3 pacers over 35 years of age.

Finally, he hasn't called Hamza, who had been doing everything right in A tours, in QA season; which is heart breaking for any young player.

Babar, Sharjeel and Rizwan were not part of the test team prior to Inzi.

 

[Speedster777]

Well Inzamam if you were really interested in improving our cricket than why announce the squad for Australia while NZ second Test match was still going on? On what basis did you select them?

 

[Deewana Mastana]

You're saying that since you came into the PCB Inzi, but what measures or steps have you taken to actually try and change it?

The people who follow the team have been saying it for years and nothing has changed and you can keep saying it but unless you don't bring in changes then it won't work.

 

[MMHS]

Babar, Sharjeel and Rizwan were not part of the test team prior to Inzi.

That's a transition, not a phasing out. You don't expect 11 players to play for 10 years. Babar was part of the team since 2014, but it happens to be he got the chance during Inzi's time as MoHa was exposed. Same can be said for Sami who replaced Shaan, while Rizwan is the back-up Test keeper. These players were part of ODI team way before Inzi. On contrary, Gul was called back, Wahab is playing in ODI, & Babar went to UK.

The key is to introduce 3/4 young players so that the squad is average aged around 25, not 30. There will always be 3/4 seniors; but there should be 3/4 young players as well, so that there is no transitional bottleneck. PAK already has lost several players in last 6/7 years for this & Inzi is doing exactly what he did as Captain - 1/2 players doesn't matter much in terms of changing mentality & the environment is survival - young players are playing in fear for their spot as there are 8/9 spots fixed for particulars. Changing individuals won't improve the approach - without Arthur, Babar would have played at 5/6 in ODI & won't have played a single Test so far.

 

[Rayyman]

Isn't Inzi part of the problem though, in that he is picking the players who have this mindset.

I'd rather see these players playing than Umar Akmal's brainless slogs.

 

[New Yorker]

He is contradicting himself here.

He has identified that team is playing yesterday's cricket; but he hasn't changed the team; rather he is expecting the same players to change their style, upon which they have built career for 20 years. It's a ideological conflict in PAK team with Misbah & Azhar as Captain - and Misbah is quite successful with his tactics (albeit heavily context dependent) - I don't think without changing individuals, things will change.

Is it possible for Misbah & Azhar to change their philosophy as Captain?
Is it possible for Azhar, Sami, YK, Misbah or Sarfy to change their batting style?
Is it possible for Wahab, Sohail, Rahat or Imran to learn their bowling fundamentals from scratch?

I thought insanity is something that you do the same thing time & again & expect different result.

In what sense do you feel Sohail and Imran need to relearn the fundamentals
of bowling? Sohail needs fitness, basically, is doing fine otherwise. Imran has
been nothing but tight and disciplined throughout his entire international career,
and has a good Ave and SR to show for it, seeing he has bowled mostly in the
UAE.

 

[aloo paratha]

He is contradicting himself here.

He has identified that team is playing yesterday's cricket; but he hasn't changed the team; rather he is expecting the same players to change their style, upon which they have built career for 20 years. It's a ideological conflict in PAK team with Misbah & Azhar as Captain - and Misbah is quite successful with his tactics (albeit heavily context dependent) - I don't think without changing individuals, things will change.

Is it possible for Misbah & Azhar to change their philosophy as Captain?
Is it possible for Azhar, Sami, YK, Misbah or Sarfy to change their batting style?
Is it possible for Wahab, Sohail, Rahat or Imran to learn their bowling fundamentals from scratch?

I thought insanity is something that you do the same thing time & again & expect different result.

A style change is easily possible, you just need to change your mindset. Turn ones into twos, mix defense with attack, you don't need a completely different team for that.

 

[hitthestump]

Inzamam has been a huge disappointment. Goes to show the greatest players don't always have the greatest understanding of the game.

 

[Syed1]

Well if this team that plays with a yeateryears strategy still ends up winning the teat mace, then i would take it.

I think its time people should embrace with pride that we play our cricket differently, we dont copy others and thats why we reached no.1

The reason of us playing slow is very simple, we cant tackle the high bounce or movement on the ball, and thats simply because how we have trained at home. Same way foreign teams cant play against spinners and yet no one points a finger at team.

Look at england, the way they tackle spin is a joke. Sweep sweep sweep.

No one gives us credit for playing spin well.

This is what i like about indian fans, they are proud about their abilities they dont downplay their team just because they cant play in other countries, they admire the fact that their team could play spin that no other non asian team could play

We won the test mace for about a week and Misbah fans will not forget it for the next decade.

In case you haven't noticed the same test team is down to number four in the rankings and is currently in the midst of a three match losing streak which seems likely to extend to six matches by the end of this tour.

 

[Abdullah719]

We won the test mace for about a week and Misbah fans will not forget it for the next decade.

In case you haven't noticed the same test team is down to number four in the rankings and is currently in the midst of a three match losing streak which seems likely to extend to six matches by the end of this tour.

We had it for 7 weeks, actually.

 

[Major]

We won the test mace for about a week and Misbah fans will not forget it for the next decade.

In case you haven't noticed the same test team is down to number four in the rankings and is currently in the midst of a three match losing streak which seems likely to extend to six matches by the end of this tour.

So wait this is only a proud moment for Misbah fans and not for Pakistani fans?

So you are were actually disappointed that under MIsbah we got no.1?

shows ur true color atleast.

Even if you get no.1 rank for a day, itsa big deal. Getting the test mace is very big deal

 

[MMHS]

In what sense do you feel Sohail and Imran need to relearn the fundamentals
of bowling? Sohail needs fitness, basically, is doing fine otherwise. Imran has
been nothing but tight and disciplined throughout his entire international career,
and has a good Ave and SR to show for it, seeing he has bowled mostly in the
UAE.

I put all the names together in one line - for Wahab, it's fundamentals about grip, wrist position, using new ball, may be for Sohail it's about fitness (which again is not unknown - you don't expect a 38 years old man to play Test as fast bowler) - for all of them bowling discipline & the art of getting batsmen out. I don't think, any of them can improve further, rather with age in wrong side of 35 (for all 3, including Imran whose certificate might say different age); it's time to move on. Sohail should have been PAK regular from 2010 Lord's Test & few others like Sadaf, Pasha should have been next in line - PAK invested that period for both Tanvir, Cheema, Sami, Rauf.

 

[Barragan]

Then do something about it, tell them to get busy at the crease or face the axe.

 

[MMHS]

A style change is easily possible, you just need to change your mindset. Turn ones into twos, mix defense with attack, you don't need a completely different team for that.

Not sure if it's possible - reasons I have mentioned in another post.

First, if your aggressive batting is against team order, you'll face the consequence of Umar. Changing mindset comes from leadership - otherwise you are risking your spot. Azhar is awarded ODI Captaincy - which sends enough indication to those who can interpret it.

It's not about complete change of team - it's about encouraging the type of players. Woolmer's cricket thought was built in Counties, hence in ODI he removed Saqui, Kaneria for Afridi, Malik, MoHa - just because he wasn't aware of how to use a couple of wicket taking spinners in ODI. Inzi was uncomfortable in conceding boundaries, something Misbah as well - from their time PAK team started to pick medium pacers & umbrella fielding which allowed 4 singles, instead of a boundary. Changing whole team is never encouraged, not required either; but few key indication gives the idea.

Taking singles & doubles are 2 of the best skills in the game - it's not about mindset. If I put 7 men on line & 2 in circle - still Misbah will pick those 2 fielders 4 out of 5 times & then he'll go for a slog. More or less same with every PAK players barring Malik & may be Sarfu. Mixing defense with attack is a bit confusing statement, not sure what it means - but I can tell that players with ZERO Back lift, poor bat swing & non existent back-foot game won't be able to change gear. PAK doesn't play their best stroke-makers in top 3/4, rather they are preserved to win miracles; which never encourages "attack OR defense" mood. For that (I am talking about ODI here), one has to bring stroke makers above - before Arthur, Babar debuted at 6.

 

[Big Mac]

Isn't Inzi part of the problem though, in that he is picking the players who have this mindset.

Shush now, don't use logic when Inzi is trying to deflect the blame.

 

[Suleiman]

Babar, Sharjeel and Rizwan were not part of the test team prior to Inzi.

Prior to Arthur. It's entirely possible Arthur requested them considering he gave quite a lengthy interview on Rizwan and Sharjeel's selections.

Rizwan was part of the test squad last year vs England as well IIRC.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Inzi is the chief selector not the media manager so why does he engage with the media so frequently? It doesn't happen anywhere else in the world and I don't see what the side gains by it. He should should keep quiet and get on with his job imo.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

Prior to Arthur. It's entirely possible Arthur requested them considering he gave quite a lengthy interview on Rizwan and Sharjeel's selections.

Rizwan was part of the test squad last year vs England as well IIRC.

Arthur isn't working on his own. He's stated many times they've formed a good partnership. I'm no Inzi fan, I'm one of his biggest critics but I give credit where it's due.

 

[PakLFC]

The openers are the ones who set the momentum for the rest of the innings. In Azhar Ali we have one of the slowest batsman in the history of the game, he plays to survive more then anything else. Perhaps giving Salman Butt a another chance may not be a bad thing.

 

[New Yorker]

I put all the names together in one line - for Wahab, it's fundamentals about grip, wrist position, using new ball, may be for Sohail it's about fitness (which again is not unknown - you don't expect a 38 years old man to play Test as fast bowler) - for all of them bowling discipline & the art of getting batsmen out. I don't think, any of them can improve further, rather with age in wrong side of 35 (for all 3, including Imran whose certificate might say different age); it's time to move on. Sohail should have been PAK regular from 2010 Lord's Test & few others like Sadaf, Pasha should have been next in line - PAK invested that period for both Tanvir, Cheema, Sami, Rauf.

Right, but the "art of getting the batsman out" cannot be "the fundamentals" of bowling; it is the
pinnacle and end-all of bowling. Hence use of the word "art." Basically you are saying they need to
get better, which is fine and we probably all agree with this. But Wahab is in a different league from
Sohail and Imran in that regard, because as you point out, with him it really is about the basics not
being there.

 

[Syed1]

So wait this is only a proud moment for Misbah fans and not for Pakistani fans?

So you are were actually disappointed that under MIsbah we got no.1?

shows ur true color atleast.

Even if you get no.1 rank for a day, itsa big deal. Getting the test mace is very big deal

It was a big deal for every Pakistani but congratulations on completely missing the point.

Misbah fans have a habit of bringing up that test mace claiming that Misbah had assembled a team which achieved this monumental feat, conveniently forgetting that the number one ranking was very short lived and that same team has now descended to number 4 and flopping like no tomorrow for the past three tests.

 

[Pete Rose]

There are facts and then there is narrative.
Misbah's brand of (test) cricket will never have true believers with cricketers from the 90's and the fans who buy in to the fantasy of Pakistan historically being a team of mercurial match winners.
Maybe when I was younger, I used to like this faint praise 'on their day, these Pakistanis can demolish any team. And you can be sure mark Nicholas will churn out an article on two talking about imran's larger than life personna, miandads impishness, and the dark arts (it's a broad term that covers many evils) practiced by wasim and waqar and over to the staid brand of cricket played by Misbah. But honestly, I find this whole narrative to be lazy drivel. It's as if pakistan exist to provide entertainment by implosion.
For what it's worth, I will repeat, teams need to do what comes naturally to them. If misbah is a defensive captain, then so be it as long as we get results. What I hate is the nostalgia without the memory of the shambles that pakistan cricket has been from 1999 to 2010. So many gifted players but so selfish, so immoral (some of them), and so mentally weak and it all reflected in our results. Spare me this lecture on faux aggrssiveness, it sounds rich coming from guys who were part of the team when we were dismissed twice in a flat Sharjah wicket for scores of 50 each time.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

There are facts and then there is narrative.
Misbah's brand of (test) cricket will never have true believers with cricketers from the 90's and the fans who buy in to the fantasy of Pakistan historically being a team of mercurial match winners.
Maybe when I was younger, I used to like this faint praise 'on their day, these Pakistanis can demolish any team. And you can be sure mark Nicholas will churn out an article on two talking about imran's larger than life personna, miandads impishness, and the dark arts (it's a broad term that covers many evils) practiced by wasim and waqar and over to the staid brand of cricket played by Misbah. But honestly, I find this whole narrative to be lazy drivel. It's as if pakistan exist to provide entertainment by implosion.
For what it's worth, I will repeat, teams need to do what comes naturally to them. If misbah is a defensive captain, then so be it as long as we get results. What I hate is the nostalgia without the memory of the shambles that pakistan cricket has been from 1999 to 2010. So many gifted players but so selfish, so immoral (some of them), and so mentally weak and it all reflected in our results. Spare me this lecture on faux aggrssiveness, it sounds rich coming from guys who were part of the team when we were dismissed twice in a flat Sharjah wicket for scores of 50 each time.

Inzi was not part of the team that got bowled out for 50 odd at Sharjah

 

[Pete Rose]

Inzi was not part of the team that got bowled out for 50 odd at Sharjah

He was sitting out due to a poor run of form. But a lot of the other moaners were, Akhtar razzaq etc. inzi has been party of plenty of drubbings by Australia. This example was used to illustrate a point.

 

[New Yorker]

There are facts and then there is narrative.
Misbah's brand of (test) cricket will never have true believers with cricketers from the 90's and the fans who buy in to the fantasy of Pakistan historically being a team of mercurial match winners.
Maybe when I was younger, I used to like this faint praise 'on their day, these Pakistanis can demolish any team. And you can be sure mark Nicholas will churn out an article on two talking about imran's larger than life personna, miandads impishness, and the dark arts (it's a broad term that covers many evils) practiced by wasim and waqar and over to the staid brand of cricket played by Misbah. But honestly, I find this whole narrative to be lazy drivel. It's as if pakistan exist to provide entertainment by implosion.
For what it's worth, I will repeat, teams need to do what comes naturally to them. If misbah is a defensive captain, then so be it as long as we get results. What I hate is the nostalgia without the memory of the shambles that pakistan cricket has been from 1999 to 2010. So many gifted players but so selfish, so immoral (some of them), and so mentally weak and it all reflected in our results. Spare me this lecture on faux aggrssiveness, it sounds rich coming from guys who were part of the team when we were dismissed twice in a flat Sharjah wicket for scores of 50 each time.

The broader point is well taken, but "what comes naturally to them" is a bit of a cop out. It implies
that teams need not be capable of adjusting to differing contexts, scoring faster or slower depending
on circumstances, whereas we know that many teams are able to do this, moreover that they can
renew themselves and grow and develop over time. If a team cannot do these things it is probably
not that good of a team. As we seem to be seeing with Misbah's outfit. Furthermore, critique need not be based on nostalgia, and I certainly appreciate you on this point of faux aggressiveness; it can simply be critique.

 

[Pete Rose]

The broader point is well taken, but "what comes naturally to them" is a bit of a cop out. It implies
that teams need not be capable of adjusting to differing contexts, scoring faster or slower depending
on circumstances, whereas we know that many teams are able to do this, moreover that they can
renew themselves and grow and develop over time. If a team cannot do these things it is probably
not that good of a team. As we seem to be seeing with Misbah's outfit. Furthermore, critique need not be based on nostalgia, and I certainly appreciate you on this point of faux aggressiveness; it can simply be critique.

I don't disagree. But allow me to make a more nuanced point. As is usually the case, the narrative of an event changes depending on time frame on which you judge it. What Misbah's captaincy era has achieved will be debated beyond the results, long after.
When I look at Pakistan's test cricket for the last five years, I don't see it as the beginning of a new era. I see it as a "stop-the-bleeding" kind of phase in Pakistan cricket. We were hurtling towards irrelevance at every level, including results. The fact that we have such good results is frankly a surprise to me. I always saw Misbah as someone who will stop the decline and then hand over the reigns to someone who will then build on it. So if I am truly honest with myself, I should say that this is not an all round team for all round conditions. It is a solid team of honest triers, who have acquitted themselves as well as they could given the circumstances. So now it is at a cross-roads: having done so much to restore the legitimacy of Pakistan cricket over the last five years, is this team ready to shed some of its fears, and play a little more positively? I certainly know that now is the time to do this. Whether this job of infusing this confidence will come from Misbah - I am not sure. Its not a critique, its just that when you are used to being a certain way and have the results to show for it, you are loathe to change.
The results in NZ bother me not because of how poorly they played: its because, I truly believe Misbah should have retired the England tour to give the team and the coach the time to build on his good work. But here we are.
Having said that, there is the England series to consider, we scored at run-rates lower than England's, our bowlers finished the series with averages well over thirty and yet we came away with a draw -by playing pretty much the same defensive brand of cricket. Who is to say we cant replicate that in Australia.
And what will be our narrative, should this team do well in Australia playing the same staid brand of cricket?

 

[Markhor]

It was a big deal for every Pakistani but congratulations on completely missing the point.

Misbah fans have a habit of bringing up that test mace claiming that Misbah had assembled a team which achieved this monumental feat, conveniently forgetting that the number one ranking was very short lived and that same team has now descended to number 4 and flopping like no tomorrow for the past three tests.

Three poor Test results should not overshadow 6 years of good work that led to that #1 ranking.

Until the NZ series we went 7 Test series unbeaten for only the third time in our history. The other two times being in the late 1980s under Imran and after the spot fixing scandal, also under Misbah.

Have a broader perspective than just the last three Tests - one of which whilst of course disappointing to lose was a dead rubber, we still beat WI in the series.

 

[Markhor]

There are facts and then there is narrative.
Misbah's brand of (test) cricket will never have true believers with cricketers from the 90's and the fans who buy in to the fantasy of Pakistan historically being a team of mercurial match winners.
Maybe when I was younger, I used to like this faint praise 'on their day, these Pakistanis can demolish any team. And you can be sure mark Nicholas will churn out an article on two talking about imran's larger than life personna, miandads impishness, and the dark arts (it's a broad term that covers many evils) practiced by wasim and waqar and over to the staid brand of cricket played by Misbah. But honestly, I find this whole narrative to be lazy drivel. It's as if pakistan exist to provide entertainment by implosion.
For what it's worth, I will repeat, teams need to do what comes naturally to them. If misbah is a defensive captain, then so be it as long as we get results. What I hate is the nostalgia without the memory of the shambles that pakistan cricket has been from 1999 to 2010. So many gifted players but so selfish, so immoral (some of them), and so mentally weak and it all reflected in our results. Spare me this lecture on faux aggrssiveness, it sounds rich coming from guys who were part of the team when we were dismissed twice in a flat Sharjah wicket for scores of 50 each time.

Fantastic post. There's a lot of rose tinted revisionism about the cricket played by Pakistan in the 80s and 90s, whereby fans will pick and choose certain players and events to show how we were some aggressive, swashbuckling side who conquered all. Yet for every Imran, Wasim or Waqar - you had a Shoaib Mohammad or a Mudassar Nazar who hardly fit this narrative. Contrary to popular belief, Imran himself was not a Brendon McCullum of his day and he too was criticised for tactical defensiveness at times.

When PPers demand we "get back" to some mythicised brand of aggressive cricket - they'll mention the 1999 World Cup, the team that epitomises this narrative. Yet in every match we CRAWLED along at around 3 RPO in the first 30 overs and were reliant on late order slogging to drag us to a competitive total. I shudder to think what the reaction by the kids on here would be if PP existed then. We also lost FOUR times in that same WC.

I'm sure Wasim would've been accused of much the same criticism Misbah has endured. Whenever these same ex-pros go on their populist rants railing against Misbah's defensiveness, one should ask them where this "aggressive brand of cricket" was in their day. But let's say you don't care about the brand of cricket and want to criticise Misbah on results. Well that argument falls down too. Our longest ever unbeaten run of Test series is 7, and we've had only THREE such runs.

TWICE of which are under Misbah - after the spotfixing scandal and the sequence from the 2014 Aus whitewash until this NZ series. The only other Pakistan team to have gone on such a successful run was our greatest - under Imran between 1985 and 1989.

The sides of the 1990s and 2000s are a by-word for underachievement and scandal. Whilst maybe not as individually talented as those sides, Misbah's team have done more justice to their relative talents and have applied themselves better, proven in the results which are extraordinary given the vast majority have never played at home.

 

[Pete Rose]

Fantastic post. There's a lot of rose tinted revisionism about the cricket played by Pakistan in the 80s and 90s, whereby fans will pick and choose certain players and events to show how we were some aggressive, swashbuckling side who conquered all. Yet for every Imran, Wasim or Waqar - you had a Shoaib Mohammad or a Mudassar Nazar who hardly fit this narrative. Contrary to popular belief, Imran himself was not a Brendon McCullum of his day and he too was criticised for tactical defensiveness at times.

When PPers demand we "get back" to some mythicised brand of aggressive cricket - they'll mention the 1999 World Cup, the team that epitomises this narrative. Yet in every match we CRAWLED along at around 3 RPO in the first 30 overs and were reliant on late order slogging to drag us to a competitive total. I shudder to think what the reaction by the kids on here would be if PP existed then. We also lost FOUR times in that same WC.

I'm sure Wasim would've been accused of much the same criticism Misbah has endured. Whenever these same ex-pros go on their populist rants railing against Misbah's defensiveness, one should ask them where this "aggressive brand of cricket" was in their day. But let's say you don't care about the brand of cricket and want to criticise Misbah on results. Well that argument falls down too. Our longest ever unbeaten run of Test series is 7, and we've had only THREE such runs.

TWICE of which are under Misbah - after the spotfixing scandal and the sequence from the 2014 Aus whitewash until this NZ series. The only other Pakistan team to have gone on such a successful run was our greatest - under Imran between 1985 and 1989.

The sides of the 1990s and 2000s are a by-word for underachievement and scandal. Whilst maybe not as individually talented as those sides, Misbah's team have done more justice to their relative talents and have applied themselves better, proven in the results which are extraordinary given the vast majority have never played at home.

Yes, completely agree.
I would argue that the team under Imran (pre waqar and wasim) had more in common with misbahs team than the team from the 90's.
I think when all is done and dusted, for me the nadir of Pakistan cricket will be 1999 to 2010

 

[cricketAXEpert]

Oh dear. There's plenty of red meat for everyone: attacking safety cricket and Mohammad aamir

Yes, attacking safety Cricket and also "We should’ve just stuck to trying to draw the match on the final day instead of deciding to go for the 360 plus target"

Typical Double talk from PCB offcials

 

[moghul]

Inzi, yes they're playing cricket of yesterday, thanks to you for selecting players from day before yesterday. What you expect from some 43 year olds.

 

[cricketInsight]

Test Cricket is not about playing fast - Its about batting with a purpose which does evolve through the match.

Sometime the purpose is to see of the new ball, it could be to capitalize by scoring at good pace during lunch and tea or it could be to defend a match. The purpose needs to be clearly understood by players and then execution should follow.

 

[moghul]

Inzi, during his captaincy days, did not treat some of the old players in current Pakistan team well. I'm glad he is paying them back now by persisting with them in the team, even they are not performing.

 

[Bilal7]

Inzi, during his captaincy days, did not treat some of the old players in current Pakistan team well. I'm glad he is paying them back now by persisting with them in the team, even they are not performing.

He treated no one unfairly. Misbah was the Fawad Alam of those times and Fawad Alam is not good enough to be in the team now.

Also, what do people want Inzi to do? Drop Misbah, Azhar and Sami? That is simply not feasible. All three of these players have the ability to increase their SR and that is what Inzi is trying to do. He's not saying they are not good players, he's saying they have to change their mindset a little bit.

 

[The_Odd_One]

There is no way Inzi can drop Younis, Misbah, Asad, and Azhar overnight. Not the most powerful selector in the world can do that.

The problem lies with the batsman. Each of them has played over 50 tests and if someone like Azhar is batting at 30 SR against club level bowling, then imagine how limited a batsman he is.

 

[chacha kashmiri]

There is no way Inzi can drop Younis, Misbah, Asad, and Azhar overnight. Not the most powerful selector in the world can do that.

The problem lies with the batsman. Each of them has played over 50 tests and if someone like Azhar is batting at 30 SR against club level bowling, then imagine how limited a batsman he is.

It's down to the selectors to pick the best squad

Maybe there is someone out there in the mix who could bat with a much better sr than azhar and really make Pakistani batting dynamic again

 

[moghul]

He treated no one unfairly. Misbah was the Fawad Alam of those times and Fawad Alam is not good enough to be in the team now.

Also, what do people want Inzi to do? Drop Misbah, Azhar and Sami? That is simply not feasible. All three of these players have the ability to increase their SR and that is what Inzi is trying to do. He's not saying they are not good players, he's saying they have to change their mindset a little bit.

Misbah refused to join Tableeghi group headed by Inzi in the team those days, and suffered and kept out of team during his peak days. Even Shoaib was a victim for that reason. It was stated by Mr. Chairman SYK in his book.

 

[Bilal7]

Misbah refused to join Tableeghi group headed by Inzi in the team those days, and suffered and kept out of team during his peak days. Even Shoaib was a victim for that reason. It was stated by Mr. Chairman SYK in his book.

Because of course, Mr. Chairman would never make up stories to sell his book.

Kaneria, Akhtar, Asif, Faisal Iqbal, Younis Khan and several other players were not associated with the TJ movement and they were not in any way treated unfairly. The only reason this story is still believed by a few is because it fits well with their anti-Islamic worldview. Otherwise there is no basis to any of this nonsense.

 

[Major]

Because of course, Mr. Chairman would never make up stories to sell his book.

Kaneria, Akhtar, Asif, Faisal Iqbal, Younis Khan and several other players were not associated with the TJ movement and they were not in any way treated unfairly. The only reason this story is still believed by a few is because it fits well with their anti-Islamic worldview. Otherwise there is no basis to any of this nonsense.

So you are saying the chairman of that time made up stories, the actual boss at the time?

And we are suppose to believe who? A guy on the internet who says it didnt happen?

 

[godzilla]

So you are saying the chairman of that time made up stories, the actual boss at the time?

And we are suppose to believe who? A guy on the internet who says it didnt happen?

you could try reading akhtars biography.

sharyar blames inzi for oval gate, whereas Akhtar, in his book, an open critic of inzi defended him in the oval fiasco, labelling shariyar as weak and ineffective and clueless at the time. If shariyar was telling the truth, why would someone like Akhtar who has openly criticized inzi have such a different recollection of events?

thats one lie, and given how weak his tenures have been and how he has specialised in scapegoating to cover his ineptitude, anyone putting stock in sharyars words about anything is desperately short of good judgement.

youre referring to him as the boss as though he had actually achieved something, or was untouchable. he was an abject failure like the rest, unprofessional, nepotistic, incompetent and unworthy of the seat - are the results from that time invisible to you?

 

[Speedster777]

If Inzamam did drop Misbah , I must applaud him. He knew how limited Misbah was as a cricketer it has been proven with his defensive mentality in ODIs and as a Test captain he's done nothing substantial outside UAE. I hope he retires after Aussie tour though he seems to be going the Younis Khan way. What worse is he has passed on his defensive mentality to Azhar as well. Seriously, Inzamam was very foresighted in sidelining Misbah. We'll have to bear the consequences of having him for a long time to come.

 

[moghul]

If Inzamam did drop Misbah , I must applaud him. He knew how limited Misbah was as a cricketer it has been proven with his defensive mentality in ODIs and as a Test captain he's done nothing substantial outside UAE. I hope he retires after Aussie tour though he seems to be going the Younis Khan way. What worse is he has passed on his defensive mentality to Azhar as well. Seriously, Inzamam was very foresighted in sidelining Misbah. We'll have to bear the consequences of having him for a long time to come.

So Inzimam was right in dropping a younger Misbah but why he is not dropping a 43 year old Misbah ?

 

[Bilal7]

So you are saying the chairman of that time made up stories, the actual boss at the time?

And we are suppose to believe who? A guy on the internet who says it didnt happen?

I couldn't care less what someone like you believes. You're too far up Misbah's to ever accept that he wasn't a very good player before that 2007 T20 WC, certainly not good enough to break into a middle-order of Younis, Yousuf and Inzi.

Here's a game though, try using your noggin and tell me why Inzi would have no issues with Kaneria, a non-Muslim, and Akhtar and Asif, known party boys and drug users, but for some reason would keep Misbah out of his team?

 

[Major]

I couldn't care less what someone like you believes. You're too far up Misbah's to ever accept that he wasn't a very good player before that 2007 T20 WC, certainly not good enough to break into a middle-order of Younis, Yousuf and Inzi.

Here's a game though, try using your noggin and tell me why Inzi would have no issues with Kaneria, a non-Muslim, and Akhtar and Asif, known party boys and drug users, but for some reason would keep Misbah out of his team?

again, you are saying that the PCB chairman is lieing, and someone like you who sits ona computer knows more then PCB chairman himself about whats happening here?

I think SHeryar has more creadibility.

I know you dont wana believe because truth always hurts

 

[Markhor]

If Inzamam did drop Misbah , I must applaud him. He knew how limited Misbah was as a cricketer it has been proven with his defensive mentality in ODIs and as a Test captain he's done nothing substantial outside UAE. I hope he retires after Aussie tour though he seems to be going the Younis Khan way. What worse is he has passed on his defensive mentality to Azhar as well. Seriously, Inzamam was very foresighted in sidelining Misbah. We'll have to bear the consequences of having him for a long time to come.

As a Test captain he's won in New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh twice, drawn in England and West Indies so that's not exactly accurate that he's "done nothing" outside UAE is it.