Who are the best middle-order players of spin bowling in Pakistan?

[gazza619]

I wanted to share my thoughts on today’s performance by Pakistan against the Indian spinners. Frankly, it was quite disheartening to see our batters give catching practice to the Indian fielders. Watching them struggle against the spinners was embarrassing, and it is clear that we need to address this issue urgently.

Does Pakistan have any batters at all who are quality players of spin? It seems like Pakistan will always have this issue against Indian spinners in the middle overs going forward.

 

[Nabeel23]

Saud Shakeel and Kamran Ghulam can play spin in the middle overs but I don’t they are suited to T20s.

 

[jnaveen1980]

year 2025 stat

Farhan 66 dot balls out of 144 balls against spin SR 130.55 6 dismissals (10 innings) 45% dots against spin
Salman Agha 61 dots out of 167 balls against spin SR 127.54 6 dismissals (17 innings) 36% dots against spin
Hasan Nawaz 52 dots out of 145 balls against spin SR 147.58 9 dismissals (15 innings) 36% dots against spin
Saim Ayub 47 dots out of 123 balls against spin SR 118.69 6 dismissals (13 innings) 38% dots against spin
Fakhar Zaman 44 dots out of 118 balls against spin 111.86 6 dismissals (12 innings) 37% dots against spin

 

[gazza619]

Saud Shakeel and Kamran Ghulam can play spin in the middle overs but I don’t they are suited to T20s.

Agreed. I think Pakistan needs to move towards playing proper middle order batters though.

 

[Barragan]

This is the first time they've faced the indian spinners and they still managed to do well against their mystery spinner of varun

They'll be much better in the 2nd game

 

[Rana]

You need sweepers.

Agha is a sweeper.

So is Rizwan. The problem with Rizwan is he doesn’t see himself as a team player.

 

[gazza619]

year 2025 stat

Farhan 66 dot balls out of 144 balls against spin SR 130.55 6 dismissals (10 innings) 45% dots against spin
Salman Agha 61 dots out of 167 balls against spin SR 127.54 6 dismissals (17 innings) 36% dots against spin
Hasan Nawaz 52 dots out of 145 balls against spin SR 147.58 9 dismissals (15 innings) 36% dots against spin
Saim Ayub 47 dots out of 123 balls against spin SR 118.69 6 dismissals (13 innings) 38% dots against spin
Fakhar Zaman 44 dots out of 118 balls against spin 111.86 6 dismissals (12 innings) 37% dots against spin

That looks pretty poor overall, isnt it.

 

[jnaveen1980]

None of the guys are capable of churning the strike over in case they can't hit a four. Forget about Indian spinners. It was the case against a lot of spin bowlers. Even Oman spinners.

 

[gazza619]

You need sweepers.

Agha is a sweeper.

So is Rizwan. The problem with Rizwan is he doesn’t see himself as a team player.

Fair point. We need a Saleem Malik!!!

 

[jnaveen1980]

That looks pretty poor overall, isnt it.

Either they lack strike rotation or big hitting or both. Without looking at the stat you can say this. But i was just curious. Fakhar has to be dispensed with if they are going to use him at 4. He is virtually useless.

 

[Rana]

Fakhar Zaman one of the GOAT slog sweepers in Pak whiteball history

He is too scared to play the one knee sweep against spinners. For some reason his only choice of shot is to come down the track.

 

[Rana]

Sahibzada is a better attacker of spin than he is of pace.

Today he didn’t take charge as he should have.

 

[gazza619]

This is the first time they've faced the indian spinners and they still managed to do well against their mystery spinner of varun

They'll be much better in the 2nd game

I have my doubts. Batters looked comfortable against Varun. Don’t get the fuss about Axar. We should be milking him. Playing Kuldeep is a big problem. Kuldeep bowls slow but his lenghts are impeccable. Need good footwork.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Fakhar Zaman one of the GOAT slog sweepers in Pak whiteball history

He is too scared to play the one knee sweep against spinners. For some reason his only choice of shot is to come down the track.

In One dayers after fairly well set. But in T20 he rarely does this. HE is very old. Warner used to pick the length brilliantly cut or slog sweep.. But as he got older he couldn't do the same . You can't fight the age.

 

[gazza619]

Sahibzada is a better attacker of spin than he is of pace.

Today he didn’t take charge as he should have.

He struggles to rotate strike hence his overall strike rate was still poor today

 

[Rana]

What matters is Pakistan first.

If Rizwan is willing to do a job for the team at 5,

I would ask him to come to Dubai right now. He’s been milking spin well in the CPL.

He doesn’t have to open. He shouldn’t open.

 

[Buffet]

year 2025 stat

Farhan 66 dot balls out of 144 balls against spin SR 130.55 6 dismissals (10 innings) 45% dots against spin
Salman Agha 61 dots out of 167 balls against spin SR 127.54 6 dismissals (17 innings) 36% dots against spin
Hasan Nawaz 52 dots out of 145 balls against spin SR 147.58 9 dismissals (15 innings) 36% dots against spin
Saim Ayub 47 dots out of 123 balls against spin SR 118.69 6 dismissals (13 innings) 38% dots against spin
Fakhar Zaman 44 dots out of 118 balls against spin 111.86 6 dismissals (12 innings) 37% dots against spin

To see it in context, can you post it for India or Aus middle order?

 

[Rana]

He struggles to rotate strike hence his overall strike rate was still poor today

He’s looking for range balls.

Indian spinners are well oiled through IPL. They know how not to give freebies on those small grounds. A place like UAE is a haven for them.

 

[Nabeel23]

I can understand Pak struggling against bounce like in Aus for example because they aren’t used to playing on those surfaces but why are they struggling against spin?

They have experience playing in UAE surfaces plus they have decent spinners in the domestics so why are they struggling so much? Surely there must be a game plan to counter the spin, rotate strike, choose the right balls to attack. They were clueless today against India.

 

[gazza619]

Either they lack strike rotation or big hitting or both. Without looking at the stat you can say this. But i was just curious. Fakhar has to be dispensed with if they are going to use him at 4. He is virtually useless.

Fakhar is sent at 4 because Haris is apparently useless down the order. Team man Fakhar has to pay the price

 

[jnaveen1980]

I have my doubts. Batters looked comfortable against Varun. Don’t get the fuss about Axar. We should be milking him. Playing Kuldeep is a big problem. Kuldeep bowls slow but his lenghts are impeccable. Need good footwork.

If Kuldeep gets his radar right even the best of the best won't have clue . In the world cup Buttler set up for Kuldeep's leg break with open stance. He bowled it wide outside the off stump . Ball suddenly ripped back into him. Bamboozled many top class players in his career.

 

[gazza619]

If Kuldeep gets his radar right even the best of the best won't have clue . In the world cup Buttler set up for Kuldeep's leg break with open stance. He bowled it wide outside the off stump . Ball suddenly ripped back into him. Bamboozled many top class players in his career.

I have no problems fetching 20 off Kuldeep’s 4 overs and not giving him any wickets. Pakistan should look to score off the bowlers. We need to be smart with shot selections. This blind slogging which we call ‘intent’ will not work.

 

[Barragan]

I have my doubts. Batters looked comfortable against Varun. Don’t get the fuss about Axar. We should be milking him. Playing Kuldeep is a big problem. Kuldeep bowls slow but his lenghts are impeccable. Need good footwork.

These guys handled the Afghan spinners and they're superior and more difficult

You'll see them tackle Axar much better and Kuldeep as well

Managed varun well already

 

[Usman Chadda]

None of the guys are capable of churning the strike over in case they can't hit a four. Forget about Indian spinners. It was the case against a lot of spin bowlers. Even Oman spinners.

Yes, I watched them play the Oman spinners in the stadium and they all looked extremely uncomfortable rotating strike.

Immediately thought these boys aren’t making even 100 against India’s bowling attack on this ground. Almost proved right.

 

[TexasRattlesnake]

These guys handled the Afghan spinners and they're superior and more difficult

You'll see them tackle Axar much better and Kuldeep as well

Managed varun well already

Naah Indian spinners are better.

Just don't have similar hype because India have decent pacers as well and don't play such spin heavy lineups.

Afg at times plays 4 spinners.

 

[Deewana Mastana]

I've said this for the longest time ever that Pakistan’s struggles against left-arm spin are a combination of tactical, technical, and psychological factors. Until they address these issues systematically through better domestic prep, team composition, and mental conditioning, this will remain a recurring weak spot that teams will continue to exploit.

Many batters are hesitant to use their feet or rotate strike consistently against spin. They get stuck on the crease, making it easier for spinners to build pressure.

When under pressure, they often resort to risky sweeps without setting up the shot properly. This leads to soft dismissals, especially in turning conditions.

There's a lack of left arm spinners in Pakistan or the few there are aren't of the quality and they get exposed when they face top tier quality spinners in international cricket.

I'll end with an interesting stat that In ICC events since 2015, more than 35% of Pakistan’s top-order dismissals in key matches came against left-arm spin or chinaman bowlers which is well above the global average.

 

[jnaveen1980]

These guys handled the Afghan spinners and they're superior and more difficult

You'll see them tackle Axar much better and Kuldeep as well

Managed varun well already

"managed" "tackled" these are sugar coated words. There is no organic flow in their game against spin. I am used to seeing inzamam just take one step and bunt the ball down to long on , long off for singles seamlessly. That kind of flow is not there. I am sure you have seen how some of the past pakistan players played spin. DO you seriously think these guys are as good as them?

 

[jnaveen1980]

Wish Sai Sudarshan has played. That guy has one of the great wrist adjustment among modern Indian abtsman. He could literally place the ball where he wanted with the adjustment of the flick even against the turn. I think lack of long format game can cause these issues. That is where you learn the art of taking singles.

 

[Savak]

Pakistani batsmen problems and inadequacy against spin is not surprising. Warrican ran through our test batting line up when we prepared a rank turner against the West Indies and all he needed was an arm ball to create confusion and doubt in our batsmens mind.

How many really good world class spinners have Pakistan really produced in the past 10 years? Yasir Shah the moment he stepped out of UAE became so ordinary that the PCB was forced to drop him. After the ICC crackdown on chucking Ajmal, Hafeez our trusted reliable spin choke options in the middle overs in T20 and ODI Cricket were ineffective and Afridi by the end of his career was a spent force as a bowler.

The fact Pakistan had been relying on the likes of Shadab, Imad Wasim and later Nawaz as their premier spin options in T20 and ODI Cricket should tell you how bad our spin options in our domestic cricket really are.

When our domestic cricket structure is no longer producing quality spinners, when our somatic domestic batsmen are not regularly tested against quality spinners on rank turners day in day out, how will our batters handle quality spinners in international cricket?

Indian batsmen are comfortable against most top spinners from opposition sides because they get to play on rank turners in their domestic structure and get to practice against the best spinners available in international cricket in the nets.

PCB has to identify the root cause of our spin playing problems and start from there.

 

[Savak]

Sarfaraz Ahmed is Pakistan's best batsman against spin. He could effortlessly play the late cut, regular cut, cover drive, straight drive, use his feet, sweep, back foot punch on the off or on side. To put a spinner under pressure, you need to have a wide variety of shots.

 

[prash88]

Only Australia and somewhat SA have batters to tackle this Indian spin bowling. Even they are 50:50 on a given day. Pakistani batters are technically a level below. PSL is a poor league that gives them false confidence and local Pakistani media hypes them up as world beaters. This is bound to happen.

 

[sweep_shot]

I have to say Hassan Nawaz. He is probably the best player of spin in Pakistani team currently.

Also, Agha seems good against spin.

 

[prash88]

Sarfaraz Ahmed is Pakistan's best batsman against spin. He could effortlessly play the late cut, regular cut, cover drive, straight drive, use his feet, sweep, back foot punch on the off or on side. To put a spinner under pressure, you need to have a wide variety of shots.

Those shots ll work in ODIs and longer formats. In T20s you need inside out shots, laps, reverse sweeps and scoops to tackle spin. I see only Mohd Harris in current Pakistan batting lineup has those shots but he can't read spin and is temperamentally poor player. You need Josh Inglis and peak Klassen like player archetypes to tackle this world-class spin...

 

[Savak]

I have to say Hassan Nawaz. He is probably the best player of spin in Pakistani team currently.

Also, Agha seems good against spin.

Laughable. Agha looked like a shell shocked school boy today. He played an absolutely idiotic shot sweeping against the turn where the chances of success was zero.

 

[sweep_shot]

Laughable. Agha looked like a shell shocked school boy today. He played an absolutely idiotic shot sweeping against the turn where the chances of success was zero.

He didn't do well today but I have seen him smashing/milking spinners in the past.

Agha seems to be out of form right now.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Laughable. Agha looked like a shell shocked school boy today. He played an absolutely idiotic shot sweeping against the turn where the chances of success was zero.

Bamboozled by Kuldeep twice in ODIs as he didn't pick the turn. I don't think he is good against spin. Saud Shakeel from the little i have seen is decent as he waits for the ball.

 

[RyanRyan10]

Should have backed Azam Khan

 

[Barragan]

"managed" "tackled" these are sugar coated words. There is no organic flow in their game against spin. I am used to seeing inzamam just take one step and bunt the ball down to long on , long off for singles seamlessly. That kind of flow is not there. I am sure you have seen how some of the past pakistan players played spin. DO you seriously think these guys are as good as them?

I don't know why you're comparing these players to the older generation of players because even the current indian batsmen aren't half as good as their predecessors against spin!

Anyway, everyone also had the same meltdown against Afg, but they turned up for the final and made an above par score on a 120 pitch

These players are good enough against spin and watch them do much better in the 2nd game

 

[Barragan]

Naah Indian spinners are better.

Just don't have similar hype because India have decent pacers as well and don't play such spin heavy lineups.

Afg at times plays 4 spinners.

No, they are definitely not better in T20's!

Rashid is better than all the ind spinners and then you have Noor and Nabi as well

Nabi is much like Axar, just doesn't get the hype because his batting is also very good (or was anyway)

 

[Nikhil_cric]

No, they are definitely not better in T20's!

Rashid is better than all the ind spinners and then you have Noor and Nabi as well

Nabi is much like Axar, just doesn't get the hype because his batting is also very good (or was anyway)

They are not. Nabi is not even close to Axar. Rashid used to be better but nowadays they are comparable , with Kuldeep probably even have the edge.

 

[TexasRattlesnake]

No, they are definitely not better in T20's!

Rashid is better than all the ind spinners and then you have Noor and Nabi as well

Nabi is much like Axar, just doesn't get the hype because his batting is also very good (or was anyway)

Naah Kuldeep is better than Rashid now. Rashid has slightly declined.

Axar also has had an upgrade in his bowling.

Varun and Noor prolly the same but Varun has better stats against stronger teams.

 

[Katwalindian]

Saud Shakeel and Kamran Ghulam can play spin in the middle overs but I don’t they are suited to T20s.

Like these players are putting world on fire, at least these are proper batmen...if you need tullas add muhammad nawaz and khushdill shah in Lower order plus fakhar at top....

 

[jnaveen1980]

Tri series/Asia cup. Spinners ER against different teams. Pakistan has lost 29 wickets to spinners in both series so far scoring at 6.39 against spinners.

 

[Barragan]

They are not. Nabi is not even close to Axar. Rashid used to be better but nowadays they are comparable , with Kuldeep probably even have the edge.

Naah Kuldeep is better than Rashid now. Rashid has slightly declined.

Axar also has had an upgrade in his bowling.

Varun and Noor prolly the same but Varun has better stats against stronger teams.

Yeah, Rashid has regressed no doubt, but still good

I'd say:
Rashid>Varun
Kuldeep>Noor (for now)
Nabi=Axar

Nabi and Axar are the same level, Nabi is very underrated

They also have Ghazanfar as well

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

If you are not reading spin out of the hand your focus will always be on protecting your wicket, rather than rotating the strike or hitting boundaries. Pak batters were not reading Kuldeep at all the other day. Infact they weren't even reading Varun for the most part.

 

[Savak]

Not a single game where i can say with confidence that our batters have dominated the spinners, totally crease bound, no skill or ability to play the sweep shot. Farhan and Salman Ali Agha played so many cut shots to balls which had 4 written on them to fielders.

In contrast even the big hitting Indians batters like Abhishek, Tilak Verma, Shivam Dube, Suurya have very solid defensive technique against the spinners which they utilize to keep out the good deliveries from the spinners, they have the wrist work which they employ to go on the back foot and knock it around to both sides of the wicket to rotate strike, once a ball is in their half they really go hard at it.

Naqvi instead of wasting Rs 500 million on paying the mentors for the Champions Cup should have utilized that money to employ the likes of Inzamam, Yousaf, Younis Khan, Miandad, Salim Malik, Sarfaraz Ahmed to teach our batters on how to play spin at the academy.