Why Does Asif Ali get so much hate?

[Mamoon]

[MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION]

After the loss to Sri Lanka in the final, I noticed you had claimed that the current batting line-up for Pakistan in T20s is the best we got because "there is no talent in Pakistan cricket". I don't disagree you with quality of the talent pool, we're certainly scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to finding new players.

Having said that, I will name a better T20 batting side for Pakistan. I'm not claiming they will score 200+ consistently nor do I think they're capable of scoring 400 in an ODI but it's much better than what we have now which is what matters at present.

Sharjeel Khan - a must for Australian conditions
Asif Ali
Babar Azam
Fakhar Zaman (last chance)
Haider Ali
Muhammad Nawaz
Shadab Khan
Muhammad Rizwan - only place where we can hide him. The reserve keepers are trash.
Pace bowler 1
Pace bowler 2
Pace bowler 3

Before you ridicule Sharjeel, he is a must for Australian conditions. He has a proven track record against Starc and Cummins in ODIs.

In terms of reserve players, you could add Imad Wasim if for e.g. Fakhar continues his bad run of form. The most suitable reserve accumulator would be Shan Masood.

This line-up would have had a more realistic opportunity of chasing down Sri Lanka's total in the Asia Cup final.

Sharjeel is rubbish. The fact that people are still vouching for him after watching his performance and fitness since he came back is baffling. Sharjeel has a cult-following - for a long time, they proclaimed that he was innocent and were criticizing Sethi for targetting him only to be left speechless when Sharjeel confessed.

His so-called proven track record against Starc and Cummins is based on one ODI series 5 years ago on highways where Warner was scoring massive hundreds and Australia was piling up mammoth scores. All Sharjeel did was score three useless half-centuries and failed to convert them into substantial scores that could influence the outcome of the game.

Pakistan won only one match in that series and Sharjeel scored 29 runs only.

With Sharjeel, not only are you getting a rubbish batsman, but you are also getting a complete liability in the field. T20 matches often come down to fine margins: converting 1s into 2s and 2s into 3s, saving that 15-20 runs in the field.

With Sharjeel, you are guaranteed to gift an additional 15-20 runs to the opposition and also impact strike rotation thanks to his poor running. When Sharjeel is in the middle, there is always a high risk of a run-out.

He simply doesn't score enough runs to compensate for his pathetic fitness. As an overall package, he is a disaster.

Asif Ali as an opener could work, but he is a brainless hack who is completely one-dimensional in his approach and gets outsmarted very easily. On a good day he could take Pakistan to a flier, but all the opposition needs to do is bring a spinner and bowl some variations, slower ones, etc. and he is guaranteed to throw his wicket away.

Opening with Asif Ali is like opening with Shahid Afridi. You will get fireworks every now and then, but more often than not, every knows how it is going to end.

Fakhar could work at #4. When he is in form and his head is in the right place, he could work at any position.

Haider, Nawaz, Shadab, and Rizwan at #5, #6, #7, and #8 and is a recipe for disaster. This middle/lower-order would not look out of place in an associate team and it is hardly any better than the current options that we have at our disposal.

Rizwan in the lower-order is madness because he has already shown that he cannot bat at that position. His career would have been over if he wasn't promoted to open the innings. Without the PP, he simply cannot score runs fluently.

The batting lineup that you mentioned is poor. It would take a miraculous effort from the bowlers or a massive stroke of luck to qualify for the semifinals with this lineup.

Considering the options at Pakistan's disposal, there is no option but to open with Babar and Rizwan. Pakistan will only make things worse if they reshuffle the batting order. These two need to tweak their approach. They don't have to slog from ball one but if they can increase their SRs by 5-6 points, it would be fine.

Pakistan is an impoverished team. This opening combo is the only semblance of consistency that we have, and it is covering up a lot of shortcomings. Pakistan made WT20 SF and the Asia Cup Final, and it would not have been possible without this pair.

 

[Bilal7]

Asif Ali is a selfless player that is ready to take risks from the first ball. This is how Iftikhar and Khushdil should be batting but they do not have the balls required and instead, waste deliveries trying to get their eye in but failing regardless.

Asif helped win us games against India and Afghanistan with his ability to hit boundaries from ball one and that is a valuable skill to have.

I'd prefer seeing him come in earlier though and see what he can do in full flow. Over #15 should be his ideal entry point.

 

[topspin]

Although I may disagree with you on the position of Fakhar Zaman, who I recon is much better off opening with Sharjeel instead of batting at 4, I have to give you 10/10 for at least wanting to do the right thing and playing a side that will approach the innings in the correct way.

It is very easy to hide behind two risk free players and asking them to bat through for most of the innings in order to hide the inconsistent ones. It takes a lot of bravery however to deal with the challenge head on with the risk of failure, but still have all the bases covered for the right kind of result.

Pakistan since Misbah came into the fore have been taking the cowards way out. It has worked against the b string sides and the toss has helped them in the UAE to an extent. Also they were lucky to have Hafeez and Malik in the middle for them for a long time, they don’t have these luxuries anymore.

I like Fakhar but I just feel he struggles at times to score against the new ball and not just because of swing but also hitting the shorter balls aimed straight at him.

With Sharjeel and Asif Ali, we can have a right hand and left hand combination as well.

Completely agree with you on Misbah. He's set this precedent of cowardly cricket and his timid mindset has become infectious in the Pakistan camp.

 

[topspin]

Sharjeel is rubbish. The fact that people are still vouching for him after watching his performance and fitness since he came back is baffling. Sharjeel has a cult-following - for a long time, they proclaimed that he was innocent and were criticizing Sethi for targetting him only to be left speechless when Sharjeel confessed.

His so-called proven track record against Starc and Cummins is based on one ODI series 5 years ago on highways where Warner was scoring massive hundreds and Australia was piling up mammoth scores. All Sharjeel did was score three useless half-centuries and failed to convert them into substantial scores that could influence the outcome of the game.

Pakistan won only one match in that series and Sharjeel scored 29 runs only.

With Sharjeel, not only are you getting a rubbish batsman, but you are also getting a complete liability in the field. T20 matches often come down to fine margins: converting 1s into 2s and 2s into 3s, saving that 15-20 runs in the field.

With Sharjeel, you are guaranteed to gift an additional 15-20 runs to the opposition and also impact strike rotation thanks to his poor running. When Sharjeel is in the middle, there is always a high risk of a run-out.

He simply doesn't score enough runs to compensate for his pathetic fitness. As an overall package, he is a disaster.

Asif Ali as an opener could work, but he is a brainless hack who is completely one-dimensional in his approach and gets outsmarted very easily. On a good day he could take Pakistan to a flier, but all the opposition needs to do is bring a spinner and bowl some variations, slower ones, etc. and he is guaranteed to throw his wicket away.

Opening with Asif Ali is like opening with Shahid Afridi. You will get fireworks every now and then, but more often than not, every knows how it is going to end.

Fakhar could work at #4. When he is in form and his head is in the right place, he could work at any position.

Haider, Nawaz, Shadab, and Rizwan at #5, #6, #7, and #8 and is a recipe for disaster. This middle/lower-order would not look out of place in an associate team and it is hardly any better than the current options that we have at our disposal.

Rizwan in the lower-order is madness because he has already shown that he cannot bat at that position. His career would have been over if he wasn't promoted to open the innings. Without the PP, he simply cannot score runs fluently.

The batting lineup that you mentioned is poor. It would take a miraculous effort from the bowlers or a massive stroke of luck to qualify for the semifinals with this lineup.

Considering the options at Pakistan's disposal, there is no option but to open with Babar and Rizwan. Pakistan will only make things worse if they reshuffle the batting order. These two need to tweak their approach. They don't have to slog from ball one but if they can increase their SRs by 5-6 points, it would be fine.

Pakistan is an impoverished team. This opening combo is the only semblance of consistency that we have, and it is covering up a lot of shortcomings. Pakistan made WT20 SF and the Asia Cup Final, and it would not have been possible without this pair.

If Sharjeel can't prove fitness then I agree it'll be difficult to justify his place in the side.

Yes Warner scored far more runs in the series but let's not forget he was also facing a far inferior bowling attack. Sharjeel scored his runs against 2 of the best in Starc and Cummins. You can't dismiss those performances in that series.

I'm surprised after having agreed with Rana in relation to his criticism of Rizwan's approach that you still think he's fit to open the batting in T20s. If you watched the Asia Cup, you could see that he's been worked out. Pitching it up wide outside off-stump to him is how you eliminate his scoring zones.

If you can't exploit the gaps in the field during the powerplay very well, there's no reason why Rizwan should continue as an opener. Pakistan must experiment with their opening combination until they work out who the best openers are in this team.

Before the Asia Cup, I didn't even think much of Nawaz's batting but after seeing his blinder against India, I'm convinced he should bat higher up. The crux of the matter is if something doesn't work, you'll never know what's best until you experiment with the unknown. You never know if we have a superior opening combination until you've given other players a chance, who've warranted a selection for the side.

You mentioned hidden gems in football, you never know we might find one of those to open the batting for Pakistan in white ball cricket.

I put Rizwan at 8 not because I believe he can fulfil this role as a late order hitter well but merely because it's the lowest position I can place him in the batting line-up. He's not a T20 batsman that's the problem. But we can't replace him because the likes of Sarfraz Ahmed, Azam Khan and Rohail Nazir are even worse with bat and gloves. So unfortunately we're stuck with him as a pure wicket-keeper.

The notion that Pakistan is a talentless cricketing nation is certainly accurate when it comes to the calibre of our wicket-keepers, particularly in white ball cricket. I'll give you that.

Yes Babar Azam and Rizwan played some good knocks in the WT20 last year but as mentioned earlier the latter has been found out. His hitting zones and his weaknesses have been uncovered.

Babar Azam didn't have a single innings of note in the Asia Cup. From memory, Rizwan played 3 x poor knocks in the same tournament.

The first one was against India in the opening game where he scored run a ball 30+ innings. He then almost cost Pakistan in the 180 run chase in the rematch. He got rescued by a terrific innings by Nawaz, which for me was the best knock of the tournament.

In the final he was responsible for Pakistan's required run rate shooting up to 14 runs per over in the last 5 overs. This was an utterly embarrassing performance when you consider the fact that Sri Lanka gifted 10 runs in extras from just one legitimate delivery in the first over of the chase.

The reality is Rizwan in particular has cost Pakistan in the last two T20 tournaments with his inability to score runs at a good tempo as an opener.

In that final against Sri Lanka, I would've much preferred to have see our team get bowled for 120 after showing genuine intent to win the game rather than see our side needing 70 runs required in the last 5 overs with plenty of wickets in hand.

Having Babar and Rizwan as our openers simply isn't modern cricket. This is the 90s mindset. We'll never win tournaments with this opening combination.

 

[Falcon'sParwaz]

Sharjeel is rubbish. The fact that people are still vouching for him after watching his performance and fitness since he came back is baffling. Sharjeel has a cult-following - for a long time, they proclaimed that he was innocent and were criticizing Sethi for targetting him only to be left speechless when Sharjeel confessed.

His so-called proven track record against Starc and Cummins is based on one ODI series 5 years ago on highways where Warner was scoring massive hundreds and Australia was piling up mammoth scores. All Sharjeel did was score three useless half-centuries and failed to convert them into substantial scores that could influence the outcome of the game.

Pakistan won only one match in that series and Sharjeel scored 29 runs only.

With Sharjeel, not only are you getting a rubbish batsman, but you are also getting a complete liability in the field. T20 matches often come down to fine margins: converting 1s into 2s and 2s into 3s, saving that 15-20 runs in the field.

With Sharjeel, you are guaranteed to gift an additional 15-20 runs to the opposition and also impact strike rotation thanks to his poor running. When Sharjeel is in the middle, there is always a high risk of a run-out.

He simply doesn't score enough runs to compensate for his pathetic fitness. As an overall package, he is a disaster.

Asif Ali as an opener could work, but he is a brainless hack who is completely one-dimensional in his approach and gets outsmarted very easily. On a good day he could take Pakistan to a flier, but all the opposition needs to do is bring a spinner and bowl some variations, slower ones, etc. and he is guaranteed to throw his wicket away.

Opening with Asif Ali is like opening with Shahid Afridi. You will get fireworks every now and then, but more often than not, every knows how it is going to end.

Fakhar could work at #4. When he is in form and his head is in the right place, he could work at any position.

Haider, Nawaz, Shadab, and Rizwan at #5, #6, #7, and #8 and is a recipe for disaster. This middle/lower-order would not look out of place in an associate team and it is hardly any better than the current options that we have at our disposal.

Rizwan in the lower-order is madness because he has already shown that he cannot bat at that position. His career would have been over if he wasn't promoted to open the innings. Without the PP, he simply cannot score runs fluently.

The batting lineup that you mentioned is poor. It would take a miraculous effort from the bowlers or a massive stroke of luck to qualify for the semifinals with this lineup.

Considering the options at Pakistan's disposal, there is no option but to open with Babar and Rizwan. Pakistan will only make things worse if they reshuffle the batting order. These two need to tweak their approach. They don't have to slog from ball one but if they can increase their SRs by 5-6 points, it would be fine.

Pakistan is an impoverished team. This opening combo is the only semblance of consistency that we have, and it is covering up a lot of shortcomings. Pakistan made WT20 SF and the Asia Cup Final, and it would not have been possible without this pair.

What about opening combo of Haider & Saim/Harris-theHack/Hurraira?

Haider is an opener who used to open in U-19 & he also opens for his team in FC. We destroyed his confidence by making him bat in MO just to accommodate Rizwan at top. He is a clean striker of ball. Averages 50+ in FC after 2 seasons.

Haider
Saim Ayub /Harris
Babar
Qasim Akram 6
Asif Ali or anyother Hack
Another Hack XYZ
Shadab 4
Wasim Jnr 3 (Nawaz would replace Wasim in SC & can bat above Asif Ali)
Shaeen 1
Nasim 2
Haris/Dahani/Hasnain 5

in this team:
Top 3 can be shuffled in any order

We have 6 bowling options.
Qasim Akram could be a huge potential(w.r.t Future) upgrade over Iftikhar
Harris / Azam Khan are wk & they also fill hack quota.
Khushdil can be replaced by Azam Khan / Danish Aziz. All are poor but we don't have anyother option.
This team only lacks a proper hitter but we can compensate it with better bowling & consistent starts by Top3

.

 

[Mamoon]

What about opening combo of Haider & Saim/Harris-theHack/Hurraira?

Haider is an opener who used to open in U-19 & he also opens for his team in FC. We destroyed his confidence by making him bat in MO just to accommodate Rizwan at top. He is a clean striker of ball. Averages 50+ in FC after 2 seasons.

Haider
Saim Ayub /Harris
Babar
Qasim Akram 6
Asif Ali or anyother Hack
Another Hack XYZ
Shadab 4
Wasim Jnr 3 (Nawaz would replace Wasim in SC & can bat above Asif Ali)
Shaeen 1
Nasim 2
Haris/Dahani/Hasnain 5

in this team:
Top 3 can be shuffled in any order
.

Making Haider, Mohammad Haris, Saim Ayub, Hurraira, etc. open the innings against Starc, Cummins, Rabada, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Wood, Boult, Ferguson, etc. at this stage of their careers would be suicidal. They are not ready to play at this level and there is no way they would be more beneficial to the team than Babar and Rizwan.

 

[Mamoon]

[MENTION=147314]topspin[/MENTION]

Both Rizwan and Babar need to tweak their approach. Both of them are capable of scoring runs with the same consistency but at a better SR. No one is asking them to slog from ball one, but the number of dot balls that they produce especially in the PP overs is an area of improvement.

However, we also need to be realistic - the only alternative at the moment as far as the opening position is concerned is to have Fakhar open with either Babar or Rizwan dropping to number three.

Let's not kid ourselves - opening with the likes of Sharjeel and Asif Ali, etc. is not going to be more beneficial to the team than opening with Babar and Rizwan. Besides, it would be better if we stick to realistic solutions. Sharjeel advocates need to accept the fact that he is done and dusted. He is not coming back and he has only himself to blame.

Ramiz, Babar, Mohammad Wasim, and Saqlain - the four main decision-makers - are not in his favor. Babar is his teammate in PSL and the fact that he is not pushing for his inclusion in the team clearly indicates that he does not rate him, and considering how mediocre an investment Sharjeel has proved for KK, they will look to move him on soon.

 

[Marooned]

Making Haider, Mohammad Haris, Saim Ayub, Hurraira, etc. open the innings against Starc, Cummins, Rabada, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Wood, Boult, Ferguson, etc. at this stage of their careers would be suicidal. They are not ready to play at this level and there is no way they would be more beneficial to the team than Babar and Rizwan.

Bhuvneshwar

Stop please, it's too funny.

 

[reversehook]

Making Haider, Mohammad Haris, Saim Ayub, Hurraira, etc. open the innings against Starc, Cummins, Rabada, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Wood, Boult, Ferguson, etc. at this stage of their careers would be suicidal. They are not ready to play at this level and there is no way they would be more beneficial to the team than Babar and Rizwan.

easy on the fruity loops mate, players cherish challenges and only become great when facing the best... if they have the skillset+mental game they will shine through.... look at mhd asif thrown to tge wolves against aussies at start of his career and everyone thgt thats it, but he learned and shined through... there will always be one or two stud bowlers in any lineup, so by ur logic we never introduce the youngsters? okay chief

 

[mesmerizer85]

Playing Asif Ali up the order

Based on todays match , i think no one can hit out of the ground better than Asif Ali...Shan Masood is ODI/Test material at best...I know im going to sound stupid, but Asif can play the role of Fakhar Zaman by being promoted up the order and keeping run rate also in check...

 

[Markhor]

Asif Ali saved us big time tonight with those late hits !

Covered up another poor batting show.

 

[Rana]

Add another win credit to him

Match winner!

 

[Mobashir]

Can't understand what is the purpose of sending Khushdil Shah before him.

 

[Rana]

Can't understand what is the purpose of sending Khushdil Shah before him.

Friendship

He is higher up the pecking order because of Rizwan connection

 

[ElRaja]

asif saved pak today, he may be hit and miss, but at least he hits sometimes, unlike paks other "power" hitters

 

[saabir]

Even I dont understand why Asif Ali gets so much criticism in this forum. He won matches single handedly by hitting sixes at the crucial time. His match winning cameos against NZ and Afghanistan in the WC and recently against India in Asia Cup . Today his 2 sixes makes the difference in the end.

 

[hasanali]

He's the only player in the country that can do that. I would always have him in the team.

 

[Concerned]

Not a fan, but if he’s selected he should always come in the closing overs.

Not sure why the management decided to send Kushdil?

 

[SpiritOf1903]

Streaky slogger

 

[gazza619]

Its amazing that in a country where tape ball & six hitting is in the blood, we cant find power hitters.

 

[PakEngFan]

Asif Ali saved us big time tonight with those late hits !

Covered up another poor batting show.

Agreed not sure why he wasn’t sent in ahead of kushdil.

 

[topspin]

He's the only fearless power hitter who can hit pace bowling in Pakistan.

Deserves way more respect.

People forget about what this guy went through in 2019 when he lost his daughter.

Give him a break.

 

[Marooned]

Asif Ali has won us games from hopeless situations. He has this ability to hit from ball one and most importantly, he actually handles pressure well.

On his day, he does the hard part. 100 times better than Khushdil useless Shah.

 

[topspin]

He hit to hit the ball from ball one in the Asia Cup final because of some very sluggish batting prior to his arrival at the crease. Tries to play for the team and go big from the first delivery. Lets not forget run rate required was over 14. He got out but he had no choice but to start from 6th gear because of how hopeless the situation was for Pakistan.

The criticism towards Asif Ali has always been overboard and a reflection of the mindset of the majority of deluded Pakistan fans who still haven't moved on from the 90s.

 

[TeymurBlake]

Should have been sent in before Shan Masood today.

 

[iRfaN_LA]

The guy is easily the best six hitter in the lineup. It is not easy to find such hitters. He reads the slower ball extremely well. To send him lower than Khushdil and Nawaz is the worst mistake which also cost us the final in Asia cup.

 

[Captain]

For me someone should fast track Taimoor Mirza into this T20 side. Youtube is full of his six hitting ability, although being on a tape ball but he'll be ten times better than Khushi and ifti if we have to persist with Babar and Rizwan opening.

 

[ElRaja]

asif ali in innings where he has scored more than 10 runs, average 40, s/r 160. whether he scores or not, he does not waste balls.

khushdil on the other hand average 30, s/r 120, when he's actually in, for a finisher, is terrible.

 

[Marooned]

The guy is easily the best six hitter in the lineup. It is not easy to find such hitters. He reads the slower ball extremely well. To send him lower than Khushdil and Nawaz is the worst mistake which also cost us the final in Asia cup.

Excellent point about the slower ball.

He is the one batsman in our team who seems to pick up the slower ball and hit them for sixes.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

People can keep talking about his averages all day long. At the end of the day he is the only power-hitter in this team. And a remarkably clean striker of the ball at that.

He hit more sixes in two balls today than the rest of Pakistan's batting did in the entire innings. And yet some people still question why he is in the side.

Had they sent him in place of Khushdil with three overs to go (the perfect time for him to bat) maybe those 13 runs would have been 30. But then again who can question teh infinite wisdom of philosopher Saqlain.

 

[boomboom6]

[MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION]

After the loss to Sri Lanka in the final, I noticed you had claimed that the current batting line-up for Pakistan in T20s is the best we got because "there is no talent in Pakistan cricket". I don't disagree you with quality of the talent pool, we're certainly scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to finding new players.

Having said that, I will name a better T20 batting side for Pakistan. I'm not claiming they will score 200+ consistently nor do I think they're capable of scoring 400 in an ODI but it's much better than what we have now which is what matters at present.

Sharjeel Khan - a must for Australian conditions
Asif Ali
Babar Azam
Fakhar Zaman (last chance)
Haider Ali
Muhammad Nawaz
Shadab Khan
Muhammad Rizwan - only place where we can hide him. The reserve keepers are trash.
Pace bowler 1
Pace bowler 2
Pace bowler 3

Before you ridicule Sharjeel, he is a must for Australian conditions. He has a proven track record against Starc and Cummins in ODIs.

In terms of reserve players, you could add Imad Wasim if for e.g. Fakhar continues his bad run of form. The most suitable reserve accumulator would be Shan Masood.

This line-up would have had a more realistic opportunity of chasing down Sri Lanka's total in the Asia Cup final.

You understand the game unlike our captain and think tank. Well done.

About the only change I'd make is swap out Asif & Fakhar's positions in this context because I think Asif's 6 hitting ability in the middle would better maximize the team while Sharjeel/Fakhar at the top do the damage in PP. T

I'd would absolutely back this top 4 to put teams under the pump. Sadly, we're not going to see it.

 

[sweep_shot]

He is good for T20. But, I think Pakistan shouldn't play him in ODI.

 

[hasanali]

You can't expect a player like Asif to come off every time he plays--but he's won us more than enough matches to be a guaranteed starter in this team.

 

[KamranDestiny]

Asif has earned his place in playing XI for the WC. And its about time the team management send him to bat around the 12th over especially if the pacers are bowling.
Let the guy bat for more than 1 damn over please and give him the freedom to just rotate the strike on the good balls while punishing other balls that are bowled in his zone!

 

[asfandyar]

Asif is good for the role he plays, but not exceptional. The problem is we don't even have average finishers in the domestics, let alone decent or great ones.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

In the list of players who have helped Pakistan win 5+ games with individual performances, Asif will feature. That too over a small data set.

So will Babar, Rizwan, Shaheen, Shadab, Haris, maybe Fakhar/Nawaz.

Shan, Iftikhar, Khushdil, Naseem, Hassnain, Qadir, Haider will not feature in that list.

The first list should be non-negotiable starters, unless horribly out of form.

Second list is where horses for courses, rotations, squad removal will come into play.

 

[shamaan]

He's the only power hitter In the team and his role should stay the same and should be batting in the last 6 overs.

 

[Kroll]

He's the only power hitter In the team and his role should stay the same and should be batting in the last 6 overs.

I think it would have been prudent to have sent him earlier in the last game after Babar got out cos even the tail enders can hit out in the last 5 or 6 overs.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

If I was Babar I’d let Asif Ali open the innings.

You have nothing to lose apart from stat padding and maintaining your icc ranking.

Think about the team for once !!!

 

[Rana]

If I was Babar I’d let Asif Ali open the innings.

You have nothing to lose apart from stat padding and maintaining your icc ranking.

Think about the team for once !!!

Asif and Khushdil with Chacha at 3.

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Some great death bowling from Haris Rauf but Asif Ali the difference,he has to face more balls!</p>— Mickey Arthur (@Mickeyarthurcr1) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mickeyarthurcr1/status/1574099639262801920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 25, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Officer Barbrady]

The Karachi crowd definitely loves him

 

[asadee]

Cos he doesnt have a cricketing brain. Showed he is a real one trick pony today

 

[PakEngFan]

Asif and Khushdil with Chacha at 3.

Hahah. This is comic relief. Asif and kushdil opening.

 

[Azrim_91]

The whole team doesn’t have a brain. It’s a fault of a cricketing nation and the people of it from the top. When you have school leavers and uneducated people playing cricket, with greedy money grabbing politicians, what more do you expect? So frankly, Asif Ali is the best out of the bunch.

 

[PakEngFan]

The Karachi crowd definitely loves him

They seem to like rubbish players.

 

[Bilal7]

Selfless player and should be in the team. His ideal entry point is the the 15-16 over mark.

 

[ZipZapZoom]

Someone please check if Asif Ali took some oath that he won't play more than 5 balls in any match

 

[daytrader]

Sent in with 5 overs left. If he plays all of them we can get 200!

 

[daytrader]

Sent in with 5 overs left. If he plays all of them we can get 200!

Got a start but couldn't capitalize. Caught out off a short ball

 

[Mamoon]

)

The most pathetic player. Utter rubbish.

He makes Shahid Afridi look like Sir Viv.

 

[Mamoon]

Selfless player and should be in the team. His ideal entry point is the the 15-16 over mark.

Selfless? Maybe, but pure garbage? Certainly.

 

[saeedhk]

The worst batsman to play for Pakistan. Only in Pakistan can such an awful man play 50+ matches for Pakistan.

 

[Saj]

Too many failures for my liking.

It seems that too many people live in the hope of his 1 decent innings out of 10.

 

[finalfantasy7]

Too many failures for my liking.

It seems that too many people live in the hope of his 1 decent innings out of 10.

rather use haider as the finisher, give him more matches under his belt before moving him to number 4 .

tbh think umar akmal can play the number 6 role better than asif ali

 

[Suleiman]

Needs to be persisted with. Barely takes any time to get going. Yeah he has very limited patience despite being able to middle the ball. Picked out Topley today when he could’ve placed that shot finer.

I believe in the AA.

 

[Saj]

By the way, he came in with 33 balls left today.

Ample time to build an innings and then launch it.

 

[gazza619]

Too many failures for my liking.

It seems that too many people live in the hope of his 1 decent innings out of 10.

Team management should know that Asif is best suited when 10-12 balls are left. Thats when he can score 20 off 7 balls. Thats his role. If we expect more from him then we should dump him.

 

[Saj]

Team management should know that Asif is best suited when 10-12 balls are left. Thats when he can score 20 off 7 balls. Thats his role. If we expect more from him then we should dump him.

But how often does he does this 20 off 7 balls?

My guess, not enough times.

 

[gazza619]

But how often does he does this 20 off 7 balls?

My guess, not enough times.

True but his best chance to make to an impact is when 2 overs are left. If 6-8 overs are left then we should send Shadab & Nawaz ahead of him.

 

[Zaz]

You can't expect a player like Asif to come off every time he plays--but he's won us more than enough matches to be a guaranteed starter in this team.

Which games has he won for pakistan recently? Is he gonna live on them two world cup games for the rest of his career

Hes barely tailender level and has a serious problem that he cant seem to bat more than 6-8 balls

The guy is a total fraud

 

[Zaz]

True but his best chance to make to an impact is when 2 overs are left. If 6-8 overs are left then we should send Shadab & Nawaz ahead of him.

Thats a waste of a position then Even the tailenders can swipe a boundary or two for 10-12 balls

His 5-15 runs a game are of no use to pakistan We require a lot more substance from someone playing only as a batsman

 

[Kroll]

Got a start but couldn't capitalize. Caught out off a short ball

I guess Asif Ali thought he's going to get served slot balls and full tosses all the time.

 

[jnaveen1980]

I am a bit surprised he is rated as a "match winner". He is not. These two random six in the end overs even Naseem Shah could do. Hasan Ali has done it a few times. Shaheen has also hit sixes in the end overs. I even put out a stat that he has a high percentage of single-digit scores. He is much closer to a tailender than a specialist batsman.

 

[Saj]

True but his best chance to make to an impact is when 2 overs are left. If 6-8 overs are left then we should send Shadab & Nawaz ahead of him.

So we are to now pick players who are in the team as 2-over specialists.

Dear me.

 

[Mamoon]

The “Asif Ali does not waste balls” cult makes me laugh.

If that is the only criteria then pack your team with number 11s and they won’t waste balls either.

Asif Ali doesn’t waste balls because he is not good enough to survive - he cannot play bounce, he cannot play spin, he cannot play slower ones etc.

Bowlers have to do the bare minimum to outfox him. He can only hit sixes agains gun barrel straight balls in his arc. He is completely one dimensional.

He occupies a critical position/role in the team and his failure rate is extremely high. At this point, anyone who supports his inclusion in the team either knows nothing about cricket, is a blind fan or maybe his relative.

If you don’t fall in anyone of the three categories you cannot support, justify and defend his selection.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Pakistan might as well play Imad wasim. He is a bit more calculated. Also a power play spinner.

 

[Ahmed216]

The “Asif Ali does not waste balls” cult makes me laugh.

If that is the only criteria then pack your team with number 11s and they won’t waste balls either.

Asif Ali doesn’t waste balls because he is not good enough to survive - he cannot play bounce, he cannot play spin, he cannot play slower ones etc.

Bowlers have to do the bare minimum to outfox him. He can only hit sixes agains gun barrel straight balls in his arc. He is completely one dimensional.

He occupies a critical position/role in the team and his failure rate is extremely high. At this point, anyone who supports his inclusion in the team either knows nothing about cricket, is a blind fan or maybe his relative.

If you don’t fall in anyone of the three categories you cannot support, justify and defend his selection.

[MENTION=147292]RedwoodOriginal[/MENTION] what do you have to say

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

[MENTION=147292]RedwoodOriginal[/MENTION] what do you have to say

I could honestly care less what this troll has to say. His opinion means about as much to me as a 5-0 ODI series win in Zimbabwe. He is the same person who called Haris Rauf "a rock-thrower" and thought Tim David was not good enough to do well anywhere besides the PSL.

If this was any other format, I would agree with the general sentiment of most of the people on this thread. But this is T20 cricket. Its a format where far too many times a great three over spell or a 20 ball blinder can end up being the difference between two teams.

As I've said before Asif Ali has one of the highest strike-rates in the world in the last three overs. He is a clean-hitter who can deliver in that role more effectively than anyone else the national set-up. Yes, his success rate is low and there are many times when his shot selection is highly questionable (i.e. yorking himself off Wood's bowling in the 5th T20), but that comes with the territory.

The problem is that most Pakistani fans don't have patience. If Asif Ali had never played any match-winning knocks that would be one thing. But he has shown what he is capable of numerous times. He needs to be persisted with because he has the x-factor to deliver for Pakistan when the chips are down and the team needs a power-hitter to win the match or add 20-30 runs of 10/11 balls.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Most sixes in T20s by PAK batters:

370 - Shoaib Malik
264 - Asif Ali
252 - Shahid Afridi

 

[Zaz]

I could honestly care less what this troll has to say. His opinion means about as much to me as a 5-0 ODI series win in Zimbabwe. He is the same person who called Haris Rauf "a rock-thrower" and thought Tim David was not good enough to do well anywhere besides the PSL.

If this was any other format, I would agree with the general sentiment of most of the people on this thread. But this is T20 cricket. Its a format where far too many times a great three over spell or a 20 ball blinder can end up being the difference between two teams.

As I've said before Asif Ali has one of the highest strike-rates in the world in the last three overs. He is a clean-hitter who can deliver in that role more effectively than anyone else the national set-up. Yes, his success rate is low and there are many times when his shot selection is highly questionable (i.e. yorking himself off Wood's bowling in the 5th T20), but that comes with the territory.

The problem is that most Pakistani fans don't have patience. If Asif Ali had never played any match-winning knocks that would be one thing. But he has shown what he is capable of numerous times. He needs to be persisted with because he has the x-factor to deliver for Pakistan when the chips are down and the team needs a power-hitter to win the match or add 20-30 runs of 10/11 balls.

1) He hasnt won numerous matches off his back That implies more than 2-3 which isnt true
2) he very rarely makes the telling 20-30 which you mention Anybody ca swipe a 6 or two at the death

If hes to remain in the team he needs to do a lot more than he is doing because the runs hes making and the amount of balls hes surving are simply not nowhere near enough

 

[Suleiman]

He will come good. There’s many a batsmen who are now top tier players who when they initially burst onto the international scene did not do their potential justice.

However, they were persisted with for a few years because the selectors and management knew they would eventually settle in. And they did. Some of them didn’t and faded away.

Pakistani selectors and fans have very limited patience. Forget about a few series, it lasts for a few games. I would understand the impatience if we had a slew of batsmen waiting in the wings in the domestic scene, but we don’t.

So I personally back Asif.

I can see people’s frustrations with him, but I will continue to back him. Same reason I backed Sharjeel (pre fixing saga), Umar Akmal, Sohaib Maqsood, Nawaz and Rizwan. 3 of them came good (before one of them fixed), the others fell away. It happens. Not everyone is going to fulfill their talent. Be it mental blocks or regression of skill or being found out- or a combination of all 3.

 

[Suleiman]

^But yes Asif does have a couple of issues, but they are not major. They are fixable. Willing to give him a long rope to work on his game to be more level headed and not let the pressure get to him. Never said I’m vouching for infinite chances.

Edit option timed out, but anyway..

 

[BunnyRabbit]

I think we have to accept the fact that Asif is never going to be a guy to score half centuries or 60s-70s regardless of which position he bats at. He won't last for more than 20 deliveries. So expecting him to be scoring big is pretty useless.

But the thing is we don't really have another player at no.7 who can start hitting from the word go. Khushdil has proven to be a massive failure in t20is and Iftikhar and Haider haven't done anything of note. Nawaz takes some time to get going and although he has a higher ceiling than Asif, his batting is still not polished enough at international stage to be considered a finisher. Shadab is one who has the ability but his batting talent would be far better utilized at no.5 than no.7 as he is someone who can construct innings (hate to say it but he has a bit of Malik and Hafeez in him). He is a natural timer of the ball but someone who gets confused. If he manages to sort out how to start his innings, he could become a lot better.

Asif as far as our options are concerned, is still the best person to bat at no.7 as the presence of Shadab and Nawaz gives us the cushion of playing a batter down at no.7 who isn't an allrounder.

The bigger problem at hand is the no.3-no.6 positions. The 4 spots of doom currently.
Shan hasn't grabbed his opportunity. Iftikhar still flatters to deceive. Khushdil Shah has failed miserably. Haider looks to be on another planet. Fakhar was doing well and is still probably the best option currently (despite his horrendous form of late)

Going forward, would like to see Pakistan moving on to investing in a new bunch of guys for the middle order atleast.

 

[SpiritOf1903]

146 sixes a day:

 

[Ahmed216]

I could honestly care less what this troll has to say. His opinion means about as much to me as a 5-0 ODI series win in Zimbabwe. He is the same person who called Haris Rauf "a rock-thrower" and thought Tim David was not good enough to do well anywhere besides the PSL.

If this was any other format, I would agree with the general sentiment of most of the people on this thread. But this is T20 cricket. Its a format where far too many times a great three over spell or a 20 ball blinder can end up being the difference between two teams.

As I've said before Asif Ali has one of the highest strike-rates in the world in the last three overs. He is a clean-hitter who can deliver in that role more effectively than anyone else the national set-up. Yes, his success rate is low and there are many times when his shot selection is highly questionable (i.e. yorking himself off Wood's bowling in the 5th T20), but that comes with the territory.

The problem is that most Pakistani fans don't have patience. If Asif Ali had never played any match-winning knocks that would be one thing. But he has shown what he is capable of numerous times. He needs to be persisted with because he has the x-factor to deliver for Pakistan when the chips are down and the team needs a power-hitter to win the match or add 20-30 runs of 10/11 balls.

Will be interesting to see how you are going to defend him in coming days. After Asia cup you said conditions in Australia will suit him. Let’s see

 

[The_KING]

He gets hate because he is rubbish. He may hit a couple of sixes once every 5-6 games in the final two overs, but that is all he is good for. He simply can't play a long innings.

 

[jnaveen1980]

How would you compare him with Afridi purely in terms of batting (lgnoring Afridi's bowling)?

 

[Savak]

Another player with many issues, slower balls, slower ball bouncers, leg spin. Opposition teams have done their homework.

 

[Mamoon]

How would you compare him with Afridi purely in terms of batting (lgnoring Afridi's bowling)?

Afridi has 5 Test hundreds, two of them came as an opener. He averaged 36 in Test cricket.

Asif Ali would do well to average 20 in Test cricket. He is a poor man’s Afridi. Worse technique, not as good when it comes to sixes.