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Why is Asif Ali selected in the ODI squad?

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srh

Senior T20I Player
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Dont understand his selection in ODI squad. Domestically in List A he has batted in 39 innings and averages only 26 and 100 strike rate :facepalm: Why Pakistan is selecting a player with such a record? :inzi
 
Because he was the second-highest run-scorer in the Pakistan Cup with 328 runs at an average of 109 and SR of 128 with 2 hundreds and a fifty in four innings.
 
Because we need a player like him at 6. And we need a player like Talat at 5..... :(
 
We should have umar or kamran akmal inplace of him Right?

His last 4 inning in domestic list A he averages 100+.if he plays 7 to 8 more list A matches he will average 40+ in list A.One thing also he is brillaint fielder with very good fitness which is rare for us .
 
Because we don't have a power hitter. He seems to fit the ball so why not give him a chance?
 
srh said:
Dont understand his selection in ODI squad. Domestically in List A he has batted in 39 innings and averages only 26 and 100 strike rate :facepalm: Why Pakistan is selecting a player with such a record? :inzi
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Do you even follow PAK CRICKET?:babar
In domestics he has been in good touch recently.
Plus he has been with the national team now for a couple series. I guess the mngt feels he can be a good addidtion.
 
Why would you create such a thread..

You'll get your answer when he gets his chance. Insha Allah
 
We have got many middle order batsmen in our team who are pretty conventional in their style of play, there should be atleast one guy like Asif Ali who can change the game in few deliveries so he adds that x factor to the team. Its a wonderful decision and I am hopeful it is gonna reap a lot of rewards in the future.
 
We need someone who can power us to bigger totals given the fact that we are a below average batting side. You can't be having too many accumulators because we'll never defend or chase down totals.
 
I wasn't really impressed by him in Scotland. Sure you have good hitting ability but you don't have to go hell to leather from ball one. It's always better to assess the pitch and the bowler even if the opposition is minnow level.


MA needs to drill in his mind to take responsibility and put a price on his wicket. He has the talent and hitting ability but no use playing a 10(4) type of innings.
 
He had a good Pakistan Cup and I have no problem with him being selected. However I do think that Hussain Talat should have been selected as well.
 
He played well in the domestic cup, so his place is justified. But definitely agree Hussain Talat probably deserved more of a chance than him
 
i also like hussain talat but from what i have saw of him recently during domestic and against scotland

he seems to be terribly out of form and also seems low in confidence.He can still make it to odi squad if he

perform well in trination .He need to earn odi place with some strong performances in t20i
 
did well in the Pakistan Cup and is much needed in LOIs ... Hasn't really gotten a proper chance to bat yet but I am sure will come good.
 
Syed1 said:
I wasn't really impressed by him in Scotland. Sure you have good hitting ability but you don't have to go hell to leather from ball one. It's always better to assess the pitch and the bowler even if the opposition is minnow level.


MA needs to drill in his mind to take responsibility and put a price on his wicket. He has the talent and hitting ability but no use playing a 10(4) type of innings.
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Chill man, he came pretty later on in both the innings in Scotland, plus it was his first cricket tour probably apart from UAE, where he has played. It takes a lot of adjustment and adaptability for the first timers. Give him some time, he does best when he doesn't think. Plus he is one of those guys who can really cash in on the weaker or part timers of the opposition. I still feel he needs a lot of grooming till he becomes good enough to play at no. 6 in ODI's

Would have preferred Talat for no 5 but sadly due to Hafeez' recall and Haris, Shoaib Malik and Sarfraz still there, with Harris likely to move up to 3 if Babar doesnt return, then he will have competition with Shoaib Malik, but Shoaib Malik is a beast on slow wickets, so we definitely need him. They could have selected him in ODI squad so he could have been tried in place of Babar.
 
Happy with his selection we need someone like him in our middle order. He can become very good under Mickey and I am sure he would he just needs to stop playing across the line and take his time. He's an excellent fielder too. Happy they didn't select Shan or other useless players hopefully he's given a chance this series.
 
Poor from Asif. He hasn't been great in ODIs. Atm I don't think he deserves a place in the XI. Not sure why he was selected.
 
He should have been sent ahead of Malik. Malik wasted so many deliveries and by the time Asif came to the crease there was barely any time left.
 
I don’t get what people are complaining about, who is a replacement ATM?

Pakistan need power hitter at those positions, bring another one, if they are better than him?

All others Malik, Sarfraz, Imaad, Shadab etc are not better power hitter. Nobody is going to give you spin.

Even today Malik and Babar only hit 2 boundaries in last 10... Pakistan success in last 10 depends upon success of Asif and Faheem, others have no capability to hit sixes and 4s aggaosnt pace, and they all know it 🙄🙄🙄
 
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I dont like the look of asif ali in ODIs.

His hitting comes off once in a blue moon, like a poor man's Afridi, however atleast Afridi was a class bowler too.

Instead of Asif, we can bring in Imam, and slot professor at number 5. Or the other option is to bring in Imad for that extra bowling option.

But the biggest thing is to work on Faheem's and Shadab's hitting ability. If they can work on scoring some quick runs, Pakistan will be a very balanced squad.
 
Hope they do not drop him for the T20's as he has done well there.

If only one certain Mr Hafeez could bat at 6 then we would not need an Asif Ali for the big runs at the death.
 
He isn't good enough to be considered a reliable power hitter especially in ODIs. Need to look for better alternatives.
 
He has an average of 20 odd in domestic cricket. What did you expect?
 
Can't wait to see him given the marching orders; a hack in every sense of the word.

If you are 27 and can't even average 30 in domestic cricket in any format after a sizeable number of games, there is clearly plenty of wrong with you. Not international material at all - I am sure there are a dozen hacks in domestic cricket who can hit one 6 per innings after slogging blindly every ball.
 
yasir said:
I don’t get what people are complaining about, who is a replacement ATM?

Pakistan need power hitter at those positions, bring another one, if they are better than him?

All others Malik, Sarfraz, Imaad, Shadab etc are not better power hitter. Nobody is going to give you spin.

Even today Malik and Babar only hit 2 boundaries in last 10... Pakistan success in last 10 depends upon success of Asif and Faheem, others have no capability to hit sixes and 4s aggaosnt pace, and they all know it ������
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You are over-hyping power-hitting. It is not needed that much in ODIs. More-so in T20s.

blackanhyellow said:
I dont like the look of asif ali in ODIs.

His hitting comes off once in a blue moon, like a poor man's Afridi, however atleast Afridi was a class bowler too.

Instead of Asif, we can bring in Imam, and slot professor at number 5. Or the other option is to bring in Imad for that extra bowling option.

But the biggest thing is to work on Faheem's and Shadab's hitting ability. If they can work on scoring some quick runs, Pakistan will be a very balanced squad.
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Malik and Hafeez at #s4 and 5 isn't good enough. Babar and Haris should be locks at 3 and 4.
 
Madplayer said:
He has an average of 20 odd in domestic cricket. What did you expect?
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Domestic stats can be misleading, but if you are not a spring chicken and are averaging in the 20s in all three formats after a sizeable number of games, it can only mean one thing - you are no good.
 
Mamoon said:
Can't wait to see him given the marching orders; a hack in every sense of the word.

If you are 27 and can't even average 30 in domestic cricket in any format after a sizeable number of games, there is clearly plenty of wrong with you. Not international material at all - I am sure there are a dozen hacks in domestic cricket who can hit one 6 per innings after slogging blindly every ball.
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In Zimbabwe Rameez was saying Asif could be the ideal number 3 batsman for Pakistan :)))
 
I liked him but we don't have enough quality in batting to have Asif type lottery hitter. But what I don't understand is the team management making hafeez open again, are they blind. Hafeez can do the role Asif does and a better one bc when hafeez is aggressive he looks a different player. Hafeez averages 30 Sr 72 as an opener and at 5-6 he averages 49 Sr 80. But obviously using stats to select best positions for Pakistan is a crime
 
This thread makes it obvious who watches domestic cricket, and who just blindly looks at stats.
 
Mamoon said:
Domestic stats can be misleading, but if you are not a spring chicken and are averaging in the 20s in all three formats after a sizeable number of games, it can only mean one thing - you are no good.
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I said it the first time i had a look at his average, number of matches played and his age. There must be something wrong with this man to average so low. He can hit one six per game, has some timing, can perhaps score quick 50s against trundlers of west indies or Srilanka. But against any decent bowling attack, he is a dud. And i am not even mentioning his game against spin. He is a sitting duck against spin on any pitch where ball spins a centimetre.
 
Madplayer said:
I said it the first time i had a look at his average, number of matches played and his age. There must be something wrong with this man to average so low. He can hit one six per game, has some timing, can perhaps score quick 50s against trundlers of west indies or Srilanka. But against any decent bowling attack, he is a dud. And i am not even mentioning his game against spin. He is a sitting duck against spin on any pitch where ball spins a centimetre.
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One of the worst specialist batsmen to have played for Pakistan in a long time. Those three sixes in the PSL Final have backfired. I shudder to think what he is going to do against Rabada, Steyn, Ngidi and Tahir in South Africa. This has to be his international match.
 
What do you people expect from him when he comes at 48th over and has to hit from ball one.

This man has special talent of hitting big but he can fail also but we have to be patient with him.
 
Madplayer said:
In Zimbabwe Rameez was saying Asif could be the ideal number 3 batsman for Pakistan :)))
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I would actually pay to see Bilal Asif open the innings with Asif Ali batting at number three. That would be some sight.
 
I wish I watched more domestic cricket. I envy the people who have watched Asif average 25 over 150 domestic innings in the last 7-8 years. Must have been a privilege.
 
Total total passenger in the team

You can argue that he should be in the T20 team, but his selection in ODI is asinine
 
ShahidDar08 said:
What do you people expect from him when he comes at 48th over and has to hit from ball one.

This man has special talent of hitting big but he can fail also but we have to be patient with him.
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Coming in the 48th over (he came in the 46th today btw) should be ideal for a specialist hitter

No one expects centuries from Asif, but he cant even get quick 20's consistently
 
If he is to be played, play him as an opener to partner with Fakhar Zaman. Else play someone like Aamir Yamin in his place.
 
His place today is a waste of space. Would take imad over him any day.

Asif might do well in t20s but for ODIs I don’t think he should be in
 
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Imad needed may be they just want to experiement
Imad should be back
 
Better options available.

Sohaib Maqsood being one or Haris Sohail.

I would even have Umar Akmal ahead of him
 
An utter waste of space. He brings absolutely nothing to the team. For some perspective on his mediocrity, imagine a player with a quarter of Afridi’s batting abilities and without the bowling. Awful!!
 
The sooner we get rid of him the better. He ‘ll cost us games. I keep saying that. Rather have some decent batsmen at the top than this nonsense hack
 
coy0607 said:
Coming in the 48th over (he came in the 46th today btw) should be ideal for a specialist hitter

No one expects centuries from Asif, but he cant even get quick 20's consistently
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Most of the balls ate up by Babar to get his hundred.

He will come good soon, be patient.
 
Because PAK needs someone to play "Josh Buttler" role :)

Why people are so much against the guy? It's not his fault that PCT management was extremely impressed with his couple of innings at PSL and brought him in National colors ...... then ZIM reserves happened.

His stats are in reverse order - lowest in FC, then List A, then T20 & finally ODI. That List A average also has gone past 25 level after a mega PAK Cup last time. He has 7 innings of 50+ in List A & 7 in T20 (& 4 in FC) - this should tell that guy has hitting ability, but extremely poor defense and loose temperament; not worthy of investing above T10 & T20. On top of that, he is spin bunny and they expect him to bat at 5-6-7, when he is likely to face more spin than pace.
 
MMHS said:
Because PAK needs someone to play "Josh Buttler" role :)

Why people are so much against the guy? It's not his fault that PCT management was extremely impressed with his couple of innings at PSL and brought him in National colors ...... then ZIM reserves happened.

His stats are in reverse order - lowest in FC, then List A, then T20 & finally ODI. That List A average also has gone past 25 level after a mega PAK Cup last time. He has 7 innings of 50+ in List A & 7 in T20 (& 4 in FC) - this should tell that guy has hitting ability, but extremely poor defense and loose temperament; not worthy of investing above T10 & T20. On top of that, he is spin bunny and they expect him to bat at 5-6-7, when he is likely to face more spin than pace.
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Pak team management is a joke; Sarfraz we know is a lost cause but Mickey is also not as intelligent as was expected
 
He is good enough player to be in the squad and its good to see that Mickey is showing confidence on him but he should have batted ahead of Malik today. Considering that world cup will be played on flat tracks, he is a must in the squad along with Hussain Talat.
 
Everybody can cry all they want but we need players like Asif and Faheem and it will take a year or two before we can rely on them. Also, it doesn't help when they only face 5-10 balls a game. Malik at 5 is a problem. If we have a set base like today, we need to send these two in earlier.
 
Chief Destroyer said:
Everybody can cry all they want but we need players like Asif and Faheem and it will take a year or two before we can rely on them. Also, it doesn't help when they only face 5-10 balls a game. Malik at 5 is a problem. If we have a set base like today, we need to send these two in earlier.
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Within a year or two we ‘ll be no10 then if we keep relying on Asif. The reason Asif was brought in, to get quick runs not “spend time in middle” if everyone needs time in middle then 50 overs are not enough.
 
Running out of patience with Asif Ali.... he better do something worthwhile soon.
 
srh said:
Pak team management is a joke; Sarfraz we know is a lost cause but Mickey is also not as intelligent as was expected
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Mickey has learnt to play the game in Pakistan to hide his mediocre capabilities.
 
Management had the golden opportunity to send him in after Haris' wicket to see what he's capable of given 10 overs vs a quality team but they didn't. If they'd done that and Asif fired, then that in my eyes would've been the perfect example of why he should be selected. Again, we need power hitters in the lower order and players like Asif Ali need to be given a long rope.
 
Doesn’t deserve a place in the team at the moment He’s a luxury that Pakistan can’t afford
 
coy0607 said:
nothing 'luxurious' about his game
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He’s a poorer version of Afridi who at least could bowl a little

He’s a luxury in the sense he may come off once every 10 games ala Afridi but Pakistan can not afford that
 
Though i understand where the management is coming from personally not a big fan of him. He is a big hitter but doesn't have grounded shots which i think is necessary for good batsmen. For his role I would rather invest in Nasir Nawaz who has a wider range of strokes than Asif and can hit big too. Hope Nasir does well in upcoming domestic tournaments.
 
Zaz said:
He’s a poorer version of Afridi who at least could bowl a little

He’s a luxury in the sense he may come off once every 10 games ala Afridi but Pakistan can not afford that
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Afridi was a full quota bowler for the most part of his career. Batting wise he was decent against pace and excellent against spin.

Asif on the other hand can't bowl. Rubbish against spin. Only has 3-4 shots against pace.
 
Chief Destroyer said:
Everybody can cry all they want but we need players like Asif and Faheem and it will take a year or two before we can rely on them. Also, it doesn't help when they only face 5-10 balls a game. Malik at 5 is a problem. If we have a set base like today, we need to send these two in earlier.
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Spot on.
 
Chief Destroyer said:
Everybody can cry all they want but we need players like Asif and Faheem and it will take a year or two before we can rely on them. Also, it doesn't help when they only face 5-10 balls a game. Malik at 5 is a problem. If we have a set base like today, we need to send these two in earlier.
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I agree with this but if they weren't going to send them in early today or even in dead rubber games , when will they do it ?

Seeing Malik bat ahead of them today was a depressing sight.
 
As I have already explained:

A lot of his critics point to his career stats as evidence he is a “hack” and/or lacks “temperament.” But actually if you look at his recent domestic stats, he has been pretty consistent. He did brilliantly in the T20 Cup just before PSL3 and was one of the best batsmen in the One Day Cup that was held immediately after PSL3. He started slowly in PSL3 but he came good towards the business end of the tournament and delivered when it mattered; the final.

Being selected for IT20s, on the back of a successful PSL 3, proved a big motivating factor for him and he used the Pakistan Cup to force his way into the ODI squad. How so? He was the second highest run-scorer in the tournament with 328 runs at an average of 109 and SR of 128. In just four innings he scored 2 big hundreds and one fifty. For context, before the Pakistan Cup he averaged 18 in List A from 35 innings. Talk about taking an opportunity and making the most of it…
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Now do you understand?
 
Hasan123 said:
I agree with this but if they weren't going to send them in early today or even in dead rubber games , when will they do it ?

Seeing Malik bat ahead of them today was a depressing sight.
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I agree he should have been sent ahead of Malik but that's a mistake on the part of the management, not Asif.
 
mak36 said:
I agree he should have been sent ahead of Malik but that's a mistake on the part of the management, not Asif.
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No what I meant was when will the management send them up the order ? Today was a perfect chance but they still didn't. Games are running out before the WC. They need batting practice. Management has to back them against South Africa.
 
Hasan123 said:
No what I meant was when will the management send them up the order ? Today was a perfect chance but they still didn't. Games are running out before the WC. They need batting practice. Management has to back them against South Africa.
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I think they recognise he will have better success on true pitches. He had far better success against Australia in Zimbabwe than he did in the UAE.
 
PakSarZameen said:
Afridi was a full quota bowler for the most part of his career. Batting wise he was decent against pace and excellent against spin.

Asif on the other hand can't bowl. Rubbish against spin. Only has 3-4 shots against pace.
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Lets not hype Afridi He was medicore for the most of his career with bat and ball

Hope asif proves me wrong but the last thing we need down at 6 is a hack We need a proper batsman with a powergame like most teams have Not a blind eyed slogger
 
mak36 said:
I think they recognise he will have better success on true pitches. He had far better success against Australia in Zimbabwe than he did in the UAE.
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They need game time. I honestly don't think the reasoning was the conditions. Think it was more due to seniority as always.
 
Hasan123 said:
They need game time. I honestly don't think the reasoning was the conditions. Think it was more due to seniority as always.
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Good point. As another poster mentioned, Shoaib is probably feeling insecure after Haris's innings.
 
mak36 said:
Good point. As another poster mentioned, Shoaib is probably feeling insecure after Haris's innings.
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There was no logical reason to send Malik ahead of them today. He hasn't been in great form and Fergurson and Boult had overs left. We know how rubbish he is against pace. So it was a perfect chance to try out Faheem and Asif.

Another game wasted without trying out something new in terms of batting.


Asif may have to sit out the next ODI. Don't see Hafeez or Malik being dropped . Imam will return automatically. Haris innings will earn him his place. So Asif will be dropped without even getting a chance!!!!
 
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