Oldest ODI Players

Pakistan’s cricket captain Misbah-ul-Haq Khan Niazi became the oldest player to appear in a One Day International cricket match for Pakistan. His age was 39 years 155 days in the first ODI against South Africa at Sharjah on 30 October 2013. 

Misbah-ul-Haq broke Younis Ahmed’s record who was four days younger when played his last ODI for Pakistan. Left-hand batsman Younis Ahmed was 39 years 151 days old when he opened batting for Pakistan against India on 20 March 1987 at Hyderabad Deccan’s Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium.

Misbah-ul-Haq also broke Imran Khan’s record of oldest ODI captain of Pakistan. Imran Khan was 39 years 121 days old on the victorious day of the World Cup final on 25 March 1992. He became the first and so far only captain to win World Cup for Pakistan.

Now Misbah-ul-Haq holds both records of being the oldest player and the oldest captain for Pakistan. He is still eight years younger for the world record of being oldest ODI player. Netherland’s Nolan Clarke holds the world record of being the oldest ODI player when he played against South Africa at Rawalpindi at the age of 47 years and 247 days in the 1996 World Cup.

Misbah-ul-Haq is still five years younger to beat the world record of being the oldest ODI captain. England’s slow left-arm orthodox bowler Norman Gifford captained England at the age of 44 years and 361 days against Pakistan at Sharjah in 1985 Rothmans Cup.

OLDEST ODI PLAYERS FOR PAKISTAN

Following 12 players have played ODIs for Pakistan after the age of 36:

Player                   Age        Opponent           Venue                  Batting                  Bowling

Misbah-ul-Haq  39-155   South Africa       Sharjah                 31(49)                                                   30.10.2013

Younis Ahmed   39-151   India                      Hyderabad          26(69)                   —                             20.03.1987

Imran Khan         39-121   England                                Melbourne         72(110)                 1/43(6.2)              25.03.1992

Javed Miandad 38-271   India                      Bangalore            38(64), 2 ct          —                             09.03.1996

Zaheer Abbas    38-102   Sri Lanka              Hyderabad          26(27)                   2/26(7)                 03.11.1985

Abdul Qadir        38-048   Sri Lanka              Sharjah                 7*(7)                     0/35(7.2)              02.11.1993

Mohammad Nazir 37-308 Australia           Sydney                 2*(8)                     0/67(9)                 10.01.1984

Inzamam-ul-Haq 37-018                Zimbabwe          Kingston              37(35), 3 ct          —                             21.03.2007

Wasim Akram    36-274   Zimbabwe           Bulawayo            DNB                       —                             04.03.2003

Mohammad Yousuf 36-073 SA                   Dubai                    3(5)                        —                             08.11.2010

Saleem Malik     36-053   India                      Manchester       6(19)                      —                             08.06.1999

Asif Iqbal             36-014   West Indies        The Oval              17(20), 1 ct          4/56(11)               20.06.1979

OLDEST ODI PLAYERS FOR EACH COUNTRY

Following is the list of the oldest player for each country that has played One Day International cricket.

Nolan Clarke      47-257   Netherlands v SA at Rawalpindi 32(46)                   —                             05.03.1996          

John Traicos       45-312   Zimbabwe v India at Pune            4(6)                        1/50(10)               25.03.1993

Norman Gifford 44-361 England v Pak at Sharjah               0, 1 ct                    4/23(10)               26.03.1985

Rahul Sharma    43-308   Hong Kong v Pak at Colombo      1(3)                        —                             18.07.2004

Jan Louw             43-226   Namibia v Zim at Harare                DNB, 1 ct              1/60(10)               10.02.2003

Donald Pringle   43-44     East Africa v Eng at Birmingham 3(12)                      0/41(12)               14.06.1975

Donovan Blake  42-284   USA v Aus at Southampton         0(2)                        0/7(1)                    13.09.2004

Somachandra de Silva 42-261 SL v WI at Melbourne         5(19)                      —                             27.02.1985

Clive Rice             42-114   SA v Ind                at New Delhi                     DNB                       1/54(9)                 14.11.1991

Bobby Simpson 42-068   Aus v WI at Castries                        23(29), 1 ct          2/30(7)                 12.04.1978

Sunil Dhaniram  41-261   Canada v Neth at Rotterdam      9(18)                      0/16(3)                 05.07.2010

Iain Philip             40-349   Scotland v BD at Edinburgh          3(17), 3 ct            —                             24.05.1999

Jahangir Shah    40-283   Bangladesh v NZ at Sharjah         DNB, 1 ct              0/62(9)                 28.04.1990

Lance Gibbs        40-251   WI v SL  at Manchester                  DNB                       0/17(4)                 07.06.1975

Bevan Congdon                40-156   NZ v Eng at Manchester                                2(21)                      0/26(11)               17.07.1978

Stephen Tikolo  39-268   Kenya v Zim at Kolkata                   10(14)                   0/49(7)                 20.03.2011

Misbah-ul-Haq  39-155   Pakistan v SA at Sharjah                                31(49)                   —                             30.10.2013

David Jonston    39-130   Ireland v Scotland at Belfast        24(34)                   0/60(9)                 06.09.2013

Shaukat Dukanwala 39-40 UAE v Neth at Lahore                                DNB                       5/29(10)               01.03.1996

Mohinder Amarnath 39-36 India v WI at                Mumbai               15(47)                   —                             30.10.1989

David Hemp       38-151   Bermuda v Neth at Potchefstroom 81(101), 1 ct —                             08.04.2009

Karim Sadiq        29-228   Afghanistan v Kenya at Sharjah DNB                       2/10(7)                 04.10.2013

 

 

 

Leg spinner is Pakistan’s latest export commodity

In March 1979, Pakistan played two hard-fought Test matches in Australia. In the first Test at Melbourne, Australia was chasing a target of 382 to win, was comfortably placed at 305 for 3 with Allan Border and Kim Hughes batting at 105 and 84. At that hopeless point, Sarfraz Nawaz bowled a magical spell and took seven wickets for only one run to finish with 9 for 86 in the innings. Australians crashed to 310 all out and were beaten by 71 runs. On the first day of the Test match, March 10, a boy was born in a remote town called Merguz in Pakistan’s North Western Frontier Province. His parents named the boy Fawad Ahmed.

In the second Test played at Perth, Australia had managed first innings lead of 50. At the end of third day, Pakistan was 19 for 1. In those days, Test matches had a rest day following the third day. Next morning, March 27, was the rest day of the Test match. Thousands miles away, back in Lahore, Pakistan, a boy was born. His parents named the newborn Mohammad Imran Tahir. Pakistan lost the Test match by seven wickets on final day and the series was squared 1-1.

More than 34 years later, the same boy born on the rest day of second Test, playing for South Africa in a Test match at Dubai, minced Pakistani batting into tiny pieces. Yes, I am talking about Imran Tahir – South Africa’s Lahore-born right-arm leg spinner. The other boy, Fawad Ahmad is also a leg break googly bowler who has started his international career for Australia earlier in the year.

Pakistan is not a great exporting country. Traditionally it has been exporting commodities like textiles, rice, carpets, leather, sports goods and manpower. In recent years, it is exporting another commodity – right-arm leg-break googly bowlers to play cricket for other countries. Two of exported leg spinners Fawad Ahmad and Imran Tahir are playing for Australia and South Africa these days. Ironically Pakistan does not have any leg-break bowler to play for its own country since Mushtaq Ahmed got retired a decade ago.

Fawad Ahmad, who had played 10 First-class matches in Pakistan for Abbottabad and Pakistan Customs, fled to Australia in 2010 as asylum seeker. He settled in Melbourne and started playing for Victoria. Eventually he qualified to play for Australia and in the summer of 2013 played three One Day Internationals and two Twenty20 International matches for his adopted country.

Imran Tahir made his First-class debut for his home team Lahore City against Faisalabad in a Quaid-e-Azam Trophy match at Faisalabad in November 1996. Interestingly, that was also First-class debut match for Faisalabad off spinner Saeed Ajmal. Both were teenage boys at that time and both captured four wickets each in first innings against each other’s team.

Imran Tahir played First-class cricket for Lahore City, WAPDA, REDCO, Lahore Whites, SNGPL, Sialkot, Lahore Blues, PIA, Lahore Lions, Pakistan A and Lahore Ravi between 1996 and 2006. He moved to England in 2003 and played First-class cricket for Middlesex, Yorkshire, Hampshire and Warwickshire between 2003 and 2011. His final destination was South Africa where he started playing First-class cricket for Titans in 2007 and later played for Easterns, Dolphins and Lions before gradually moving up the ladder to be part of South African Test team.

Imran Tahir sunk Pakistani batting line for only 99 on opening day of second Test match at Dubai. He captured 5 wickets for 32 runs without help of any fielder – four clean bowled and one leg-before-wicket. He became first right-arm spin bowler to take five-for since South Africa returned to international cricket twenty years ago. Since then four bowlers Paul Harris, Robin Peterson, Nicky Boje and Paul Adams returned with five-wicket hauls and all were slow left-arm orthodox bowlers.

Last right-arm bowler to take five wickets in an innings for South Africa was Harry Bromfield, an off-spinner who did that against England in 1965. Hugh Tayfield was the most famous South African all-time spin bowler. He was an off spinner who took five-fors on 14 occasions in 1950s.

Aubrey Faulkner was South Africa’s best right-arm leg-break googly bowler in its all-time history. He played 25 Test matches between 1906 and 1924 and took 82 wickets including four five-fors. He holds the record for best bowling performance by a South African leg spinner when he took 6 for 17 against England at Leeds in 1907. He captured five-for three more times in his career.

Before Imran Tahir, last leg-break googly bowler to take five wickets in an innings for South Africa was Bruce Mitchell against Australia at Durban in 1936. Xen Balaskas against England at Lords in 1935 and Quintin McMillan who did twice against New Zealand at Christchurch and Wellington in 1932 were the other two leg-break googly bowlers to take five wickets in an innings for South Africa.

Imran Tahir also holds another record that no bowler cherishes – conceding most runs in a Test match without taking a wicket. Pakistan’s Khan Mohammad held that most unwanted record for 54 years who conceded 259 runs in 54 overs against West Indies at Kingston in February 1958 in the innings when Sir Garry Sobers’ smashed world record score of 365 not out.

Imran Tahir eventually broke Khan Mohammad’s record in November 2012 against Australia at Adelaide. He conceded 260 runs without taking any wicket in only 37 overs. Zimababwe’s Ray Price and South Africa’s Nicky Boje are only two other bowlers in Test cricket’s history to concede more than 200 runs in a Test match without taking a wicket.

Imran Tahir and Fawad Ahmed, both are in action at international level. Imran Tahir became first South African leg-break googly bowler to take five wickets in a Test match innings in 77 years. It is yet to be seen that how long they can play for their adopted countries. Pakistan discarded and others embraced them. It is a question mark on the abilities of Pakistani selectors too. Notwithstanding, leg spinner is the most exciting export commodity for Pakistan these days.

 

Pakistan and a Pakistani surprise everyone

The Opening day of second cricket Test match between Pakistan and South Africa at Dubai did fetch two big surprises – one by Pakistani team itself and the other by a Pakistan-born South African bowler. Ever-fragile Pakistani batting line-up was bundled out for a paltry 99 in less than 37 overs. The wrecker-in-chief was Imran Tahir – a right-arm leg-break googly bowler who was born and groomed in Pakistan – took his career-best of 5 for 32 in 13 overs for his adopted country.

Last time when Imran Tahir bowled in a Test match, he was thrashed by Australians at Adelaide nearly a year ago. He returned with figures of none for 260 in the Test match. His comeback with a five-wicket haul against his ex-native Pakistan was even a greater surprise. Anyone could have guessed that South African pace battery can molest Pakistan but no one could have predicted about Imran Tahir’s success.

Pakistan emulated its own score when they played last Test match in Dubai – against England nearly 21 months ago. Pakistan was all out for 99 on that occasion too, but later recovered to win the Test match by 71 runs and whitewashed English team 3-0.

It was 16^th occasion when Pakistan was bowled out for less than 100 runs in a Test match innings in its all-time history; third time against South Africans. Only nine months ago, Pakistan was bundled out for its lowest score by South Africans – 49 at Johannesburg with Dale Steyn taking 6 for 8. This was Pakistan’s lowest score against any country in its entire history of Test cricket.

Another under-100 score by Pakistan against South Africa was at Faisalabad in October 1997. In fact, Pakistan had the upper edge in that Test match until last 30 odd overs when Pakistani batting collapsed suddenly. Pakistan was set only 146 to win, were crashed to 92 all out.

Out of 16 scores of 99 or less, six crashed under-100 innings were against England, five against Australia, three against South Africa and one apiece against the West Indies and Sri Lanka.

Pakistan’s lowest score against each country in Test cricket is as follows: South Africa 49 at Johannesburg in 2013, Australia 53 at Sharjah in 2002, England 72 at Birmingham in 2010, West Indies 77 at Lahore in 1986, Sri Lanka 90 at Colombo in 2009, New Zealand 102 at Faisalabad in 1990, Zimbabwe 103 at Peshawar in 1998, India 116 at Bangalore in 1987 and Bangladesh 175 at Multan in 2003. Ironically three Test matches from the above list were eventually won by Pakistan – against New Zealand, India and Bangladesh.

Pakistan’s Test match against Australia at Sharjah in 2002 was the worst in its entire history. Pakistan was bowled out for 59 in the first innings and was followed by 53 all out in the second. Only one batsman in either innings was able to reach the double figures. Interestingly Pakistan’s total of two innings of the Test match was 112. It was less than Matthew Hayden’s individual score of 119 in Australia’s only innings.

Pakistan’s batting has been very vulnerable in recent years. 10 out of 16 innings when Pakistan was crashed for less than 100 in a Test innings were played in last 11 years since October 2002. In first 50 years of Pakistan’s Test cricket history, there were only six such instances.

True, Pakistan was bowled out for 99 against England at the same ground last year and eventually won the Test match, when England was world’s number 1 Test team. Can it be repeated against current number 1 team? Co-incidences are not so common and South Africans play much more hard cricket.

 

 

What is South African batting depth minus Hashim Amla?

If depth in batting is spine for any batting line-up, South African batting is spineless without Hashim Amla. The bearded batsman with a shaved scalp is team’s most dependable batsman for last five years; so dependable that he always scores more runs than anybody’s expectations. Hashim Amla – world’s number 1 ranked batsman – may miss the second cricket Test against Pakistan starting on 23 October at Dubai.

Hashim Amla flew to his hometown Durban after the first Test match to be with his wife for the imminent birth of their second child expected at any moment leaving his team hoping him to join well in time for the second match of the Test series. He was the only centurion for South Africa in the first Test, a role he has been consistently playing for quite a while.

Two cleric-looking cricketers with long beards made great impact on game of cricket – WG Grace and Hashim Amla – having Test careers more than a century apart. WG Grace played his last Test in 1899 before the start of twentieth century and Hashim Amla played his first Test in 2004, four years after the twentieth century ended.

Not all South African batsmen have been consistently scoring runs this year. In ten months so far in 2013, only Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers have scored bulk of runs for South Africa in Test matches. In fact, apart from these two, other five batsmen in South African batting line-up are not in good form in 2013.

Hashim Amla has scored 590 runs in 6 Test matches at an average of 73.75 in 2013. In the previous year, he had scored 1064 runs in 10 Test matches at 70.93 including a triple century against England at The Oval. Before that, he had already scored more than 1000 Test runs in 2008 and 2010 also, making him the most consistent batsman in Test cricket in recent years.

AB de Villiers has also been as consistent as Hashim Amla. He has scored 579 runs in 6 Test matches at an average of 72.37 in 2013. He too had a good 2012 as he scored 815 runs at 58.21 in 10 Test matches. Like Hashim Amla he crossed 1000 runs mark in 2008 and missed by only four runs in 2010.

Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers have been scoring heavily, but what about other batsmen in South African team? Two of their all-time greats and most experienced batsmen Jacques Kallis and Graeme Smith are having a disappointing year so far. Three more batsmen Alviro Petersen, Faf de Plessis and JP Duminy are not among runs too. Only two of seven-cylinder’ South African batting engine are firing.

Jacques Kallis has averaged only 19.12 in five Test matches he has played in 2013 so far. His total tally of runs is only 153 with just two half centuries. Prior to 2013, he had averaged fifty plus in almost every year of his Test career. At 38, he simply seems to be at twilight of his playing career.

Graeme Smith’s average in 2013 is slightly better than Kallis – 25.66 for his 231 runs in six Test matches with only two half centuries. Other opener Alviro Petersen has almost identical record – 24.66 for his 222 runs in six Test matches with only one century and no other fifty.

JP Duminy has played only one Test match in 2013. It was first Test of the current series in which he scored 57 and 0. Faf de Plessis has scored 275 in 6 Test matches at an average of 34.37 with only one century and no other fifty.

Alien conditions cannot be blamed for dismal records of South African batsmen. Abu Dhabi Test was the only match that South Africans played abroad while other five Test matches in 2013 were played in South Africa. It is only the form of all batsmen other than Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers that haunts South African supporters.

If Hashim Amla does not return for Dubai Test, the possible replacement would be Dean Elgar. He has played five Test matches in 2013 and scored 192 runs at an average of 48.00, but it is primarily due to his only good innings of the year when he scored an unbeaten 103 against New Zealand at Port Elizabeth in January. He too has not scored enough runs since then.

In the Abu Dhabi Test, Hashim Amla was the only centurion from South African team while AB de Villiers scored a ninety. What could be the possible depth of South African batting minus Hashim Amla? It would merely be redundant to an engine with only one cylinder firing.

Misbah silences artillery barrage again

Pakistan’s ageing captain Misbah-ul-Haq heaved spinner Robin Petersen straight over sight screen for the winning six as Pakistan trounced world’s number one Test team South Africa by seven wickets in Abu Dhabi Test match. It was Pakistan’s only fourth win against South Africa in 22 Test matches. It was also Pakistan’s fourth consecutive Test match win in United Arab Emirates.

South Africa suffered first defeat in 16 Test matches since loss against Sri Lanka at Durban in 2011 – longest undefeated run in its history. On paper, it was a contest between world’s number one ranked team versus sixth.

No other player in Pakistan’s history had to lull opponents’ criticism within his own country than Misbah-ul-Haq. He had done it many times before, hushing them by his sheer performance. Once again in his career, Misbah-ul-Haq has silenced a barrage of artillery.

It was Misbah-ul-Haq’s 11^th win in 23^rd Test match as captain of Pakistan cricket team. His 11 wins as captain have placed him at par with Inzamam-ul-Haq’s 11 wins in 31 Tests. Only Imran Khan (14 wins in 48 Test matches), Javed Miandad (14 in 34) and Wasim Wasim Akram (12 wins in 25 Test matches) have won more Test matches for Pakistan. Misbah-ul-Haq has never captained Pakistan on his home soil and all his wins have come outside Pakistan.

Misbah-ul-Haq became the first Pakistani captain to score a century against South Africa in 22 Test matches between two countries. Two previous captains had scored in 90s but none was able to score a century – 99 by Salim Malik at Johannesburg in 1995 and unbeaten 92 by Inzamam-ul-Haq at Port Elizabeth in 2007.

In Abu Dhabi Test, Misbah-ul-Haq became one of the oldest batsmen to score a Test hundred. He was 39 years 141 days old when he slammed his hundred in the first innings. The last batsman to score hundred, older than this age was England’s Graham Gooch nearly 20 years ago who was 40 years and 314 days old when he scored 210 against New Zealand at Nottingham in 1994. The oldest batsman to score a century in the all-time history of Test cricket was England’s Sir Jack Hobbs who scored 142 against Australia at Melbourne in 1929 at the age of 46 years and 82 days. A total of 17 centuries have been scored in Test cricket by a batsman older than Misbah-ul-Haq.

Misbah-ul-Haq has always been victim of injustice due to politics in Pakistani cricket. He could not make Test debut until he was nearly 27 years old. After his debut Test at against New Zealand at Auckland in March 2001, he was dropped for nearly 18 months. He could play only four more Test matches in a brief comeback and then was dropped again for more than four years.

Inzamam-ul-Haq who captained Pakistan in 31 Test matches between 2003 and 2007, always considered Misbah-ul-Haq as a potential threat. Misbah-ul-Haq was never included in Pakistani team and only got a comeback chance after retirement of Inzamam-ul-Haq in October 2007. His successor captains also ignored Misbah-ul-Haq on regular basis despite of good performances whenever he had a chance to play for Pakistan.

Misbah-ul-Haq could become a regular member of Pakistani team when he became captain himself in 2010 at the of 36 years. Pakistan has played 103 Test matches since Misbah-ul-Haq made his Test debut in 2001, but has played only 42 matches and was sidelined in rest of 61 Test matches. Similarly in One Day Internationals, Misbah-ul-Haq has played in only 128 matches out of 288 played by Pakistan since then. Had he been a regular part of the team, Misbah-ul-Haq would have been in Pakistan’s five all-time greatest batsmen.

Apart from former Pakistan captains who thwarted his career for their own vested interests, an artillery barrage spared no opportunity to blast Misbah-ul-Haq throughout his career. Their guns never stopped firing whenever Misbah-ul-Haq failed in a match as a batsman or captain. It is only his resilience and tenacity that Misbah-ul-Haq is still the captain of Pakistani team. His exemplary performance as batsman and captain against South Africa in the Abu Dhabi Test match has silenced artillery barrage once again like several times in the past.

 

Can Pakistan overcome experience mismatch by exploiting conditions?

First session of the first Test match between Pakistan and South Africa belonged to Pakistan. Pakistani left-arm pace bowlers Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan provided his team early breakthroughs to take three wickets and put considerable pressure on the springboks.

Playing conditions in Unied Arab Emirates do favor Pakistan, that’s for sure. The dry and scorching heat of Arabian desert, slow and low-bounce wicket which could be more helpful to spin bowlers and a supporting crowd – all are plus points for Pakistan.

But these are only few points in favor of Pakistan. When it comes to core cricketing comparison, South Africans have everything in their favor. Both teams had played 21 Tests matches prior to the current series; South Africa won 11 out of those. Pakistan had only three victories so far. Another point where both teams have a severe mismatch in comparison is relative experience among the two sides.

South Africans are a very experienced side if compared to Pakistan – manifold in almost every aspect. South African captain Graeme Smith is the most experienced captain in the history of Test cricket. He has led his team in 103 Test matches. His opponent captain Misbah-ul-Haq’s tally of Test matches as captain of Pakistan is only 23. Graeme Smith is more than four times more experienced when captaincy is compared.

The eleven players in the South African team playing in Abu Dhabi Test have played an aggregate of 617 Test matches. In comparison, Pakistani eleven’s aggregate is only 243. These figures show South African team is nearly three times more experienced than Pakistani team in this Test match.

South African batting line is flooding with experienced batsmen – an aggregate of 39,416 runs in Test cricket for the eleven players in this Test match. In complete contrast of these mammoth figures, Pakistan’s eleven players have an aggregate of only 14,310 Test runs. The discrepancy is again nearly three times. In terms of centuries scored, South Africa’s batsmen in this Test match had scored 114 Test centuries while Pakistani team had only 32.  Again, the discrepancy is of three-and-half times in favor of South Africa

It is not only batting where South Africa dominates Pakistan in experience. In bowling department the gulf is even wider. South African bowlers playing in this Test match had already bagged 938 wickets in Test cricket. In a disappointing contrast, Pakistan is playing a bowling side that had taken only 198 wickets prior to this Test match. It clearly confirms supreme domination in experience by South African bowling – nearly five times more experienced than Pakistan. In five-fors comparison, figures are again four times in favor of South Africa, 42 for South Africa and 11 for Pakistan.

Pakistan included two uncapped players in the Abu Dhabi Test. Opening batsman Shan Masood and left-arm orthodox spinner Zulfiqar Babar are Test cricket debutantes. Faf du Plessis is the only player in South African team whose number of Test matches is in single digit while rest of the team has bundles of experience.

The current Test series between South Africa and Pakistan is being fought on contrasting strengths of the two teams – experience and class of a strong South African team versus condition’ advantages of a weak Pakistani team. If I am asked to put my money, I would definitely bet for the experience and not the conditions’ advantage.

Saeed Ajmal – the last little caboose

Saeed Ajmal is the last little caboose of a great Pakistani bowling train – cars of which comprised both fast bowlers and spinners. Fast bowlers embraced likes of Fazal Mahmood, Sarfraz Nawaz, Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif. Spinners included Intikhab Alam, Abdul Qadir, Iqbal Qasim, Mushtaq Ahmed and Saqlain Mushtaq. All the cars have passed and are out of sight now. The last little caboose is within the sight but it too will disappear soon.

When will the next train arrive? Nobody knows, especially in case of Pakistan – world’s most unpredictable and fragile country in every walk of life and cricket is no exception. In Saeed Ajmal, rest Pakistan’s hope – though not too that extent as his predecessor cars had. His record is good but not like a full car but only reflect the last little caboose of a great train.

Pakistani fans carry lot of expectations from Saeed Ajmal. This is understandable, first because of some great variety in off-spin bowling that he exhibits regularly including his famous ‘doosras’ and ‘teesras’; and second because of no other bowler in Pakistani team is capable of getting many wickets. Pakistan is now a mere miniature of a great bowling side that was hallmark of cricket fields until a decade ago.

Pakistan and South Africa are playing a series that involves all three formats of international cricket over a period of 32 days starting on 14 October. They will play three Test matches, five One Day Internationals and two Twenty20 International matches in the desert of United Arab Emirates. Saeed Ajmal is Pakistan’s only hope who can get many wickets to bowl South Africa out.

Ironically, Saeed Ajmal’s record against South Africa does not suggest that he can help Pakistani team to bowl South Africans out twice to win a Test match. In four Test matches against South Africans, he has taken 14 wickets, but 10 of these wickets were obtained in the same Test match – at Cape Town earlier this year in February where he took 10 wickets in the match for 147 runs. Excluding this single Test match, Saeed Ajmal has a dismal record against South Africa – only 4 wickets in three Tests at an astronomical average of 103.75 runs per wicket.

Can Pakistan rely on a bowler whose bowling average against South Africa is more than 100 runs in all but one Test match? Out of four, Saeed Ajmal’s three Test matches against South Africa were played in South Africa. His fourth Test match was in Dubai where he returned with figures of 2 for 95 and 1 for 102. He was subsequently dropped in the second Test match of the series when Pakistan played against South Africa in UAE.

Saeed Ajmal’s record in UAE is excellent where he has taken 45 wickets in 7 Test matches at an average of only 23.73. That’s the only good news for Pakistani camp, but it is South Africa against whom he usually doesn’t perform well.

Saeed Ajmal has played One Day Internationals for Pakistan against 13 countries and it is South Africa against whom his bowling average is the worst. In 9 matches, he has obtained only 11 wickets at an average of 33.54 and has never taken four wickets in a match. Again, his record is excellent in One Day International he has played in UAE where he has taken 44 wickets in only 26 matches at an average of only 21.88. Like Test matches, his bowling record against South Africa is below par in One day Internationals too.

However, in Twenty20 Internationals Saeed Ajmal’s record is not bad both against South Africa and on UAE pitches. He has taken 8 wickets in 6 matches against South Africa at an impressive average of 16.87 and satisfactory economy rate of 6.42 runs per over. In Twenty20 Internationals in UAE, Saeed Ajmal has taken 19 wickets in 14 matches at commendable average of 15.36 and economy rate of 5.42.

Saeed Ajmal is the only hope who can bowl opposition out and give few more victories to Pakistan but quite unlikely in the coming Test series. Nevertheless he should be appreciated and respected because once this little caboose is gone too; nobody knows when the next train will arrive.

 

Pakistan completes Test squad of 15

Pakistani selectors announced Ahmed Shehzad, Asad Shafiq and Shan Masood as the three remaining players for the upcoming Test series against South Africa in the desert venues of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Pakistan had already announced 12 players for the Test series and announcement of three more players has completed the Test squad.

The Pakistani squad now comprises of three opening batsmen Khurram Manzoor, Ahmed Shehzad and Shan Masood. There are five middle-order batsmen in the team including Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Amin and Asad Shafiq.

Pakistani team has three pace bowlers Junaid Khan, Mohammad Irfan and Rahat Ali as well as three spin bowlers including Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman and Zulfiqar Babar. The fifteenth member of the team is wicket keeper Adnan Akmal who is also a useful batsman. There is no all-rounder in the Pakistani team.

Three players in the 15 member Pakistani team have not appeared in a Test match for Pakistan as yet. They include Ahmed Shehzad, Shan Masood and Zulfiqar Babar. The most experienced players in the Pakistani team is Younis Khan who has played 84 Test matches for Pakistan. It is followed by captain Misbah-ul-Haq with an experience of 41 Test matches. Misbah-ul-Haq has captained Pakistan in 22 Test matches and placed at number 6 in the overall list of most experienced Pakistani captains in Test cricket.

Three most important players in the Test team are Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq and Saeed Ajmal. The announced Pakistani team is the most inexperienced team for Pakistan since 1964 with a total tally of only 270 Test matches for the 15 men squad.

Two of the three players announced today Ahmed Shehzad and Shan Masood have not appeared in any Test match for Pakistan as yet. At least one of the two opening batsmen is expected to make his Test debut in the coming series. However, Ahmed Shehzad has appeared in 27 One Day Internationals and 15 Twenty20 Internationals for Pakistan and is now a regular member of the limited-over version teams of Pakistan. Shan Masood has not represented Pakistan in any format of international cricket as yet.  

The third announced player Asad Shafiq has been playing for Pakistan in recent years and has appeared in 21 Test matches, 43 One Day Internationals and 10 Twenty20 Internationals. However, his selection is being criticized by many experts as he has been out-of-form in recent months and is not scoring enough runs. There are many voices in the country in favor of Sohaib Maqsood, another player who has not made his Test debut as yet but has represented Pakistan in limited-over cricket and impressed by his free flow batting style.

Pakistan and South Africa are playing Test cricket against each other since 1995 and have played 21 Test matches. Pakistan’s record in Test cricket against South Africa is poor and has won only three and lost eleven Test matches while other seven Tests have ended as drawn matches.

Bye Bye Mr. Dav Whatmore?

When Australia’s Dav Whatmore was signing contract with Pakistan Cricket Board to take the job of Chief Coach of national cricket team, I was thinking he is actually signing a contract of humiliating exit from the position. He is fourth in line of foreign coaches hired by Pakistan Cricket Board to head the coaching assignment for the national cricket team – two South Africans and as many Australians. None of the previous three completed their contracted tenure – two were sacked and one was brutally murdered.

I recalled few years ago Dav Whatmore was shortlisted for the assignment of Chief Coach of Pakistan cricket team along with another Australian Geoff Lawson but he lost the bid as senior players had told Pakistan Cricket Board management that they would not accept Dav Whatmore because he had a reputation of maintaining very strict discipline. Geoff Lawson was chosen because of his softness but had to quit in disgrace as senior players never cooperated with him. He was sacked in the mid of his contract term.

South Africa’s Richard Pybus was the first foreign coach of Pakistan cricket team in 1999. His rise and fall was instant. His first assignment was 1999 World Cup to be played in England. Pakistan had a dream start and successfully reached to the final. This was the instant rise of Richard Pybus. Then Pakistan lost the final against Australia at Lord’s and Richard Pybus was sacked immediately on the spot. Instead of taking flight to Pakistan with team, he had to take his flight back home to South Africa.

Another South African Bob Woolmer was not sacked but he was murdered. He was Pakistan’s chief coach for 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean. For the first time in Pakistan team’s history that it did not qualify for the second round and was eliminated after a shocking defeat at the hands of minnows Ireland. Following the humiliating defeat, Bob Woolmer was strangulated in his hotel room. Like Richard Pybus, he too did not take flight to Pakistan along with the team but took a direct flight to South Africa but not as a passenger but as a dead body in a coffin.

Exit time for Dav Whatmore hasn’t arrived as yet, but signals of the impending arrival are already coming at an alarming pace. Following severe criticism in Pakistani media by former players and experts, some team members are also criticizing him. Saeed Ajmal, Pakistani team’s ace spinner and one of the most senior players has said that Dav Whatmore has made ‘no difference’ in his time as chief coach of the team. When asked to elaborate ‘no difference’, Saeed Ajmal said, “there is no difference, just that we are paying more to him, otherwise there is no difference”. He also stressed on language difference and said there is a definite communication gap especially with junior players who are shy or unable to communicate in a foreign language.

Pakistan has not won any Test series during Dav Whatmore’s 18 months assignment as chief coach of Pakistan cricket team. Recently Pakistan could barely draw the series against Zimbabwe 1-1. Dav Whatmore attained unprecedented fame in 1996 World Cup when Sri Lankan team won the title in a grand fashion of remaining unbeaten in the entire tournament. A simple plain fact is that unlike Sri Lanka, it is impossible for a foreign coach to handle Pakistan cricket team where senior players exhibit extreme player’ power and junior players are too shy and unable to communicate in English.

Pakistan’s next series starts on 14 October against South Africa at neutral venues in the desert of United Arab Emirates. If Pakistan loses, it would be almost impossible for Dav Whatmore to retain his post. The only hope is to draw the series by making flat wickets and comeback unbeaten. Even if this happens, player’ power would play the deciding role and that’s how I can say a bye bye to Dav Whatmore in not a very distant future. If I go by speculation, it would not be too early to say “Bye bye Mr. Dav Whatmore”.