Should we feel sorry for Woolmer?

Its probably good for Woolmer that in 3 months he won't have to deal with all the headaches of being a Pakistani coach. In one interview, two newspapers put a fairly different spin on the same comments, putting Woolmer in a bit of a bind when it comes to Imran Nazir. First, The News essentially tried to say that Woolmer was washing his hands off the whole Imran Nazir selection.

Direct Quote: "Imran Nazir was picked by the chairman of selectors and you should ask him why he is here," Woolmer told Pakistani reporters when asked to comment on Imran Nazir failure to find form in recent matches.


Further, The News from an unnamed correspondent goes on to say that Woolmer is unhappy with Nazir, but feels stuck with no other options at the #1/#2 position. Interesting, in another report on the same interview,
Dawn is reporting, that Woolmer stressed to the reporters to try and give Nazir a chance, as Pakistan really has no other options right now with Afridi being suspended. Woolmer even went as far as challenging the reporters and saying that why should they drop Imran after one game.

While I can understand Woolmer's desire to be given some time to settle things down, Imran Nazir hasn't shown himself to be the guy who could do with some more time. I think the time has come for Woolmer to cut his losses, play Kamran Akmal at the #2 position for one game, and then plug Afridi in, as Hafeez's partner. That is the only solution which I think could even conceivably work.

Technorati Tags: pakistan, cricket, world cup, bob woolmer, imran nazir, shahid afridi, kamran akmal

End of the Warmups

Well, the two warm-ups are over, and if this was intended to be an audition, things are about as clear as mud for all concerned. Pakistan won both of the matches, so at least that should be good for overall confidence. While the matches were 13-a-side, the positives are easy to accentuate, with the negatives a little bit harder.

Mohammad Hafeez did well in both matches, as also stated in Dawn. Inzamam spoke highly of Hafeez, and I hope this is a statement of confidence to keep Hafeez in the squad for the duration of the tournament. Pakistan has to choose a pair of openers and stand by them, for better or worse, till the end of the tournament does them part. While there are bits and pieces which will continually need to be addressed, the presence of the top 5 of the batting lineup is not such a piece.

From the bowling stand point, all the bowlers got some good match practice, and its good to see that Umar Gul does not look to raw, after being away for a period of time. It will be difficult for Pakistan to decide on a playing 11 on the 13th against the West Indies, but what will make it easier, is the suspension of Shahid Afridi.

If Pakistan start off with Nazir, Hafeez, Yousuf, Inzamam and Younis, that leaves 6 spots. Kamran Akmal will take the #7 spot, with Shoaib Malik at #6. That leaves four bowling spots, one of which will be going to Umar Gul. After this things get a little hazy. One would expect that Gul will need an opening partner, which will likely be Sami. One of the other two spots has to go to an all-rounder, either Arafat or Mahmood, and the final spot will depend on Pakistan's read of the pitch. If a spinner is warranted, over and above Shoaib and Hafeez' spin, then Kaneria will play. If Pakistan truly value the presence of Naved as a true death bowler, than that spot will go to him. Against the West Indies, my read is that the playing 11 will read like:

Nazir, Hafeez, Yousuf, Inzamam, Younis, Shoaib, Akmal, Mahmood, Naved, Sami, Gul.

Lets see what the next few days bring.

No shock and awe, only implosion!

When Pakistan announced their ODI squad for South Africa, most of us were quiet surprised, and perhaps even hopeful. Kamran Abbasi, writing in his blog on CricInfo, thought that this strategy of bringing in Abdul Razzaq, Imran Nazir and Shahid Afridi would pay dividends, by giving the Pakistani batting attack a form of "shock and awe". Well, after the only Twenty20 match against South Africa, I think there was more implosion rather than shock and awe for the Pakistani squad, losing the match by ten wickets. Kamran Akmal and Mohammad Hafeez were the only batsmen that even looked like they were even close to settling in, reaching the 20s, and what about the shock and awe squad?

Abdul Razzaq: 10, Shahid Afridi 7, Imran Nazir: 5. Definitely seems more like implosion folks. Shahid Afridi in this situation, as much of a fan of his I am, needs to be on a short leash. If he does not come good in the next one or two ODIs, I think he should be sent back to Pakistan, and that is definitely when Fawad Alam needs a call up. I hate to sound like a broken record, but that kid looks special to me. Hopefully Pakistan do better in the ODIs than they did in the Twenty20 match.

Pakistan beat WI 3-1 in ODI Series

Yes, it has been a while since I've posted, but I will attempt, over the next few days to try to bring some sense of set up for the upcoming World Cup, where all attention is being focused.

In a fairly convincing display, Pakistan beat the WI 3 - 1 over the course of 5 ODIs.

Pakistan found every way to win, and lose, over the past 4 matches. The first ODI was a battle of wills, and it was Inzamam's which was more dominant, leading Pakistan to a hard fought 2 wicket win, with 16 balls left in the match. It also brought to Pakistan, for the first time since Saqlain Mushtaq, a spinner who can take wickets and be economical in ODIs, Abdur Rehman. The next match saw some aggressive scoring by the Pakistanis, coupled with strong bowling displays from Rana Naved and Abdur Rehman. Imran Farhat and Abdur Rehman did well to score as they did, and Kamran Akmal had a better showing higher up the order. Then, with Yousuf, Younis and Inzamam all missing for the third match, the wheels came off, with Pakistan losing to the WI by 7 wickets. Bright spots though, were strong showings from Yasir Hameed and Faisal Iqbal, with Rana Naved continuing the trend of tight bowling with crucial wicket. The fourth match reemphasized all these issues, with strong bowling displays from Naved and Abdur Rehman, and an impressive batting display from Mohammad Hafeez, Kamran Akmal and Yasir Hameed.

Mohammad Hafeez may not have been the find of this series, but in many ways he is showing himself to be indispensable to the Pakistani team's future plans with consistent, if unspectacular displays. From the standpoint of the bowling, Rana Naved has finally come back to form in this series, doing well enough to take the player of the series award. Abdur Rehman though, has shown himself to be quiet the bowler, and he will be hard to turn away from in the future.

Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Hafeez to the rescue

While Asif's return was expected, I find Hafeez' call up more intriguing. Is there a thought to bring him back into the squad as an opener, as that is where he has excelled?

Mohammad Hafeez may have disciplanary issues

It appears that there has been a disciplinary complaint against Mohammad Hafeez, and he may lose his chance for trying out for the Pakistan and Pakistan A squad.

4 Openers?

Looks like there really is a lot of thought about the opening situation for England. It appears that they will also be considering Taufiq Umar and Muhammad Hafeez for the opening slots. What I am unclear about, is that are the other two Imran Farhat and Salman Butt, or is Shoaib Malik in the mix also as one of the openers.

Another promising note by Wasim Bari is asking for Asim Kamal to be brought back into the squad. If that is indeed the case, this will be a promising return for a promising player.

More PCB Shenanigans

Only the PCB can take a great idea, and find a way to ruin it. A decision to bring in some younger players for experience in the remaining three ODIs, with the World Cup coming up in a year is a good idea. I'm not even contending that Tahir Khan and Mansoor Amjad are not deserving.

What I will question, however, is why players of more experience, like Mohammad Hafeez and Yasir Arafat are being excluded. Both have been performing well in the last while, and Yasir Arafat has been selected for a couple of times now, without being given a chance. All one asks for from the PCB is atleast a modicum of consistency.