Saturday, May 7, 2011
Zaheer Abbas puts his hand up to be Pak batting coach
When asked if he would consider taking up a batting coach position within Pakistan, Abbas said: "Well, it's all up to the Pakistan Cricket Board. I've got nothing to do with that."
When asked if he was available, the Pakistani batsman said: "Yes."
Abbas also highlighted that the current Pakistani coaching staff, which includes Waqar Younis and Aaqib Javed, is too bowler-heavy.
"They only need bowlers to coach them? What about the fielding coach? What about the batting coach? What about the departments which we are [not good] in? The bowling has been so good for many many years and we have been producing good fast bowlers. They have doing their work properly but if you take the example of batsmen, they haven't produced any. Only a few can be named, but not many," PakPassion.Net quoted Abbas, as saying.
He further expressed his frustration at what he considers a lack of 'staying at the wicket temperament' amongst the current crop of Pakistani batsmen.
"I've been watching them, but so far they haven't scored and stayed at the wicket for a long time. You can see their potential while playing Test matches and so on. Nowadays, these guys have been playing T20. If you have been an opening batsman or a number three batsman in ODI matches for 50 overs, then to prove to the world that you are good you have to score centuries," Abbas said.
"In a year these players have been playing too many ODIs, tests and T20 matches - in a year they must be playing 10 - 15 matches and many ODIs and T20s," he added.
Shoaib to be awarded gold medal today
MNA and deputy convener MQM Pakistan Dr Farooq Sattar and federal sports minister Engr. Shaukatullah will be the chief guests at the prize distribution ceremony of the Pakistan Champions League.
35-year-old Shoaib, dubbed a ‘Rawalpindi Express’ and who announced his retirement from all forms of cricket during the Cricket World Cup 2011, took 278 wickets at an average of 25.69 in 46 Test and 247 scalps in 163 one-day internationals for Pakistan. He also claimed 19 wickets in 15 Twenty20 internationals for Pakistan.
Chanders among 15 to prepare for Tests
Embattled left-hander Shiv Chanderpaul was one of 15 players called up by West Indies selectors yesterday to prepare for the opening Test against Pakistan starting next Thursday.
The veteran Guyanese batsman has been at loggerheads with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) for the past week following his non-selection for the just-concluded five-match One-Day International series.
He has been joined by prolific teenaged opener Kraigg Brathwaite, fit-again pacer Fidel Edwards and Test vice-captain Brendan Nash, none of whom played in the ODIs.
Chanderpaul's inclusion in the training squad comes on the heels of his war of words with the WICB.
The 37-year-old said he had been asked by West Indies officials to retire from ODIs but had refused, and also said he had been put under immense pressure by team management in recent time.
Chanderpaul also slammed the WICB for their treatment towards him after he was injured on the last tour of Australia, as he defended himself against a lack of discipline and application.
He will be a welcome presence in a side whose batting struggled during the one-day series, with just two batsmen getting more than 100 runs.
Brathwaite has been called up following a superb series for West Indies Under-19s against Australia Under-19s on the recent successful tour of Dubai.
The 18-year-old right-hander hit a fine unbeaten 168 in the three-day "Test" against the Aussies to lead his side to a four-wicket win.
Edwards, who has not played for West Indies in two years because of injury, returned to first class action for Barbados this season to take 22 wickets and is tipped to make a return to Tests.
The players will participate in a two-day match tomorrow and Monday at the Demerara Cricket Ground, following which a 13-man squad will be selected.
Qadir flays Mohsin for creating fiasco
Pakistan’s former chief selector and spin wizard Abdul Qadir on Friday lashed out at chief selector Mohsin Hassan Khan for creating the fiasco over the selection matters with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
Talking to The Nation, Qadir questioned the chief selector’s motives for calling a press conference and making an internal issue public, if he could resolve it with meeting the PCB chairman. “He must have first chosen a proper way to talk to the PCB chief Ijaz Butt and discuss with him the reservations he had. There should not be any media talk or threats of resignations.”
He said that strict merit should be made as base for the selection as this is the only way to boost the game both at domestic and international level. To a question about how much free hand he has in selecting a team, he replied that it depends upon the personality of a chief selector that how much he follows the merit and does justice to his job. “For me honesty, loyalty and country’s honour is more important. However, selection is bound to faulty under political and other relevant pressures, which is regrettable,” said Qadir.
Recalling his era as a chef selector he said: “I had told the PCB chief about my terms and conditions before taking over as chief selector. I had asked him to allow me to work independently and without any interruption and that I should be given free hand to select the team and only then I would be responsible for any result.”
He further said that other members of selection committee have all the rights to give their opinion where it is required and if they found either any player is controversial or the chief selector is selecting the player who has not performed well, they can take stand on this issue too.
He said certain deserving players are being neglected as the chief selector usually remains rigid with his choices. “The present system of selection is faulty and not proper which cannot take our cricket to the top”, he said.
Talking about selection criteria, Qadir was of the opinion that it was very easy task to select a team as we have first class cricket record of every player and seeing their record, we can easily pick any good and talented player who is consecutively performing well in domestic cricket.
Afridi doesn’t learn, say former players
While Pakistan clinched a second-successive One-Day International (ODI) series, former chief selector Abdul Qadir blasted captain Shahid Afridi for not displaying responsibility that a leader is supposed to. Afridi managed 28 runs in three innings and was dismissed through reckless shots as Pakistan went down in the last two ODIs.
“Afridi knows each time he makes a mistake,” Qadir told The Express Tribune. “And it’s very surprising that he isn’t ready to learn.
“A captain should have the ability to lead from the front but the spirit of responsibility deserts Afridi. He may be a good player but his approach has damaged Pakistan cricket a lot as we have lost quite a few matches only due to his reckless attitude.”
Afridi has led Pakistan in 34 ODIs, winning 18 and ending on the losing side 15 times, but has often come under criticism for throwing his wicket away.
Former Pakistan captain Saleem Malik said that Afridi, who has an experience of 325 ODIs, should have learnt to make his wicket more valuable.
“He should understand that he is representing Pakistan and not an ordinary team,” said Malik. “He has played more than 300 matches and if he is a captain that doesn’t mean that he is forgiven for every mistake he makes.
“To me, he was never the right guy to be in charge but for some reason he was appointed because we had no other option.
“He confesses his mistake but never learns,” said Malik.
Meanwhile, former spinner Iqbal Qasim reacted differently on Afridi’s approach. Qasim believed that Afridi should be given more time but should also change his batting attitude.
“His batting has no doubt put a bad impact on the team but captaincy is an art. No one is a born leader and as a captain he isn’t bad. He needs time to understand things.”
Afridi to meet Butt to discuss feud with Waqar
Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi will meet Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt on his return from the West Indies to outline the problems he is facing while working with national team’s head coach Waqar Younis.The differences between the two have spilled out into the open and reports say their working relationship on the West Indies tour at one stage got so bad that Afridi even refused to play the last two matches.
According to the “Express” newspaper, Afridi had developed problems with Waqar even during the World Cup and had also been reluctant to go to the West Indies for the one—day series.
Afridi had initially asked the PCB to not consider him for the West Indies tour because of personal reasons but later changed his mind.
The flamboyant all—rounder also didn’t leave with the team from Lahore and joined them a day later after departing from Karachi. The official reason given was that he had forgotten his passport at home and wanted to meet his ailing father before leaving for the West Indies.
The newspaper has reported that it was Afridi’s father who convinced him to go to the West Indies after the World Cup.
“His father told him he must not leave the team like this after such a big event and he needs to continue his good work with the team,” a source said.
Sources say Afridi will meet Butt after he returns home to outline his concerns about working with Waqar.
Butt when contacted said that he had also read about the problems in the West Indies in the media.
“When Afridi returns I will talk to him to find out if this is all true,” he said.
Sources say the major point of contention between Afridi and Waqar is the latter’s growing authority in selection matters.
“Afridi on the West Indies wanted to give the new players ample chances in the series and insisted they were not on tour for a joyride but Waqar kept on resisting and playing the tried and tested players. Waqar’s insistence on resting Asad Shafiq in the fifth match after he had scored runs in the earlier games also didn’t please Afridi at all,” one source said.
“Afridi wanted to try out new pacer, Sadaf Hussain. Even during the World Cup he was not happy that pace bowler Junaid Khan didn’t get to play a single match in the tournament.”
Pakistan team draws flak for inconsistent show
After taking an unassailable lead of 3-0, Pakistan lost the last couple of matches to the West Indies without putting up much fight.
Former captain Javed Miandad, who turned down the offer to become a full time batting consultant before the commencement of the West Indies tour, said the result of the series once again highlighted the inconsistent nature of the team.
"We can never be among the top teams in the world because we are just not consistent enough. For the last two years we have been losing or winning by close margins. To lose against a weak side like West Indies is unacceptable by any standards," Miandad said.
He said that the main problem with the team was that the batsmen did not have enough hunger for runs. "Against a weak opposition top batsmen always try to score tons of runs. But surprisingly our batsmen kept on struggling against this attack," he said.
Miandad, however, reiterated that the team does not require a batting coach. "At this level you can have a strategist or planner but not a coach it is a false term. If a batsman needs to be coached at this level he should not be in the team at all," the former great stressed.
Another former Test captain Zaheer Abbas criticised the team management for blaming Duckworth-Lewis method for their loss to West Indies in the fourth ODI saying, "The way they swept us aside by ten wickets in the last match indicates that our team really performed badly."
Zaheer said there was a clear lack of aptitude and planning in the national team and the management was not delivering.
"We had a golden chance to beat the West Indies 5-0 but we squandered that opportunity. The batting line-up is clearly struggling. Misbah didn't score in the last two matches and the team lost."
Former chief selector and leg-spinner Abdul Qadir said, "Even Bangladesh beat a much stronger West Indies side 5-0 sometime back. And we could not even sweep the series against a much weaker team.
"I have been saying all along that there is a need to now replace the senior players with youngsters and build for the future. What is disappointing is that the captain, Shahid Afridi couldn't lead from the front with either bat or bowl and scored just 28 runs and took two wickets," Qadir said.
Salahuddin Ahmed, also a former chief selector, blasted coach Waqar Younis and Aaqib Javed for team's unimpressive show with the ball saying, "If the batting woes were not enough our bowlers were also disappointing."
"In the last match even though we were defending a low total we conceded so many extras it is unacceptable at this level," Ahmed said.
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