Will Younis Khan’s absence hurt Pakistan?

Pakistan will be eying a strong show in the two-match Test series against West Indies, starting from Thursday, May 12, 2011.

However, no member in the current team has toured the Caribbean before. Veteran batsman, Younis Khan, who was all set to represent his side in the longest version of the format had to miss the series due to his brothers’ demise. His experience will certainly be missed by the Men in Green and will make their batting more vulnerable.

Younis has played 67 Tests until now and averages 50.60. He is one of the only three players in the Pakistan team to have an average of more than 50. The other two players are Mohammad Yousuf (52.29) and Javed Miandad (52.57). The latter had retired from cricket long ago, but both Yousuf and Younis are still available for selection.

With 17 centuries and 23 half-centuries, Younis has scored more 5617 runs in Test cricket. His record is better than the entire batting line-up of Pakistan, which will take part in the upcoming series.

The stylish right-hander has been terrific over the years for his team, as he batted most of his career as a first-drop. He had to see through the new ball every second match, as Pakistan didn’t produce a consistent opening pair.

Apart from that, Younis plays spinners with complete command, which is the reason behind his strong showings in Test cricket.

The 33-year-old has the highest score of 313 against Sri Lanka and has scored over 130 ten times out of his 17 tons. He also has two centuries against the Windies with a best of 153.

Apart from his brilliant batting skills and cool temperament, Younis is one of the best fielders in Pakistan team. He has taken 74 catches in his Test career until now and often fields in the slip cordon. He is also known to be a team player, a rare breed in Pakistan cricket.

The team will be depending on their skipper, Misbah-ul-Haq, who is the only other batsman with more experience compared to the others. He has featured in 23 Test matches so far and has been able to score runs with consistency. However, the situation will be entirely different compared to the past, as there won’t be any experience in the batting order this time around.

Misbah did a decent job in the One Day International (ODI) series against West Indies, but he will have the added pressure of captaincy on his shoulders. He has a good record until now, not losing a single match in his leadership.

The 36-year-old will have to rely on his youngsters to share the pressure. There are some very promising batsmen in the line-up. Azhar Ali, Umar Akmal and Asad Shafiq have impressed one and all with their performances recently. They will have to be much more mature in the upcoming series in order to do well.

Although it’s a matter of just one player missing from the batting line-up, his significance can’t be ignored. Had Younis been with the team for the Test matches, the Men in Green would have been favourites.

However, things are pretty much even at the moment, with the hosts having the slight advantage of having more experienced batsmen compared to their opponents.

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Zaheer Abbas interested in coaching the Pakistan cricket team

Former Pakistani Test captain, Zaheer Abbas, has shown interest in coaching the national team’s batsmen.

However, the former player said that the decision was up to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and he wasn’t approached by anyone until now.

The board had earlier asked, Javed Miandad, to join as the batting coach of the side, but the former player denied the offer.

Abbas claimed that bowling has not been an issue for the Pakistan. The Asian Bradman questioned, “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? We have been producing good fast bowlers, but if you take the example of batsmen, they haven't produced any.”

The legendary player further analysed, “I've been watching them (Pakistan batsmen), 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.”

According to Zaheer, the players are required to score centuries in order to justify their selection. He claimed that the team been playing too many limited-over games and should also be featuring in Test matches.

Pakistan is currently touring West Indies for a complete series. They have already played one Twenty20 and five One Day Internationals (ODIs). The team managed to win the ODI series by 3-2.

Former players lashed out at the team for inconsistency against a relatively weaker side. The Caribbean Kings were without some of their key players but still managed to win the last two games, avoiding a whitewash.

This didn’t please former leg-spinner, Abdul Qadir, who asked for some changes in the team. He blamed Pakistan’s captain, Shahid Afridi, for the team’s lackluster show in the Caribbean, saying that the skipper was unable to lead from the front. The veteran all-rounder only managed to score 28 runs and took two wickets in the ODI series.

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MOHSIN HASAN KHAN COMPLIMENTS CURRENT SELECTION COMMITTEE FOR INTRODUCING YOUNGSTERS

Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB’s) chief selector, Mohsin Hasan Khan, has claimed of being the first one to give plenty of chances to youngsters in the national side. He said that selectors in the past only talked about introducing fresh blood to the team, but the reality was totally opposite.

Talking to the media in Pakistan, stated, “We have already taken this bold step of resting some senior players and sending some new players to the West Indies with the consultation of the captain (Shahid Afridi) and coach (Waqar Younis).”

However, Mohsin wanted the youngsters to make the most of the opportunity and play with responsibility. He said, “I have played Test cricket and I know that if one wants to play cricket for a long time, 30s and 40s are not enough to keep you going. These new players need to learn to convert good starts into big scores.”

The chief selector suggested the new players to follow the foot-steps of legendary cricketers produced by the country. He gave an example of Inzamam-ul-Haq, Javed Miandad and Mohammad Yousuf, who constructed their innings according to the situation of the match, scoring big runs for the team.

Mohsin denied the reports of being a dummy selector, saying that he has always considered merit ahead of anything. The final team has to be approved by the Chairman of the Board (Ijaz Butt) though, due to which the selection committee is widely criticised.

Pakistan cricket team is currently in the Caribbean and have done a good job there. Although the team lost the lone T20 match, they bounced back strongly in the One Day Internationals (ODIs), winning the series.

The Men in Green have gained a lead of 3-0 in the series and will play two more games before a two-match Test series in May. The team has opted for several new players like Hammad Azam, Mohammad Salman and Junaid Khan. However, there are some senior members to assist the youngsters as well like captain Afridi and his deputy Misbah-ul-Haq.

The board has not announced the test-match squad yet and might consider a couple of more senior players for the longest version of the game.

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MOHSIN KHAN SAYS PRESENT SELECTION COMMITTEE THE FIRST ONE TO GIVE PROPER CHANCES TO YOUNGSTERS

Chief Selector of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Mohsin Hassan Khan, has claimed that his is the first selection committee which has given the proper opportunities to younger players.

PCB has decided to draft fresh blood after the ICC World Cup 2011 and five uncapped players were named for the limited overs series in the Caribbean. Prior to that, the current selection committee has given chances to many upcoming players like Wahab Riaz, Azhar Ali, Umar Amin and Asad Shafiq. Mohsin’s claim seems to have a lot of weight in it, considering the fact that apart from Amin, all of them have established themselves at the international level.

He said that the current selectors are the first to give appropriate chances to the new players as previously young players were dropped from the team after a limited number of opportunities. Mohsin added that senior players were rested for the West Indies tour in order to try out fresh blood and it was done with the mutual consent of the captain and coach.

Mohsin said, "I think the present selection committee is the first one to properly work on a plan to blood new players and build a new team. We have already taken this bold step of resting some senior players and sending some new players to the West Indies with the consultation of the captain and coach.”

The former opening batsman added that he himself is a Test cricketer and wants the young batsmen to start building their innings rather than scoring little cameos.

"I have played Test cricket and I know that if one wants to play cricket for a long time, 30s and 40s are not enough to keep you going. These new players need to learn to convert good starts into big scores," the Chief Selector said.

He also wanted young Pakistani batsmen to learn from the greats of the game like Javed Miandad, Inzamam ul Haq and Mohammad Yousaf. Mohsin feels that those great players used to construct their innings in an artistic fashion and the upcoming batsmen need to learn this art because batting is all about scoring big runs. This in the end could be the difference between winning or losing a game. 

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PAKISTAN CHIEF SELECTOR MOHSIN KHAN CLAIMS TO BE THE FIRST ONE TO RECOGNISE YOUNG TALENT

The Pakistan Cricket Board selection committee chief, Mohsin Khan on Thursday claimed to be the first-ever chief selector to give opportunities to young talent and select a new-look national team.

The former Pakistan batsman said that the former PCB selectors made claims about injecting fresh blood in the side but failed to do so properly.

“I think the present selection committee is the first one to properly work on a plan to blood new players and build a new team,” said Mohsin while talking to media reporters. “We have already taken this bold step of resting some senior players and sending some new players to the West Indies with the consultation of the captain and coach.”

The 56-year-old former batsman expressed satisfaction over the performance of youngsters in the ongoing tour of West Indies. He however, urged the players to learn how to build innings after getting starts stressing that 30s and 40s are not enough to keep a batsman going.

“I have played Test cricket and I know that if one wants to play cricket for a long time, 30s and 40s are not enough to keep you going. These new players need to learn to convert good starts into big scores,” insisted the former Test opener.

He asked the youngsters to get inspiration from legendary Pakistan batsmen like Javed Miandad, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Yousuf and learn how they used to convert good starts into big scores.

The selection committee chairman also dismissed the perception that he is a yes man to the PCB. He said that Pakistan were not the only country to have the system of paid selectors. He refused to believe that the selection decisions were not taken on merit. Mohsin further explained that all the teams had to be approved by the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Mohsin said he himself had struggled hard to earn a place in the national team and as a selection committee chief, he would never think of ignoring merit. He said that he always tried to reward the potential performers.

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SHAHID AFRIDI NOT IMPRESSED BY HIS BATSMEN IN 3RD ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL

Even after a win against the hosts, West Indies, in the third match of the five-match One Day International (ODI) series, the Pakistan skipper, Shahid Afridi, seems less impressed by his batsmen, who once again lost seven wickets in a bid to chase down a meagre total of 171 runs in 45 overs after rain shortened the match.

Afridi, who himself made only eleven runs admitted that even after a successful run chase his side had few problems in the batting line-up, which need to be addressed as soon as possible.

Talking in the post match ceremony, he said, “There are still some problems. I am sure from the management coaching side we batsmen will face some hard time”. 

Afridi acknowledged the fact that playing under home conditions is different than playing away and his side needs to rectify their shortcomings even after winning the series.

Pakistan have two more matches in the series and the skipper expects his batsmen to show better performances in the next fixture. Afridi also reiterated that there were many young guys in the squad and most probably they will be given a chance to test their abilities in the upcoming matches.

Pakistan’s batting has been under the microscope for almost a year, as the batsmen have struggled on numerous occasions, especially while batting second. Before the tournament in the Caribbean, Pakistan coach, Waqar Younis, and skipper, Afridi, had announced to give the side more practice in the art of chasing and that is exactly what was displayed in the matches, which have been played so far, as even after winning the toss, Pakistan, who mostly choose to bat first decided otherwise, to get in the habit of chasing totals.

Pakistan won all three matches of the ongoing ODI series while batting later. The main reason for Pakistan to concentrate on batting second is the fact that they were ousted from the ICC World Cup 2011 by hosts India in the semi-final, as they helplessly tried to chase a total of 260 runs on a wicket that had little to offer the bowlers.

After their world cup nightmare, Afridi announced that the team desperately needed a batting coach, however, till now, no one has been appointed for the job. It has been learned that the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) plans to appoint a national batting coach after the conclusion of the ongoing West Indies tour.

PCB’s initial choice for the job was Pakistan’s legendary batsman, Javed Miandad, but the veteran declined the offer due to personal reasons. Afridi and Waqar believe that a batting coach/consultant will be helpful in embedding the concept of successfully chasing runs in the current batting line-up of the national team.

Pakistan and West Indies are scheduled to play the fourth ODI on May 2, 2011 at Bridgetown.  

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Pakistan's bowling, fielding has improved during the last year-Waqar

Pakistan cricket coach Waqar Younis has said that the team has improved dramatically during the last 12-14 months, especially in the fielding and bowling departments.

Waqar  denied the opinion of former Pakistan Captain Javed Miandad, in which he expressed that Pakistan team had not shown any notable improvement in the bowling and fielding, despite having special coaches for these areas.

"I don't want to indulge in such things. I am doing my job on the field and during the last 12-14 months the team has shown improvement," Waqar said.

Waqar, however,admitted that there are some issues in the batting sector, which need to be addressed. Pakistan team's weakness in the batting and fielding departments was clearly exposed in the recently-concluded World Cup, where a poor performance in the both areas let them down.

The major cause of Pakistan's defeat in the mega event was terrible team's fielding, as the fielders wasted five simple chances in the high-voltage semi-final game against India.

However, Waqar has some different thoughts in the mind. The former reverse-swing master stated, "Our fielding has improved a lot. Though critics are not happy and mention just one game, i.e. the semi-final against India where we dropped a good number of catches. However, I think overall our fielding has made remarkable improvement."

There are some report circulating in the media that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has been negotiating with two foreigners for the post of national team’s batting coach after Miandad turned down the offer to join the team as batting consultant.

Earlier, Miandad showed his readiness to coach national team but after that, he refused to accept the job. There is also a kind of 'war of words' going on between Waqar and Miandad.
Miandad apparently has some issues in working as a support staff with the chief coach, Waqar, who is one of his junior fellows.

The coach, who is with the in West Indies, further hoped that youngsters in the side would perform well in the forthcoming Test and one-day series against the Caribbean.

The former fast bowler explained that it is a general practice all over the World that the young players are inducted in the team while targeting the next World Cup. Thus, Pakistan has also put some new-comers in the set-up in order to build team for the next showpiece event.

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PCB mulls a foreign batting coach

After Javed Miandad turning down the offer, Pakistan Cricket Board has started negotiations with two foreigners for the position.
Confirming the news, the chairman PCB, Ijaz Butt said, “Yes, we are having talks with two foreign batting coaches but since nothing is final as yet I don’t want to take any names. We have held talks with these two gentlemen who have shown interest in the batting coach’s position.”
The chairman told the reporters that the two candidates were in contention for the position of the batting coach with a few teams as well, and thus did not want their names to be revealed as this would upset their other negotiations. However, hinting towards a major concern the PCB had to face for appointing a foreigner coach; Butt said that the potential candidates were concerned about the prevailing security situation in the country.
He said, “The one issue with them is they are not willing to remain in Pakistan for long periods and prefer to join team on foreign tours and work with them there.”
Earlier, disagreeing with the captain and the team management, and while maintaining the point that a full panel of coaches was not going to help the team in improving its performance, veteran pakistani cricketer Miandad had turned the PCB’s request down.
However, according to the news, the real reason for denying to be a part of the Pakistani squad in capacity of a coach was Miandad’s issues with working under the supervision of the head coach Waqar Younis, who is way far juniour to him.
The sources at PCB have said that Younis has also supported the idea of having a foreign batting coach to work out with his boys.

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Waqar Younis refuses to indulge in a war of words with Javed Miandad

Pakistan national cricket team head coach Waqar Younis, refused to get involved in a controversial war of words when media implored him for a reply to former captain Javed Miandad’s statement, regarding a poor bowling and fielding performance by the squad in the ICC World Cup 2011.
Waqar added that over the last year the cricket squad has relatively shown improvement, partly due to the hard work he has been putting in.
 “I don’t want to indulge in such things. I am doing my job on the field and during the last 12-14 months the team has shown improvement,” claimed Waqar.
Pakistan lost to India in the semi final clash by 29 runs, after scoring a tally of 231 runs against the target of 260 set by India at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali, on March 30, 2011.
The bowling legend denied that the team lacks in the fielding department. However, Waqar pointed out the weaknesses of the batting line-up and suggested that the batsmen need to polish their skills with time.
“Our bowlers have been doing well and they did a nice job in the World Cup too. The question mark remains on our batting; after scoring 30-40 most of our batsmen throw away their wickets. And I think it is not due to any technical fault, rather they need some time to get matured in order to prolong their stay at the wicket,” he said.
Waqar Younis, who does not agree with the critics who are unhappy with the fielders, explained that the overall World Cup performance by the fielders was satisfactory, except for the semi final against India where they put up a shoddy show of dropping catches.
Citing the instance of the warm welcome the Pakistan team received on their arrival from the World Cup, Waqar said that the nation was satisfied by the squad’s performance despite their semi final defeat.
Regarding pace man Junaid Khan’s selection for the West Indies tour, the former captain hinted that the bowler may lead the pace attack in the upcoming series.  He said that Wahab Riaz usually is performs better with the old ball so he may be more suitable for the death overs.

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Waqar Younis wants PCB to look beyond Javed Miandad

Pakistan head coach Waqar Younis is not happy with the Pakistan Cricket Board for approaching former captain Javed Miandad time and again to take over the batting coach position when the legendary batsman is not too interested in the job.

"Why do we keep going round and round about the same thing?” said Waqar Younis in an irked tone while talking to the media reporters. “Javed bhai was also offered this position last year and now again. But if he can't do it because of lack of time or for any other reason, then we should look at other options," he suggested.

Miandad one of the batting greats Pakistan cricket ever produced, has once again declined PCB’s offer to join the national cricket team as batting coach. After turning down the offer, the former Pakistan captain showed up at the national camp at Gaddafi Stadium to work on the technique of some of the players.

The situation left the head coach upset but he avoided from expressing his view through the media as it might lead to a new controversy.

Talking about his own performance, Waqar said that he would not say much about it but he did add that teams performance over the past one year speaks for his efforts.

"I don't say much but if anyone wants to access my performance as coach I think they can look at the results of the team in the last 12-13 months. The results speak for themselves. My job is to get the best out of the players and that is what I am doing," said the former fast bowler.

Waqar also warned his side against complacency in the upcoming tour of West Indies and said that though they have included a few young players in the squad but they have always been tough opposition at home.

He also urged the youngsters in the Pakistan team to perform well and make the best of the opportunity that has been given to them.

Pakistan team leaves for West Indies on Thursday, 14 April to play a one-off Twenty20 International followed by one-day and Test series as well.

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MIANDAD VISITS PAKISTAN CRICKET TEAM TRAINING CAMP

Former Pakistan batsman Javed Miandad visited the training camp of the Pakistan national team set up at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore to give batting tips to the players taking part in the session.

Recently, Miandad had turned down the request of the Pakistan Cricket Board to take up the position of the batting coach of the national side.

The two-day camp has been set up to prepare the players for the upcoming tour of West Indies. Head coach Waqar Younis was also seen giving the players instructions regarding their bowling during the session. The team is expected to have a full day of batting and bowling practice on Wednesday as well.

Pakistan are expected to leave for the Caribbean by 14 April, 2011. During the tour, the Men in Green will play a Twenty20 international, five One Day Internationals and two Test matches.

Miandad was offered the job of the batting coach after skipper Shahid Afridi identified batting as the weak link of the side. Pakistan lost to arch rivals India in the semi-final of the ICC World Cup 2011 by 29 runs, the blame of which was put on the batsmen.

The flamboyant Afridi favoured Miandad to take over the batting coach role upon his return to Pakistan. After Afridi’s request, the Pakistan Cricket Board officially contacted the legendary batsman to consider the offer.

According to sources, Miandad was not comfortable working under head coach Waqar Younis, who is his junior to him and therefore rejected the offer.

However, Miandad says once a player reaches the national team, he can no longer be taught a different batting technique. The prolific former batsman believes that he can be more useful coaching younger players in the cricket academy.

In an interview, he also revealed that he had bitter experiences with the PCB in the past when he was the coach of the national team. It is his belief that the management has never been serious about the future of the sport and that is the reason why Pakistan do not have quality backup players. Miandad has served the Pakistan team on three previous occasions, all of which ended on a bitter note.

Meanwhile, skipper Shahid Afridi has requested the PCB to consider someone else as the batting coach if Miandad is not willing. Let’s see if the board appoints someone for the role or not.

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If Javed Miandad not ready, get someone else says Shahid Afridi

Pakistan’s limited overs captain Shahid Afridi has once again reiterated the urgent need of a batting coach for the national team by requesting the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to find someone else in place of Javed Miandad.
Afridi, talking to journalists in Karachi, said, “If Javed Miandad is not ready to coach the national team then the Board should find someone else for the job.”
Afridi insisted that the team desperately needed a batting consultant to help the players improve in the art of chasing runs as chasing is the department where the national team needs rapid improvement.
Yesterday Pakistan’s former batting great Javed Miandad, who is the current director-general cricket in the PCB, turned down the offer to become the batting coach of the national team after Afridi and the Board had requested him to take charge of the batting department.
According to insiders Miandad wants more powers as a batting coach but in the presence of head coach Waqar Younis, giving Miandad undue authority will not be possible for the PCB. However, Miandad maintains that he is always ready to serve the country and is willing to help the players in the training camp but cannot travel with the team during their tours.
Earlier Afridi had requested Javed Miandad to accept the post of batting coach of the national team for the upcoming tour of the West Indies. However, Javed has clarified that he believes that once a player reaches the national team he is no longer capable of introducing changes in his batting technique. Javed feels that he can be of more use to the upcoming youngsters in the PCB academy where he can help young players improve their batting skills.
In a statement Miandad said, “As it is, I believe you cannot change the technique or style of a batsman once he is in the national team. I think the main job of the batting coach is to guide the batsmen in different matches on how to adjust to different pitches and how to counter specific opposing bowlers."
On the other hand sources have revealed that Miandad is not comfortable working under Waqar who is junior to him.
Pakistan are expected to leave for the West Indies on the 17th where they will play a solitary Twenty20, five One Day Internationals and two Test matches. The series is set to begin from April 21.
Batting has been identified as the main reason for Pakistan’s ouster from the World Cup as team failed to chase an gettable total of 260 runs. After this recent defeat in the mega event there is a growing urgency within the Board and the team management to hire a full time batting coach for the national squad.

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