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KARACHI: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has appointed former Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Akram as the new bowling coach for the national team, PakPassion.net reported.
"After much debate and discussions the PCB has chosen Mohammad Akram as the Pakistan bowling coach. The PCB chose Akram as he has a good rapport with the current group of Pakistani cricketers, they know him and he has experience of Pakistan domestic cricket and also a lot of experience in county cricket," a source close the PCB was quoted as saying.
Akram, who was backed by Rashid Latif and Azhar Mehmood, will also work with the younger players in order to groom them for the future.
"Akram will not just work with the current group of international bowlers, he will also be expected to work with the upcoming bowlers at the National Cricket Academy as well as at grass roots levels with a particular emphasis on grooming and preparing the next generation of fast bowlers for Pakistan," the source added.
The former fast bowler played 32 matches for Pakistan and county cricket for Surrey, Sussex, Northamptonshire and Essex and is expected to start coaching by next month. Akhtar will work with coach Dav Whatmore and fielding coach Julien Fountain.
Pakistan have been without a bowling coach since Aqib Javed quit in February for a more lucrative offer in the UAE. A
Earlier, it was reported that Ian Pont was being considered for the position and former Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar had also expressed an interest in becoming the team’s next bowling coach.
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Comments (27) Closed
Aug 20, 2012 12:57pm
Wasim Akram is a genious and very much hot tempered. All the players and officials had to keep their egos in check to work with him. That makes Akram a better choice.
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Aug 19, 2012 10:08pm
His achievements in international cricket dont commensurate with his talent.Was victim of politics that plagued Pakistan cricket in 90's.I expect him to do well.
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Aug 19, 2012 09:45pm
Akram was considered one of the quickest bowlers of his time but unfortunately his career was plagued by injuries.Hope he can help the current crop of fast bowlers and help identify some new talent.
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Aug 19, 2012 10:05pm
the big question is abt professionalism, if m akram is a qualified bowling coach it wud be most apprpriate for our country aye dont think wasim akram has the rqrd time and shoib is not qualified nd never serious
lets wish all the best to m akram who seems a matured and serious guy at the helm
good luck m akram
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Aug 19, 2012 03:51pm
Shoaib would have been a much better choice, but M.Akram is also not a bad choice.
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Aug 19, 2012 10:33pm
Who is this fellow? The only Wakram the world knows is Wasim. Why not him? Shoaib also announced his willingness.
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Aug 19, 2012 10:34pm
We do nt need some one. We need the Best one.
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Aug 19, 2012 08:06pm
According to our stats and records, most of the matches have been won by our bowling side.....
Also, most of 'those' times, we did not have a bowling coach.
We needed a 'glue', a person, who can keep all they players and their personalities together as one and make them perform as a team. And for that reason, the head coach was appointed with a steep salary....
Then we decided to bring a fielding coach, rightly so, but that also cam with a price and added another huge expense to our payroll, who has a LONG way to go before we start seeing his existence in the team.
In my opinion, bowling department should be a responsibility of the head coach. He is the 'go to' person and has been hired to improve the performance of the team. He should have the credential to keep eye on bating, bowling and fielding.
I understand, other countries have bowling coaches and that is because they NEED a bowling coach and not us (at the moment).
If he could/would not coach bowling department, then there should be a separate bating, bowling and fielding coach and no need for a 'head coach'.......
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Aug 19, 2012 05:15pm
Kindly feed back Education, Physical training courses, Coaching experience of Mohammad Akram.
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Aug 19, 2012 07:25pm
A coach does not have to be a great player. As long as he is disciplined, focused, and generates new ideas, he can succeed.
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Aug 19, 2012 07:06pm
How much experience Akram has in the field of Coaching? that has not been explained in this article. Bowling yourself, and making other person bowl, are two different things. Coaching is now a profession. Just appointing a person on the grounds that " he has a good rapport with the current group of Pakistani cricketers, they know him and he has experience of Pakistan domestic cricket and also a lot of experience in county cricket,”; that is not a good idea.
But for now, Let us hope that He does well.........
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Aug 19, 2012 06:17pm
oh crap I thought it was Wasim Akram. Who is mohammed Akram? And why not Wasim Akram?
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Aug 19, 2012 06:09pm
first he should clarify his role with the betting syndicates. also the inquiry report of the 90's recomended he be not given any important role in the game. ICC will surely object to it.
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Aug 19, 2012 04:49pm
Yes he is a good choice ............ i appreciate PCB give chances to its own player to serve the country ........
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Aug 19, 2012 11:48am
Just Hope this is a welcome breakthrough
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Aug 19, 2012 12:04pm
For a moment, I thought it was the great Waseem Akram. PCB should seriously consider him bringing to the table.
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Aug 19, 2012 01:15pm
'Akhtar will work with coach Dav Whatmore and fielding coach Julien Fountain'
should be 'Akram will work with coach Dav Whatmore and fielding coach Julien Fountain'
not a good decision by PCB as Akram was just an ordinary bowler and he wasn't successful in the international arena. they should have hired Sarfraz nawaz or some one else
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Aug 19, 2012 03:21pm
it says Akhtar will work with coach Dav Whatmore? its Akram not Akhtar. seems like dawn is confused between the two.
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Aug 19, 2012 01:08pm
Pathetic. Akram despite of being a talented bowler failed to become a world class bowler in his days.
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Aug 19, 2012 02:23pm
Someone who could not consistently mark his place in NATIONAL TEAM is now going to COACH 'NATIONAL TEAM'.
RIP Pakistan.
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Aug 19, 2012 02:42pm
We need someone who can do the Job, Some people like Shoaib and Waseem have big egos and are not suitable in opinion for this job. Is Muhammad Akram any good, thats another question.
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Aug 19, 2012 03:10pm
the great Muhammad Akram ? huh
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Aug 20, 2012 03:25am
You have written quite rightly about the past, but as the present time passes by, game of Cricket has turned very scientific, with a specialized Coach for all departments. And as regards to the victories of the past, the last time I guess Pakistan could bank on fast bowlers, was the time when we had Mohammad Aamir and Mohammad Asif. But even with Gul missing, which fast bowler do you see as the one we can depend on? They are good, but not reliable as such.
We are heavily depending on spinners, fast bowling has not been upto the mark.
As far as the concept of Head Coach, and his team of batting, bowling and fielding coaches are concered; what I believe is that Pakistan should not just follow the concept, they should actually hire quality coaches who have experience. I remember the time when Ijaz Ahmad was the fielding coach. This should not be the idea. We need to keep up pace with changing world, or soon Cricket would be like Hockey
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Aug 20, 2012 03:27am
This Akram is not a very big name in our cricket but to me he is a much better choice than Shoaib. His biggest plus is that he is a Pakistani, which should come handy and facile his interaction with the team. His rapport with the team may be excellent, but his expertise as a coach is yet to be seen. Let us wish him and the team the best of everything.
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Aug 20, 2012 07:50am
i like pakistani team to lose every time so akram is best choice in this regard
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Aug 20, 2012 07:57am
The time when our bowlers would win matches for us without bowling coach, that was the era when Pakistan had world class bowlers. At this time, there is hardly any fast bowler who can be counted as match winner. Aamir and Asif were good though, but they are history. Our cricket is in need of good bowling coach, not only to help fast bowlers, but also to guide those who are still in Junior level.
As regards to the new concepts in the world of Cricket, like different coaches with a head coach, I believe that Pakistan should follow it, but not that they just take the theme. Like we had Ijaz Ahmad as fielding coach who hardly had any experience. We should hire those who are experts in their fields. We must keep our step with the latest developments in cricket before our cricket gets the fate of Hockey
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Aug 20, 2012 08:00am
It does not matter what your level as a player was, John Buchanan did not play international cricket at all, but he became the greatest cricketing coach. But of course, what is his status as a coach? What are his qualifications and experience? PCB did not mention that..............That can be talked about...........
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