He was in world cup but we ended up with same result. All those old players should go.

Anwar Ali, Hammad Shah, Shazeb Hasan, Fawad Alam, Yasir Hamid, Khurrum Manzoor, Rizwan Ahmed and Khalid Latif should be in the team.

Karachi Zebra is a winner of 2013 Quid-e-Azam trophy and President Cup One Day tournament but no a single player from the team in Pakistan team.

The MISTAKE was Pakistani team showed up in England.they should have stayed at home do nothing and make money.but then again how could the families of low life players would have stayed at nice hotels and toured places in England.

It is embarrassing for Pakistan Selection committee should resign right away, make shahid afridi captain of the team And changed the CEO. Get help from Imran khan if possible.

That was one mistake pointed out by Sidhu but inclusion of A?m

well, It is easy to say something after a failure, i would have given more to you comments, if you have said it before Pakistan team selection. I think Afridi omission was correct, the problem was the selection of Shoaib, Kamran and Farhat. We probably would have lost all three games if we would selected Ahmed Shehzad, Adnan and Umar Akmal but it would have give valuable experience to these three.

Mr Iqbal Qasim if you have any guts, please resign.

@Dawar : Afridi is a goner now....Nothing would have mattered whether Afridi was there or not ...India was clearly the favorites....the batting...bowling,,, and the fielding out-shined the Pakistanis.....Pakistan should surely head to the board room and chalk out plans to revive Pakistan cricket....the people back in Pakistan love their cricket and surely the cricketers should turnaround this situation.....excluding Misbah every other batsman needs to rethink their strategy !!

Those pakistani batsmen are an embarassment. It is like they are scared. That is the worst pakistani side I have ever seen from a batting perspective. They all look weak/undernurished. In short they were an embarassment to the fans in the UK who turned out to support them so well.

@ahmad: I agree 100%.

afridi would have made no difference ...india would have beat them still...

afridi would have made no difference ...india would have beat them still...

@Mike: so true. Imran Farhat and his father-in-law Ilyas should be sued.

@Dawar : It was Afridi who lead team to the semis in W/C and it was Misbah who ensured that we lose the semi against India. He can still play till 2015 W/C. We need Misbah and Farhat out of the team ASAP.

@Dawar : because the pakistani team is actually is punjabi team and nobody can do anything about it.

Pakistan team must have expressed a sigh of relief from playing for this ChampionshipODI and must be happy to return home to go again to the streets of Karachi and Lahore to resume their inturrupted street-side game of cricket. There they dont have to use their brains to work the maths one require to play ODI games. Can I get schedule of who is playing in which "gully" of these cities.

@Imran- It was Afridi who was the captain who made a tactical blunder and did not take the batting power play with both himself and Misbah - the last two recognised batman at the crease. And remember it was Misbah who won you the the ODI series in India earlier this year. first time a Pakistan skipper won a series on Indian soil since Imran khan.

@Imran- It was Afridi who was the captain who made a tactical blunder and did not take the batting power play with both himself and Misbah - the last two recognised batman at the crease. And remember it was Misbah who won you the the ODI series in India earlier this year. first time a Pakistan skipper won a series on Indian soil since Imran khan.

@jigar: Thats right..India seems unstoppable now..New talent..However Afridi or Razzaq should have been included in team..Last afridi innings in SA was a classic, he could get his form in the Champions trophy.

The team just reflected the country's current mood, confused, nervous and hesitant. The team will not improve till Pakistan does.

@Imran Siddiqui: Yes right, it was Misbah who fought back in the semifinal and put the team in position to win the game. One bad shot resulted in our lost, but it was Misbah who performed and none of the other players stayed on the other side. Misbah is best, but selection should be wisely. We want changes in team. Yet! He was the leading score on tournament. Surely we want better players for opening and players who could stay, rotate strike and absorb pressure.

@Mike: Everybody has ups and downs. Remember the time when Pakistan stayed above in ranking than England. Money is nothing talent counts. WE WILL RISE AGAIN!!!

Afridi has been a failure for a long time. We can't go on bringing them back as most of these players are nonperformers but are coming back again and again. Shoaib Malik and Farhat have enjoyed the similar favour. We need to play Haris Sohail and Umar Akmal as they both are much better batsmen then those selected. Only an insane person would have chosen Umar Amin and left Umar Akmal and Haris out. Even Fawad Alam is a much better batsman then all these.

The batsmen were scared, nervous and hesitant. They seemed to have already lost the match in their minds before they took the field. We need a psychological and motivation coach in addition to a new batting coach.

Afridi is not the answer, he got more chances than anyone else. Time to bring new players like Ahmed Shahzad and Haaris Sohail in. Dropping Afridi was the right decision.

Shifting everything to Lahore has disastarous effect on the whole country either its sports or any organization. The team does not represent Pakistan but Punjab only, its time Punjabis realise that their favouritism and nepotism has destroyed the whole Pakistan. They need to take off the the glasses of Bias against other provinces and bring merit in Cricket. Jaag Punjabi Jaag Too neih Pakistan ko laga dia hai daag

Most of Pakistani cricketers just know how to act in commercials they forget to play in the ground and acts like they are on shoot. they come and go without scoring.

@deepak: Agree with you Deepak on each point you mentioned in your post. Congrats to Team India and Indian fans. A very well played tournament so far. Cheers!

Pakistan, always a sad story. Younis Khan won 20/20 wc in England and he was out of captaincy and team in just two months. Afridi got team out of ashes and brought them to semi final as a favorite to win but lost and was kicked out. Misbah rode on Afridi's success for a while but now its fading away. What a shame.

Misbah should resign because he was keen to shoaib inside & afridi out.

Pakistan cricket is paying the price for Pakistani politics for decades - so lets not blame those poor blokes. You cannot compare the team which gets no international tournaments, no country willing to visit them, no real money to attract lot of new professional players etc. To compare them with Indian cricket which is the worlds most powerful cricketing body is not fair. These Indian players have come through many highly competitive tournaments with the world dying to come over to play with them. Money is fantastic so strong players dedicate everything towards the game career. And then they have Dhoni - a master leader and mentor. God help Pakistan

Does not make any difference, the way India is playing now even 11 Afridis can't stop them. Sabash men in Blue, a bunch of young, aggressive and talented players. Good luck in semis, the world champs bring the CT home too. India zindabad

India is a batting powerhouse. Pakistan is a bowling powerhouse. Indians have greatly improved their bowling with the coming of B Kumar and Ashwin, but Pakistan's batting took a downturn. That is the reason for their decline. Pak should need Younis Khan. Javed Miandad and Inzi bhai should held campaigns to recruit batsman. Pakistan have more than enough quality bowlers and no batsmen. Batsmen is very important to win matches.

Who is responsible for this blunder? Why still the selectors not resigned yet? What are they waiting for now?

Lets be frank right now there is something wrong with the grass root coaching system in pak , as it hasnt produced any talented batsman off late from 2000's......

Right now pak doesnt have batsman of stature of inzamam, yuvraj, sachin , shewag , shane watson or likes of kevin pieterson ,who can occupy the cease and improvise at the end to up the scoring rate.Long term solution fr this issue would be to setup coching centres at ground level ,which can produce batsman of good technique.These Players need to be nourisherd as well to meet the modern game demands of power batting...........

quick fix solution for coming worlcup should be to pack the top order with solid batsman like jamshed , asad shafiq ,misbah ul haq with younis khan(may be ) and have two sledge hammers at the end, razaaq and afridi to up the antique at the end.....

serioulsly you need some one with confidence like afridi to get the fighting sprit and not shoib malik with his negative body language........ ps: is there any issue btw your board members and razaaq , why s he mistreated by pak management always?

Once you leave out Razzaq and Afridi and have players like Shoib Malik and Imran Farhat in the team, you are bound for failure. Honestly speaking, Pakistan now needs to look beyond Shoib Malik, Imran Farhat, Kamran Akmal, Afridi, & Razzaq. Even Hafeez should be considered an all rounder, not a batsman. Time to find 3-4 new technically correct batsman.

@jigar: I have to agree with you,but then again,the way Pakistan batsmen have performed in the last few months,even Allah couldn't help them

Mr. Sidhu is absolutely correct. It is not that these yahoos don't know how to play cricket. You need star power and someone who can inspire them --- unfortunately its not grandpa Misbah. I really like Misbah but I am positive the he is absolutely a dud when it comes to inspiring the team. The first person that should be sacked ...........unfortunately is Misbyebye

Pl. don,t be obsessed with India. Your country lost all three matches and was never in winning position.

@Imran Siddiqui: hey you staying in India or Pakistan that you want only batsman Misbah who has scored consistently for Pakistan to be out too? Not happy yet another main scorer Umar Akmal being out of team due to effort of all you guys.Its better to kick out Iqbal Qasim and other selection panels who should resign immediately.

Pakistan's strength is bowling and their batting isn't all that great. All rounders of Pakistan are world famous and can surely ball are just about equally good at batting and can contribute heavy in getting runs in any given situation. Since their batting isn't all that great so why not focus heavy on all rounders? So go with 2 best bowlers, 3 best batsmen and keep heavy on all rounders who are able to do both. At least this way No. 1 to almost No.11 all can smack the ball at any given time. I may or may not make no sense at all but a team like Pakistan not able to win a single game purely makes no sense at all.

Pakistan's strength is bowling and their batting isn't all that great. All rounders of Pakistan are world famous and can surely ball are just about equally good at batting and can contribute heavy in getting runs in any given situation. Since their batting isn't all that great so why not focus heavy on all rounders? So go with 2 best bowlers, 3 best batsmen and keep heavy on all rounders who are able to do both. At least this way No. 1 to almost No.11 all can smack the ball at any given time. I may or may not make no sense at all but a team like Pakistan not able to win a single game purely makes no sense at all.

Dear Editor,

I request you to publish my comment and kindly post to Pakistan Cricket Board.

The current team has been selected or nominated?

If you see the players they havn't played international cricket regularly, teams are not coming to Pakistan but still you can see the tiredness on the players.

As a player you are eager to perform event like Champions Trophy. There you are showing you true talent and character. But to be honest, this team is fit to play with Bangladesh, Ireland & Zimbabwe only.

Players should have been excluded are:- Shoaib Malik, Imran Farhat, Kamran Akmal

Players must be in the team continuously are :- AbdulRazzak, Shahid Afridi, Umar Akmal & Fawad Alam !

Misbah should not comment on weather or pitch, if you have noted see the TOSS to this tournament. It is very important, 98% matches won by the TOSS winners. And Misbah is very casual during tossing the coin. So, who should be blamed.

Pakistan won the toss and elected to field against South Africa during practice match.

Wasim Akram is too early to credit for the bowlers performance immediately after 1st practice match. What about the Coaches who helped the bowlers from their childhood. You cannot take credit for 10 days camp.

Anyhow the main coach Dav Watmore, able to create excellent batsmen from Sri Lanka & Bangladesh but for Pakistan he is not upto the task.

On morale grounds PCB selection committee chairman has to resign.

Since I am Indian i want to have some competitive matches against Pakistan. And we love to see good matches.

Thanks Dawn for publishing!

Sidhu is nuts. Afridi has long abandoned batting. He just shows up for a few minutes while batting. Yes his bowling has been good. But we already have a good bowling attack. What we need are decent batsmen & afridi is not it.

One of the most boring India-Pakistan clash!!..I don't understand why matched are held in rainy countries..

@Dawar : The players are from Karachi that itself is enough not to give them a chance in national team.

@jigar: @Dawar : BUT DIDNT LOOSE SO BABLY SEMI FINAL WAS A FIGHTING MATCH WITH AFRIDI'S PRESENCE AND WITHOUT AFRIDI IT WAS A CAKE WALK FOR OUR TEAM IT WAS A MATCH AGAINST A BLIND TEAM....OR A HANDICAP TEAM .....

Challenge PCB to organize a 5 one-day match rubber, making Pakistan's Champions Trophy playing 11 (West Indies game for example), take on the following 11:

Ahmed Shehzad, Babar Azam, Umar Amin, Umar Akmal (wk), Fawad Alam, Haris Sohail, Hammad Azam, Abdur Rehman, Asad Ali, Ehsan Adil, and Raza Hasan. Reserves: Adnan Akmal (wk), Anwar Ali, 2 specialist batsmen.

Highlighting the comments of a joker like Sidhu who is not even taken seriously in his own country was also a mistake. Afridi is a spent force. He has been given hundreds of chances and he has never been consistent for more than a few matches.

Afridi? really?? why dont you bring back Umer Akmal then as well and Imran Farhat is already in the side with Shoaib Malik.

I guess the next thing this blundering buffoon (Sidhu) will tell us that he was a world class player too!!!!

The Pakistan cricket team is simply a total rubbish team afraid to admit it. As long as it will carry the weight of the Sifarishi Dogs and overlook boys who deserve a place in the team then get ready for future rubbish performances.

In my opinion, boys who cannot deliver consistently at this level for their country need to pack their bags

I don't know how and what is the basis of Sidhu's statement. He better should have left this rambling statement just stored in his mind.

@ahmad: Dear Sir, We miss the Pakistani batting line up like Zaheer Abbas, Imran Khan , Saeed Anwar, Afridi,Javed Miandad., Inzy , all these guys were great cricketers & they would fight till the end.

I strongly feel Imran Farhat need lots of cricketing practice before he plays big matches.The Managing Cricket Committee should appoint Imran Khan in matters of team selection as he could command team spirit during his outstanding years.

My sainted aunt! So many negative comments. Hai hai. Allah inko log-onk ko muaf karey. Pakistan team is excellent, especially the bowling unit. I have seen none better. Yes batting was not up to scratch in this competition. So what. It's a game. In a game there are winners and losers. So Pakistan lost. Big deal. What probably hurts the extreme politically motivated Pakistanis is losing to India, always referred to in the media as our arch rivals. Well they are not. They are our neighbours who share a common history, heritage, religion and culture. Losing to a good India team is no shame. One competition lost is no big deal.

Pak team has got rid of Adridi with much difficulty. What's the point of going back to same old tried and failed players? Find young players and don't make them 'Great' on just few performances.

Pak team has got rid of Adridi with much difficulty. What's the point of going back to same old tried and failed players? Find young players and don't make them 'Great' on just few performances.

That is what problem with pakistan. if selectors dropped the seniors then y do need to look back and select them. even india dropped shewag, gmabhir, harbhajan, zaheer, Yuvraj who were part of world cup 2011. but still dhonni and selectors went with young blood and result is infront of you. so same applies in case of pakistan. let selectors give chance to young palyers and experience will help them to groom in.

@Dawar : excellent point to mention......i thought and all agree that Abdul razzaq is a match winner on English pitches.....well ego of some men have not destroyed the careers but cheated the nation...they should be tried in the court of law......

Even if Afridi was included Pakistan would have lost because the team was not in shape, please let Afridi GO forever, don't talk about him anymore. On the contrary the result might have been worse if Afridi was included.

afridi should be in the team becoz nowadays in cricket we need all rounders who can play aggressively not those who just blocks the ball and doesnt know wat to do in the last ten overs .especially i m tallking abt shoaib malik,imran farhat,kamran akmal,misbal-ul-haq and umer amin these are not oneday players they shld play in tests .players like afridi are meant for one-day .and in the near future they shld come in the team .

@Mike: You are right. Bangladesh would have given better fight than current Pakistani side.

wow, now Sidhu in line. shame for Pakistani board and their selectors.

some one please suggest Mr N.S. Sidhu that its not a laughter program. too funny a suggestion only Sidhu pa ji can do that.... Afridi is a spent force, goner... I have never seen some one playing international cricket for 16 years without any mental development which equally shows how sense less and mind-less our cricket board selection has been.

If Afridi is suggested by Sidhu then we suggest India to play Sreesanth (if cleared off spot-fixing) else bring back much easy toy run-machine Munaf ( rubbery-legged bowler) which all the teams like to play at.

we are losing from all teams, be it test, t20, ODIs then why not remove Misbahs, Hafeez, Shoaib, Farhat, Kamran and play new set of batsmen not Umar Akmal please ( who is another Afridi in making ).

Afridi abd Razzaq are the two alrounders and must be selected in future one dayers and T 20. They both will make the difference and other teams will change their strategy. All other safarsis and relatives should be out as well as present selectors.

Afridi abd Razzaq are the two alrounders and must be selected in future one dayers and T 20. They both will make the difference and other teams will change their strategy. All other safarsis and relatives should be out as well as present selectors.

To me, it was waste of time, money and efforts. I was very disappointed. Gor God sake, they are trained batsmen and they have performed earlier. I understand that there were few missing players and few were not in form but generally an India Pakistan match is beyond these excuses but for some strange reason these players had shown no enthusiasm at all. There is something bigger then just their skills and ability. I am sure my local city team could have given better performance. If this is their way of playing in a tournament like this then why do we even want to see an Indo Pak match with so much curiosity. From now on, I will try to avoid it, I think it is overrated and a good game happens between two good sides irrespective of an Indo Pak game.

@RAJ: you are mindless geek like sreesanth and sidhu. no vision, no cricketing sense and hapless rape-riched country where cricket is not played like sports but another money making exercise only, so keep your nose out and concentrate to save IPL if you can.

pakistan have drubbed india 71/49 times in all parts of the globe. first you keep on trying to reduce the deficit of 22 match ( at least it will not happen in your life time ). and then come back ..

@Rashid Sultan: My friend it is not about bad batting or about one tournament, it is about Pak team's overall attitude in receny years. I am not liking it, I used to enjoy tough team despite being an Indian. These days watching an Indo Pak game looks like a waste of time, money and energy no matter who wins. It is not like the days of Imran Khan and Jawed Miandad. For some strange reason, Pakistan team has lost that edge. Instead of India Pakistan matches, I like India SriLanka, India Austrailia, India New Zealand, India South Africa, India England, India West Indies and even India Bangladesh. Pakistan has lost its edge and so Pakistan has to do far more then overhall. Right now we have started pittying for Pakistan players as during the game I was really saying with all the pitty I have for anybody: Oh Bhuvi or Jadeja, please let them play, otherwise they will feel bad. I also said I wish Pak gets more time to play and rain stops during their batting, if it has to rain, let it rain during Indian batting. It was really far worst than being reduculous.

I think Pakistan as a responsible country (if it is), must have a competitive team. It is really bad to recruit some street dwellers to make them play International cricket. I am sure, somebody powerful is taking their most of their paycheck by selecting these street dwellers as these street dwellers can't raise their voice against powerful political leadership.

Afridi should never be selected again he has been a complete failure tries and tested again & again, he should have been retired or shown the door atleast 2 years back, Afridi Along with Abdul Razzak, Shoib Malik, Imran Farhat, Misbah Ul Haq & Kamran Akmal these are the worst selection ever they should never be considered for ODI or T20. please bring new selector, Iqbal Qasim is the worst in the history of Pakistan,I feel like throwing up watching these players, Pakistan cricket is sinking day by day their fans are loosing interest, the nation is loosing Pride, the day will come very soon that Pakistani will not watch cricket anymore.

@Ali Khan: At least he is trying to help, otherwise there is nobodyin Pak to help these poor street dwellers.

Yes because all this team needs is another tried and failed player back in the rotation. It's not like we have a team full of them already. Career batting averages of Malik and Farhat are in the low 30s and even worse is Hafeez and Akmal in the 20s.

Afridi can no longer bowl, his career batting average is 23.

So thanks Sidhu for the suggestion but no thanks.

@Abdul Wahab sheikh: Yes Abdul Razzaq should be given infinite chances until he falls on the ground due to old age.

Sorry, I disagree with Sidhu's comments. Not only with regards to Afridi but the rest as well. Afridi like any other senior cricketer has also given a lot to his team which no one can take it away but there comes a time when one has to call it a day and had to be replaced with the new, young and deserving one. This is where PCB must play it's roll. PCB have failed to re-build a team like all the other cricket playing nations. They have been over relying on seniors to deliver which did not materialise. The young talents is in abundance but they were not groomed to replace the outgoing in good time. so many young talents have been wasted for keeping Afridi in the team for so long when he should have been dropped few years ago.

It does not matter who wins, bring back us nail biting, blood pumping, heart breaking games!

Yes Afridi should have been taken , his name is a good weight for the opposition , make drastic changes in team, Kamran Akmal be removed.

@ailly: See the trends (stats) in this decade you will come to know when this ditch will fill.... India is far ahead in terms of cricketing talents. Don't make castle in the air

Since when is Sidhu an expert in cricket? Coining unique terms to describe cricketing events? yes. Cricket? no.

I never understood the fantasy with Afridi. He is a world class bowler,but he has become a joke with the bat.He is the most irresponsible batsman in this planet.Pakistan has enough bowlers.I do not think they need to play him as a bowler.Plenty of Afridi fans need to wake up. I do not think Abdul Razzak should be brought into the team since he has become quite ordinary. Get a young allrounder or a good batsman and groom him. India made a mistake of persisting with Sehwag, Gambhir and Tendulkar and paid a price. Every player has an expiration date and the fans needs to accept. Pakistan needs to pick a very passionate and hard working cricketers. I have of plenty of respect for Misbah Ul Haq.As Misbah rightly put it the team could not handle the pressure.It is almost the same team which beat India in India. I think the current crop of young players should be given more match time.The insincere cricketers should be weeded out.

@ailly: this is the problem wid u guys....u r still living in the past..!! come out of it...its a brand new world..!!

Afridi is very un-predictable in batting. And he was sent way down the order in the series in South Africa. This means that his inclusion in the team was primarily due to his bowling abilities. But he is failing miserably with bowling as well. His recent performance with India and South Africa shows that he is no longer the same bowler as he once was. Yes, he is tried and tested, and he is an epic fail.

May be I am out of touch ,but i think inclusion of Younos Khan and Abdul Razzak would have made the difference

Pakistani selectors forget that the spectators worldwide are keenly interested to the aggressive batting-bowling of Shahid Afridi, Imran Nazir, Umar Akmal or Umar Gul ; not to the skill or efficiency of the selectors.

Pakistan batting failed miserably particularly the top order. The pathetic batting of seniors rubbed on to the younger players. Misbah lacks leadership quality to bring out the best in players. Younger players were not given enough chances. A lot of heads must roll starting with the selection committee and coaches.

its just game come on bodies not be so serious ......and yeah boom boom was rocking :favorite:

Pakistan is a country with nationalism yet to take place. You play and/or fight as a nation when you are one, because only then you know the true meaning of putting a fight until the end (winning or losing). I, along with other friends of mine, quit cricket because boys like us couldn't get through.

My point is, when people speak of "talent" in Pakistan, they refers to the talent that somehow come in their notice. The current system filters great numbers of talented passionate cricketers who otherwise can be much high quality successors of the greats that Pakistan ever produces.

Any sport if is just a mean of income, becomes profession, and "professionalism" is still an alien word in this country (unfortunately). Sportsmen who can play passionately, give in their 100%, show utmost professionalism in every department and play for the country are yet to come (idealizing). Some heartbroken I came across when I was playing are good in other jobs and praying for their team's victory like any Pak's supporter; but wounds are still fresh. If there would have been a "system", we might have been able to serve the country and also fulfill our dreams of wearing the green shirts.

@Razzaq: Yes sir, I totally agree with you. I do not think Mr. Afridi would have made any difference as with also, we could too do without Sehwag, Gambhir, Tendulkar etc. No one in our country would have thought the life without Sehwag, Gambhir and Tendulkar, but have moved with time. The new players have combined themselves very well under the guidance of a coach and a wise and supportive captain. Pakistan has good nucleus of young players but lack motivation and lack of competition. For that the whole nation has to take the blame for living in denial. BNA

Before taking afridi back in the team they need to bring Abdul Razaq and kick shoaib out kick all of the akmals out too yes sir.

An Indian cricketer would be the last person to give us a sincere advice.

to whom it may concern. every reader, cricketer,who has either played or watched the game of so called cricket being a gentlemans game is no longer a game but money making machine.when players a paid handsomely with addons, why they should play the game.i believe in the new generation, and as such new faces are to be groomed,trained and taught to be offensive in the game.

Laughable. Even people in India don't take this clown seriously anymore.

@RAJ: Hey watch it Raj. Pakistan blind team plays much better.

Something does not add up. Essentially the same team had beaten India 2-1 on Indian soil only five months ago. Yet, they played so differentli in Birmingham on Saturday. What changed so soon? Could it have been a deliberate sabotage of the team by some batsmen and if so, why?

@Ahmer :different playing condition , out of form and lack of confidence.The batsmen struggled even against Scotland and Ireland, not the best state of mind to play a major trophy.

@Fowez: I think Pakistan needs to start building for 2015 world cup. There is no time to bring in new untested players at this stage. Farhat, Malik, Haffez, Kamran can still be the backbone of the pakistan team. A good foreign coach who can help them with their battting technique will solve all problems and Pakistan will be the favorites to win world cup in 2015

@Ahmer: sometimes batsman need just one good innings to get back in form. Farhat, HAfeez, Kamran and shoaib have performed many times in the past for Pakistan. I think a foreign batting coach should help them with their batting technique and help make Pakistan the best team in the world again.

@(Dr.) B.N. Anand: I totally disagree. Afridi is, was and will be the greatest match winner ever produced by Pakistan.

Absolutely correct! Afridi Sahib's talent seems to be a victim of some non-field players, harboring some kind of ill-will against the hugely admired all-rounder!
Let us all cricket enthusiasts wish that this great cricketer, incidentally the strongest hand-shaker also, shows his brilliance once again!

@Venket: I think Afridi is a different kind of cricketer. If he clicks, pakistan wins no matter what the other 10 payers do or don't do. That is not the case with Tendular or Sehwag, even if they perform the Indian team will lose.

@Awais: If Tendulkar can be given so many chances, why not Razzak ??? He can be a match winner both as a batsman and a bowler !!!

@ailly: Sahib, yeh aap ki gustaakhee aap ka kasoor nahin! Kindly excuse, but we all ought to learn and relish "SPORTSMANSHIP"!

@ailly: It is IPL Money that is making India win !! How do we know if that money is not being spent to buy Pakistan players ?? They are the most poorly paid cricketers and it is natural that they cam succumb to greed.

@Ahmer: Don't you know why...Money

1OO% Mr Sidhu u r Wrong. selection of Imran Farhat, Asad shafiq & Shoaib was Wrong. Imran Farhat and Asad Shafiq has no foot-work neither they have technique to play. Nobody with a right mind was thinking that pakistan will do any thing good in the CT. Solution.... Selection team has to resign including IQBAL QASIM. Coach has to b fired.

Afridi, another player is past sell by date. What is it that there are some folks who think Afridi can change Pakistan's batting. Had Afridi playing in this tournament, he would have been out for a low score. His bowling which I thought was the only reason to have him in the team is also suffering. I don't think there is anybody that could have changed Pakistanis fortune, it would have better to bring new players and hope one or two can prove worthy of their place in the side. Kamran Akmal, Malik, Afridi, Hafeez and Imran Farat should never play for Pakistan, waste of time and opportunity, Hafeez only plays well against poor opposition when it comes to playing against SA, Eng or Aust he is not capable of producing the good, playing well Ireland or Scotland is not really the yardstick the incompetent Pak selectors should rely on.

I do not think his presence could have added something extra ordinary.To me the team's performance is no strange.That was the poorest batting show. Boos

I would take Afridi over Malik any day and by same token I would prefer Razzaq over Farhat. I don't know what our slectors are doing but either we should have picked younger players and sat out Malik and Farhat or taken Afridi and Razzaq in place of Malike and Farhat as they are capable of doing more demage with bat and ball both and both are good fielders too with a great cricketing mind.

@Ahmer: Re your query "Something does not add up. Essentially the same team had beaten India 2-1 on Indian soil only five months ago. Yet, they played so differently in Birmingham on Saturday". Pakistan team has remained the same, however the Indian team has changed.

those who are still supporting Afridi and old batsman in the team are doing sin nothing else.

@Amal: I don't agree Indian team's better performance in recent years has been due to the IPL. Yes IPL gave exposure to new players but mental / physical fatigue caused by IPL led to Indian team failures indeed. Indian team has been improving since Sachin Tendulkar's time. Sachin was not a aggressive person but he was a solid batsman, he motivated many youngsters to bat aggressively.

@Ahmer: We get advice from Wasim Akram/Waqar Younis/Ramiz Raja about Indian cricket and we respect their perspective. May be you need to open up your horizon a little bit more.

Afidi`s performance has been horrible for a while he could not have changed any thing in the recent championship, all old horses be given a big pat on the back and a warm handshake and thank them for what they have done for the country in the past and send them home, the newer batsmen are also not doing good as such the should be phased out and another lot be developed to take their place.

Pak criicket team without Afridi is unimaginable..... seems he is being deliberately pushed to the background

"Sidhu said the Indo-Pak clash did not live up to its pre-tournament hype because there was not enough at stake. " - Hope this remains and more people move away from cricket a game given undue advantage over other games and all this hype. This rivalry is something we can do away with... especially the life or death scenarios for each team.

how funny !!! 3 months back when india lost to pakistan at home..everyone was praising Pakistanis cricketers..and look now....first of all please try to bring a new captain who has some common sense...i would definitely go with NASIR JAMSHED..he has that confidence to do well and learn from the mistakes...but please keep MISBAH in the squad..so that nasir can learn from him..farhat, akmal don;t deseve to be in the squad...hafeez only good for t-20...

--honest cricket supporter

@Rashid Sultan: Bhai....never heard better words of wisdom. I hope pakistanis remember Sharjah days when India were thrashed royally each time. We had players who had not enough talent plus we had players who were fixing too.Moreover Pakistan had its best players in that era.We were disgusted too.Now times have changed and India seems to have come up with some good batsmen though we lack bowlers.We do have a great Captain though.There isnt enough media pressure on the PCB like we exert on the BCCI. Pakistan has raw talent which has to be nurtured.Give them chances to play at senior levels.Drop non-performers without hesitation.Keep politics out of selection.A few fours and sixes do not make an innings.Stop romanticising about Afridi...Pakistan needs Miandads ..people with passion and pride.One Miandad makes a team....11 afridis will not:)))

when afridi was there they never loose 3 matchs countinously come on perhaps pak can do some sort of improvement by their games

Mr. Sidhu has made a valid point and has given wonderful analysis. Pakistan made a biggest mistake of not playing any allrounder. Playing Imran Farhat, Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal was biggest mistake. Openers failed to give solid start. 2 best players failed to consolidate. Finishers failed to finish. Main problem lies in our batting and it has let us down. There needs to be some thing done about it in order to overcome the weakness. Our bowling did pretty well and performed well. Only their efforts to be let down by our batting line up. Misbah made biggest mistake of playing at no.5, he should have batted at number 3. He played well but sadly no one supported him. Misbah needs to resign as captain and let some one else take over as his defensive mind set has let Pakistan down. It is better to appoint Affridi as captain for ODI and T20. Under him Pakistan did pretty well. Bring Razzaq and Hamad Azam back in team.

@ailly:Earliear match us to happen in Sarjah where umpire, field crowd everything your and you use to won all matches by froud. In recen anaylysis after 2006 we played 24 matched india won 16 out of 24 and pak won 8. forgate what hapen now you have power in you back the come and face inida.

@Amal: Shahid Afridi aap ka Jeeja hai? Aur kya wajah ho sakti hai uski itni tareef karne ki?

If Sidhu said this then he should change his name to Buddhu. It just amazes me just how irrational can people be when it comes to sports. Mr. Bum Bum is nothing more than a mascot (and a bad one at that). Unlike Misbah he does not play for the team. The last time he did score was when we lost against SA and in the aftermath of the match it was obvious that his own performance took precedence over the teams success.

@Amal: I concur all the way!!!!

These words can only come out after Pakistan saw their way home. This is much acceptable after Malik's dismal performance. Otherwise the comments are a piece of crap.

This is correct. Leaving out Shahid Afridi, Abdur Razzak, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousaf was a blunder. They should have been included to honor their services to the game and to participate in the last CT. Now Pakistan team has to go through a CT scan anyways and need a complete over haul for the school grade batting performance

@Ahmer: As a nation we should come out with this denial mode. We always look out for conspiracy theories everywhere.. Man just accept that our team has not played well and fell short..We need to concentrate to improve. our weaknesses..

NO ONE CAN UNDERSTAND IN PCB. THEY ARE SENSELESS.

Please stop talking nonsense. What difference could Afridi make. He played good cricket in the past and it is time for him to give place for young people and also he was not performing well. Age factor is there.

Despite me being from Pakistani origin, I agree with most of the Indian fans who gave their very honest opinion about the Pakistan team. They have rightly said if India can move forward without Sachin, Sehwag, Gambhir etc. why can't Pakistani fans and team move forward without the likes of Afridi, Razzaq, U Akmal etc. Unfortunately, we as a nation have a tendency to live in the past. World is moving so fast that if Pakistan team management won't take drastic measures, I hate to say Pakistan team will probably be standing next to Namibia (just giving an example) in the near future. I do not want to mention any names who needs to be selected or who needs to be dropped from the team. There got to be a selection criteria put in place so the fans do not just start blaming the team management and the cricket board. e.g.Top performers of each season should be drafted in the team or should be automatic choice rather than keep giving chances to the tried seniors. The problem seems to be lack of accountability, anyone in-charge of an important position is not answerable to anyone it seems. It appears that grouping have started in the team as well.

In the end I would like to request the general public (fans) to not do criticism for the sake of criticism or back any one particular individual but the whole team, as the whole team requires a overhaul. Cheers!

As a huge fan of Afridi I have to say that what Sidhu said made no sense whatsoever. As much as we love our sporting heroes we ultimately have to accept when they are past their prime. Over the past few years it has been an embarrassment to cheer Afridi on to the field or listen to commentators extolling the virtues of the 'dangerous' Afridi, only to see him get out after a solitary boundary. We should be now looking for the next Afridi/Razzaq.

@Raj: I agree. Too much hype about Tendulkar. No match for Afridi as match winner.

@sunil: now you have money and corruption and betting and cheerleaders !! Else India can never beat Pakistan !!!

@Indian: quite poor knowledge of cricket just like Sidhu. put some sense before asking Nasir Jamshed to lead the side and retaining Misbah in same squad. hats off to you and your Sidhu ( who made headlines in a more funny and idiotic manner what he suggested ).

@sunil: quite stupid and senseless comments like your mentor Sidhu and Sreesanth.

If you are such a big fan of Afridi, Sidhu jee, how about having him play in IPL?

@mj: If you don't take Siddhu, then you are already a Buddhu

Keep Misbah and you will confirm Shoaib Malik and Imran Farhat for next world cup. And I can assure you same results as you got in Champions trophy. It is the captain who decides who plays a match and who sits on the benches. Don't blame batting if Misbah keeps playing Shoaib Malik and Imran Farhat.

I disagree with Sidhu frankly, Afridi is no advantage to the team unless he throws the bat around for an odd 35 and takes 2 wickets for 40 odd runs.......this suggestion seems plausible in hind site only now that we know how dismal the batting in Pakistan is.......had the same team fought tooth and nail against the windies and south Africa...these discussion would not take place. I frankly cannot understand how a Aussie batting coach was required? so many dumb decisions we cant even recall some of them, Imran Farhat? in the team? and Ahmed Shehzad is out? what did he do wrong, he is a flamboyant opener......Shoaib Mailik actually did better than I expected but he too is a spent force....nothing has come of his bowling and batting recently. Kamran Akmal is in? as wicket keeper and Akhtar Sarfraz is out? Sarfraz is a miles better Keeper than Akmal and more than handy with the bat. lastly, Dav Whatmore himself? common for crores monthy we can do better, heck even Mohsin was excellent......also if we were pay Whatmore crores why did the board not bring Aqib javed backas bowling coach? how can we let him slip to the head coach of UAE? he prepares youngsters like a professional.......how about wicket keeping camps for replacing the inept Kamran Akmal? and who is keeping young Umar Akmal out and jerking him around? similarly if Shoaib was considered good enough? how about Razzaq? he is barely 30 years old he has cricket left in him and can play the 2015 WC for Pakistan yet.....he is constantly ignored? in the end its all crying over spilled milk.....pakistans proud cricket history has been dented......we should be ashamed of this teams batting and most of all ashamed off the nepotism that led to this horrible result for Pakistan cricket......I don't think we will recover soon from this jolt......knowing our board nothing will change they will continue with the same selectors, sam nepotism same everything. A word of praise for young nasir jamshed, he is a find and also Asad Shafiq, make them a permenant fixture in the team and please dump these mailks, akmal and Imran farhats...challay howay kartoos dubarra nahin Chaltay.........

@Charlie Chapatti: we frankly don't need to look for 'another' Razzaq is is still playing age, Afridi I agree is done he should retire now.

@Azhar: I think Pakistan should concentrate on batting, make soild batting line like India and add 4 allrounder bowlers and thats it. Now poinitng fingers at players are bad thing. Make these same team as great batsman and bowlers , you need hard work and practice. I think I should be cotach of Pakistan team even thou I am Indian.

An Indian talking about Pakistani Cricketer is not a good idea. Should he or she talk must be in more balanced and appropriate to avoid the commotion among the ordinary citizens. Anyway, my best wishes to cricket lovers of any country.

Sidhu, a politician of BJP in India who was recently kicked out from his party, advices the Pakistanis to support Afridi who is also running from one politician to another to fulfill his ambition to be a political figure of the country, Genuine players devote times to improve their skills in games and not to run after earning money from one source to the other like Sidhu.

@Amal: Money, corruption, cheerleaders don't play cricket, 11 players do. Your comment has to be one of the most immature on this forum. Not sure if you trying to be funny.

Just his presence in the team sets the pressure. If his batting works it is a sure thing that the match is ours. Misbah scoring 96 doesnt help the team towards victory because that is selfish game. We saw afridi's last innings of 88 runs when he could have played slow to make his 100 but he went on bashing the bowlers to get most for his country. Afridi's match winning capability surely falls waaay ahead of Misbah. Truely a selfless player, surely a match winner! We miss you lala..

@Amal: shame on you for senslessly acusing Paki players where entire IPL "Mafia" is unvield and there is still no action of indian cricket board to contain the situation. Banning players to take part in this activity. I am sure mafia is also paying good money to them to keep quiet. Whole indian nation is set on gambling and now everybody is naked. Thank God Pakistani players are not part of this filthy IPL that is destroying such a wonderful game.

It makes me laugh how pathetic your attempt to associate Pakistani players with IPL curruption.

@ailly: sir...i disagree with ur "poor knoweledge " comment. First of all Misbah is a very good batsman.The problem is with his captaincy not with his batsman ship. For me he looks little bit jaded in his approach as captian. Nasir could bring that freshness but he needs someone senior who could guide him in those difficult times..Misbah for a while,,,say till the next world cup. ** IF u could not understand this simple things then u r another shahid afridi in making !!! :D**

@Amal: You must read what players like Bradman, Akaram, Ponting, Lara, and many more speak about Sachin with great respect. I bet, Lara perhaps doesn't even know who is Afridi! Afridi plays a T20 brand of Cricket, and not real Cricket -- the Test Match. No wonder, your nation doesn't produce great test players any more... because you think, Afridi is bigger than Sachin!

@ailly: and the rating of Ur comment shows who has the better knowledge

After the last India-Pakistan series, when pakistani bowlers made all the indian batsmen helpless victims (except Dhoni of-course who stood solid as rock), I had expected that this will an exciting tournament for Pakistan and exciting match between India Pak. India was barely able to save a match perhaps thanks to chilling cold 2 degree foggy weather. Now I wonder, was it just that the indian batsmen back then were just pathetic and there was nothing special about pakistani bowlers. Now that the team is completely new and young within six month and bowlers appear just average.