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Mohammed’s blistering knock steers West Indies to victory in first ODI

Monitoring Desk Published April 7, 2017
Wahab Riaz (R) walks off the field as Ashley Nurse (L) and Jason Mohammed (C) of West Indies celebrate winning the 1st ODI match between West Indies and Pakistan at Guyana National Stadium on April 7.— AFP
Wahab Riaz (R) walks off the field as Ashley Nurse (L) and Jason Mohammed (C) of West Indies celebrate winning the 1st ODI match between West Indies and Pakistan at Guyana National Stadium on April 7.— AFP
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A fabulous knock by Jason Mohammed led the West Indies to an incredible victory against Pakistan in the first one-day international at Providence, Guyana, on Friday.

Chasing a formidable 309 for victory, the Caribbeans made heavy weather of their task in the early part of the innings. Accurate bowling by Pakistan’s pacers as well as spinners restricted them to a meagre 107 in the first 25 overs.

But then Jason Mohammed took charge, playing lusty strokes to lift the home side’s spirits. His unbeaten 91 guided the West Indies to their first-ever victory in a one-dayer while chasing in excess of 300.

Pakistan bowlers wilted under the onslaught and were unable to stanch the flow of runs in the last 10 overs.

Agencies add: Earlier, Mohammad Hafeez accelerated from a pedestrian start to pace Pakistan to a formidable 308 for five.

Amid speculation about his worth to the team, the 36-year-old contributed a top score of 88 to temporarily quell the rising tide of criticism at his position in the batting line-up.

Scoreboard

PAKISTAN:

Ahmed Shehzad b Nurse 67

Kamran Akmal c Walton b Holder 47

Mohammad Hafeez c Walton b Nurse 88

Babar Azam c Joseph b Nurse 13

Shoaib Malik c Holder b Nurse 53

Sarfraz Ahmed not out 20

Imad Wasim not out 6

EXTRAS (b-3 lb-3 nb-1 w-7) 14

TOTAL (for 5 wickets, 50 overs) 308

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-85 K. Akmal, 2-149 A. Shehzad, 3-177 B. Azam, 4-266 M. Hafeez, 5-284 S. Malik

DID NOT BAT: S. Khan, M. Amir, H. Ali, W. Riaz

BOWLING:A. Joseph 10-1-49-0, S. Gabriel 10-0-69-0 (nb-1 w-1) J. Mohammed 4-1-28- 0 J. Holder 10-0-58-1 (w-4) A. Nurse 10-0-62-4 (w-1) D. Bishoo 6-0-36-0 (w-1)

WEST INDIES

E. Lewis b Hafeez 47

C. Walton c Riaz b Amir 7

K. Powell c K. Akmal b Riaz 61

S. Hope st S. Ahmed b S. Khan 24

J. Mohammed not out 91

J. Carter c Riaz b Amir 14

J. Holder c B. Azam b S. Khan 11

A. Nurse not out 34

EXTRAS (lb-6 nb-1 w-13) 20

TOTAL (for 6 wickets, 49 overs) 309

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-23 C. Walton, 2-91 E. Lewis, 3-156 K. Powell, 4-158 S. Hope, 5-228 J. Carter, 6-259 J. Holder

DID NOT BAT: D. Bishoo, S. Gabriel, A. Joseph

BOWLING: Mohammad Amir 9-0-59-2 (w-4) Hasan Ali 5-0-43-0 Mohammad Hafeez 8-0-35-1 (w-1) Shoaib Malik 6-0-24-0 (w-1) Wahab Riaz 9-0-69-1 (nb-1 w-3) Shadab Khan 9-0-52-2 Imad Wasim 3-0-21-0

UMPIRES: Simon Fry and Joel Wilson

TV UMPIRE: Ian Gould

Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2017

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Ashton
Apr 07, 2017 10:52pm
West Indies is playing with their tier 2 players as all top windies players are busy playing in IPL
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Babu bhai from saudabad
Apr 07, 2017 10:57pm
They can muster only 308 runs after fabulous start. Good Luck!!
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Shahid
Apr 07, 2017 11:14pm
In no way a winning score on this wicket. Had Pakistan not gone in to their shell in overs 11-40, they could easily score 350 without any big slogs. Hafeez was the negative force doing that.
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Balaji
Apr 07, 2017 11:33pm
Looks like Pakistan found its ideal opponents to put up an even contest. Well played so far. It's gotta be a cake walk now.
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Shahryar shirazi
Apr 08, 2017 12:57am
Problem is 308 is no score these days :(
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NeutarView
Apr 08, 2017 02:39am
This is a total that Pakistan should be able defend.
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Talha
Apr 08, 2017 02:53am
Such a shame that people don't understand cricket. Windies won the game because it was a pure batting paradise where ball was easily coming to the bat. Jason Mohammad scored 91 not out from 58 balls as he was middling every ball. This was a pitch worth 350 total but with the West Indies bowling we should have scored 400. India, South Africa or Australia may even have scored 450 against this Windies bowling. Hafeez and Shahzad actually made us lose the game as the played selfishly for themselves, Shahzad scoring a sluggish 67 of 83 balls and Hafeez 88 of 92. Players after them like Malik and Sarfraz scored at faster pace (53 of 38 and 20 of 13 respectively) but they didn't have enough balls to face. Players like Hafeez and Shahzad can only score some runs very slowly and cautiously on batting paradise like this one to secure their places for the next 5 years. They would flop as soon as we face New Zealand, England, South Africa or Australia or they'd get injured during those series.
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Sab se pehle pakistan
Apr 08, 2017 02:54am
For God sake get rid of Wahab Riaz. Why drop Hassan Ali? Why Sohail Khan is not in the squad? Drop Imad Wasim. Nawaz is a much better option then Imad Wasim.
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Shahid
Apr 08, 2017 03:06am
This was easily a 350+ wicket. Hafeez was always the culprit who played for himself and not the team. Pakistan scored merely at the rate of 4.45 in 11th to 40th. Had Hafeez been out at 60 or below, his strike rate would have been below 65. Similarly, in the last two overs, Sarfraz did not want to risk his own wicket and took 7 singles in 7 balls instead of trying to hit boundaries.
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Shazad
Apr 08, 2017 03:19am
Hafeez runs came too slow. Actually, he made 29 runs in first 50 balls compare to WI's Mohammed, who made 91 runs in 58 balls. True that Hafeez did accelerated his inning making 88 runs in 92 balls, but that was not enough. Worse is that, Hafeez could have got out early at 29 runs wasting 50 balls. To me, even though Hafiz made 88 runs, Hafiz slow batting was one cause Pakistan lost. If Hafiz had made 30 runs in 20 balls, that would have been better than his 88 runs. I think, if Pakistan has to win limited over matches, than Pakistan have to get rid of players who take too many balls just to settle down, instead of making runs from first ball (only Sarfraz did that, but he came too late). Fact is that, players like Shahzad, Hafeez, Babar, Malik (like Azhar and Misbah) ... are not good for limited overs. They make Pakistan lose matches more than win. Bowlers like Wahab, Amir and Hasan Ali are also liability in limited overs game, and should be replaced by more economical bowlers.
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ample reverence 4 KSA & Pak Army
Apr 08, 2017 03:30am
what a response by professor with so many chances!!!!!!! very few inings in a year and never on bouncy tracks...wow i was well aware of Pakistan defeat after the so called ining of professor, if he can score than obviously windies can also who are much better than Mr Professor. He was on bunch Pakistan won T20s and if you want to win than sack him permanently...otherwise keep sliding down to bottom in ICC ranking
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Alba
Apr 08, 2017 03:33am
If a team can't hit, a team can't win. If their bowlers get into trouble, what then?
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alla bux
Apr 08, 2017 04:11am
And then we lost. But good effort from our boys nevertheless.
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Aamir Jaleel Khan
Apr 08, 2017 04:41am
I amam sorry. PCB needs balls tp get rid of old used players. These players can't even play andcards win, against WI how do you expect them to win against better teams? Hafeez and Shahzad played too slow in tge middle overs and sorry Sarfraz should have sent a hitter instead of coming out himself. While fielding Pakistan didn't apply anyfor pressure and played very defensively. Wahab have no room in the team and should play league matches only. Sarfraz have no keeping skills andand too slow to be behind the wicket. Lets get young players in all the positions and rebuild the team with them.
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Syed
Apr 08, 2017 04:58am
Hafeez and shahzad scores were nullified because they played way too many dot balls and thats why Pak in the end couldnt score 350 plus. They were lucky to cross 300 thanks to malik. On top of that utter bowling fiasco. Pak became complacent thinking match is in their hand and they would easily defend. Didnt go for the kill by taking wickets. Thats what happen when you play with defensive mindset. Wahab and shahzad must be kicked out and chance shud be given to fahim ashraf and fakhar zaman. Hafeez must be relegated to 5 or 6th position as number 3 position must permanently belong to babar azam. Please dont ruin him by keep changing his position. Sarfraz must also come higher in order to utilize is batting skills.
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J. Gamble
Apr 08, 2017 05:16am
I WAS under the impression that anything over 300 runs in an ODI is a winnable score, but WI proved me wrong, or PAKISTAN bowling was too weak.
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Pakman
Apr 08, 2017 05:28am
Pak loses to WI B team. WI pulled out a terrific win; kudos to WI boys.
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Em Moosa
Apr 08, 2017 05:32am
Hafeez is guilty to slow down the pace of scoring. Pakistan should made 350 or close if he was not playing such a cricket. Pakistan has lost because of him.
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AXH
Apr 08, 2017 06:09am
Pakistan was easily 20 runs short because Hafiz and Shahzad both played too many dot balls. These days, a score of 310 is not hard to chase at all. WI was also without one of their best bowlers, Narin. Pakistan is not yet ready to play top teams in the ODI format and I am afraid that Pakistan will not perform well in the coming Champions Trophy.
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truth
Apr 08, 2017 07:17am
Well played Pakistan. Now need good bowling and fielding to win.
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VPS
Apr 08, 2017 07:30am
And Windows won with ease against so called best bowling line up...
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Dawn
Apr 08, 2017 07:35am
Hafeez's answer was not quite firm. As much as I admire him he played way too slow. W.I. could not get Shehzad out so he did them favour by getting out ridiculously. He ran out of patience.
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khan
Apr 08, 2017 07:42am
Wahab Riaz does not deserve place in ODI team.He is good for nothing.Wahab dont know how to take wickets in crucial times playing since long time being senior most in bowling department... Second thing Babar Azam position should not be disturbed in batting line up , he is the future of Pakistan cricket not Hafeez.. Junaid khan should replace Wahab Riaz immediately because Junaid is a wicket taking bowler.. Amir should be rested for some time and ask to play domestic cricket he is not effective as he was before ban.
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Azmeen
Apr 08, 2017 07:52am
Pak batting sucks
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Sid
Apr 08, 2017 07:54am
No Dwayne Smith, Gayle, Pollock, Dwayne Bravo. Losing to a 2nd string West Indies side is Pakistans own undoing. As usual Pakistan is full of surprises.
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AXH
Apr 08, 2017 07:56am
@Ashton - "West Indies is playing with their tier 2 players as all top windies players are busy playing in IPL" All those tier-1 players played in the T20s and we all saw the result of that. So, while it is true that WI were without the services of some of their best players, there is no guarantee that those players, if played, would have won the game for WI. The result could very well have been similar to the T20s. The problem is that Pakistan has not adapted to the way ODIs are played these days and until they do that, they will stay at the bottom of the barrel.
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truth
Apr 08, 2017 07:57am
West Indies played well batting wise...Congratulations.
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Ravian
Apr 08, 2017 08:09am
Let's call it a teaching moment in education of Sarfraz as captain. Day after tomorrow is another day.
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israr
Apr 08, 2017 08:15am
What an inngs by Muhammad and what an effort put in by WI they came with a plan and somehow executed it perfectly :) good for them. For Pakistan the saddest part is it was sarfaraz's first game as captain and it did not start well. there are two basic mistakes sarfaraz made He demoted himself to no 6 he is better batsman than that for sure and if he keeps depending on malik and hafeez to score runs for him soon ppl will stop respecting him as captain 2nd massive mistake he made yesterday way he did not attack when was in field, e.g. when wahab came to bowl nurse right towards the end everyone knows wahab will move the ball away from right hander and no slips were in place he slashed took the edge and 4, with shadab in the side he should have attacked more with shadab and let muhammad take risk against him, should have deprived muhammad of the strike and bowl one side to him, u cannot keep bowling on both sides and no fielders placed for that. Dont be reactive and lead from the front
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ganges khan
Apr 08, 2017 08:20am
Have been saying this for ever,no one listens,wahab has no place, very poor captaincy by sarfaraz,why bring shadab so late to bowl,sarfaraz has no place of himself,U Akmal much better choice,has a little attitude,so what every NBA player in USA does.No need for 3 seemers.play Yasir shah instead of wahab.No honesty ,no win.
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GS
Apr 08, 2017 08:36am
Westindies should show some respect to worlds best bowling attack ! How can they do this !!
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Vandan
Apr 08, 2017 08:48am
Defending 308, the world's 'BEST' bowling attack, no big deal! LOL
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Rahul
Apr 08, 2017 09:01am
@AXH - *"All those tier-1 players played in the T20s and we all saw the result of that."* Not a single tier 1 player played in the T20 except Sunil Narain. Apart from him and Carlos Braithwaite the entire team is the same. There was no Chris Gayle, Darren Bravo, Darren Sammy, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russel playing the T20's.
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Rajesh
Apr 08, 2017 09:25am
Self proclaimed , "best bowling attack in the world" !!!! Again, got to watch club level cricket.
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Rituraj India
Apr 08, 2017 09:37am
Its a junior team of West Indies. All other senior players are playing in ipl.
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Rituraj India
Apr 08, 2017 09:40am
And pakistan known as best blowing sidem i think those days were past now. Pakistan should rebuild their cricket by any how
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CHIEF of STAFF
Apr 08, 2017 09:56am
Its time we give Ruman a chance and bench Amir
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CHIEF of STAFF
Apr 08, 2017 09:59am
@Rajesh wow some harsh words
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khamkhwa
Apr 08, 2017 09:59am
its time Pakistan retires Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal and Wahab Riaz from ODI.With an eye on the world cup due in 2019, Pakistan can not afford to play these over the hill cricketers.
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anurag
Apr 08, 2017 10:09am
That too as all the WI top players are playing in India. Poor performance by Pakistan.
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MEA
Apr 08, 2017 10:21am
@Shahid Hafeez played for himself not for his team! He seemed to stay at the crease with a negative motive just to cementing his place. It was a suicidal approach dropping down Babar Azam, the best player, at number 4 position instead of number 3. Moreover, why the Pak think tanks incorporated most erratic bowlers like Wahab Riaz?
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Fazal Karim
Apr 08, 2017 10:23am
The middle order batsmen did not perform well, there was no boundary for consecutive five overs . Batsmen were were satisfied in saving wickets although the could take score to 350.
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Fazal Karim
Apr 08, 2017 10:25am
@Talha Agree.
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Aamir Jaleel Khan
Apr 08, 2017 10:32am
@Talha I agree. Time to retire all senior players including Sarfraz and Wahab. Sarfraz was too defensive from beginning and can't keep behind wickets. They need hitters in the team. Senior players just trying to keep place in the team and not playing for the country.
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Pure ind
Apr 08, 2017 10:49am
Great going windies. As an Indian want west indies to do well. Best wishes for the Maroon team. Hang in there go for a white wash. Easily achievable
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Talha
Apr 08, 2017 10:52am
Secondly Wahab Riaz with his extreme pace and reverse swing should only be considered for tests. He leaks far too many runs very often in ODIs and T20s, single handedly winning matches for the opposition! Imad Wasim doesn't look fit physically and attitude wise too. He was initially doing well in his international career in both terms but he is now becoming more style over substance. I think he invests more time on his style than planning how to get batsmen out. He should be given a few more chances but Mickey Arthur as a coach has to COACH and guide him now. Babar Azam is a 'GEM' but I am getting a feeling he is being asked too many times to take responsibility, anchor and play entire 50 overs which might pressurize him and is not good for someone who is very new. Let Azam play his natural game!
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iqbal
Apr 08, 2017 10:54am
IT was nurse who steered his team to victory even after mohammeds exceptional knock the team was far behind in the run rate. his 4 wickets plus excellent batting moved the west indies to win.hy was imad wasim not used in the last 10 overs.not good selection of bowlers to bowl in last 10 overs.
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Talha
Apr 08, 2017 11:06am
The only concern about Sarfraz is that in the post match he identified the wrong reason for our loss. He blamed our bowling. I won't blame the bowlers much (except Riaz because he leaks on most pitches which is not acceptable as the most senior bowler) because on such pitches bowlers can get hammered. Sarfraz should have clearly stated that our batsmen played very slowly which cost us the match. He should've said that a good score would've been 350+ but he said 300 was good and bowlers should have defended it. This 308 of ours was like easily chasable 220 runs of 90s. I am a great admirer of Sarfraz and want him to captain in all formats for at least the next 5 years but at least put the blame where it belongs: Hafeez, Shahzad and Wahab. Right now Hafeez and Shahzad would be happily enjoying the beaches of Caribbean thinking they scored well and that they would score at the same pace again. At least tell them that they need to score faster so that there is a chance of improvement!
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NKAli
Apr 08, 2017 11:10am
Viva! Congratulations Jason! It was a combative match and thrilling match with both teams giving their all-out performances. Congratulations West Indies! Your brave display of batting gave West Indies a well deserved victory. Salams
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Amir Niazi
Apr 08, 2017 11:15am
pakistan needs to learn a lot from India -- be it cricket or democracy or technology or military or soft power -- we must learn from India!
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Anuj
Apr 08, 2017 11:16am
Self claimed 'best bowling attack in the world' again bites the dust against WI third string side.
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Anuj
Apr 08, 2017 11:17am
@CHIEF of STAFF why? What happened to the most talented best bowler in the world?
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Talha
Apr 08, 2017 11:17am
Lastly all our past, current and future players who want to become Kohli need to learn two things. 1) Virat Kohli's style and attitude are greatly backed by his gigantic amount of runs and performances so he can afford that style and attitude. 2) Kohli is a good talent but what makes him possibly the greatest is his focus and knowledge of his own game and his extreme physical fitness. I would like to share two examples. If Kohli wins a match for India and asked how he did it he would say that he adjusted his grip because the pitch had more bounce, he stood outside the crease to nullify spin, or lowered his bat lift to counter yorkers and other proper technical details which I can't mention in depth here. But if Umar Akmal or Ahmad Shahzad are asked how they scored so well they'd say that they scored well thanks to Mushy bhai, Micky bhai and prayers of parents! Our players don't have knowledge of their own game so they can't make adjustments on ground too. Example of fitness continued..
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Amir Niazi
Apr 08, 2017 11:21am
@Sab se pehle pakistan pakistan needs to learn from Indian pace bowlers like Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma -- they swing the ball both ways and pace average in the 145-148 kph range.
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Abdul Rehman
Apr 08, 2017 11:34am
Should have been easy victory. Maybe some money is involved. never know.. should investigate..
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vikas
Apr 08, 2017 11:37am
Well this is being looked at as a potential world cup qualifier for both nether rated teams. If this is the state of affairs of Pakistan team against a West Indies B team (their main players are in IPL) logically who deserves the world cup berth is obvious.
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vikas
Apr 08, 2017 11:41am
@J. Gamble Well I was under the impression that Pakistan team has the best bowling attack which was something which was said in the 70's & 80's but Pakistani people still live there, play the same game and believe the same. Need to wake up its the 2000s and they too are coming to an end. Modern cricket is different and Pakistan has to understand that from the school level games.
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Anuj
Apr 08, 2017 11:49am
@Abdul Rehman thats your standard reply everytime PAK loses, you forget they're 8th ranked.
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GAUR
Apr 08, 2017 11:52am
@Abdul Rehman yeah sure! Should investigate this, how can PAK make 308 runs with club level batsmen ?
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Viking Star
Apr 08, 2017 11:56am
308 was a reasonable score considering the "average" quality of our batsmen. However this clearly shows our bowling attack is fading up, they couldn't even defend 300 plus against the B team of West Indies.
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mandy
Apr 08, 2017 12:18pm
Well played west indies...go for white wash...good wishes from india...
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Satyameva Jayate
Apr 08, 2017 12:27pm
WI B Team is hell bent to throw Pakistan out of the Auto Qualification for World Cup.... The Top WI players are playing in the IPL.
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Justice
Apr 08, 2017 12:35pm
@vikas I always rated WI and AUS better than PAK in 70s and 80s and in 90s SA replaced WI.
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Jigar
Apr 08, 2017 12:40pm
I'm not saying we played well...we were bad...worse because if old rusted cling ons who only play for themselves n not for their country....but two things....comments from haters when pak defeats windies 'oh you guys are celebrating after winning from a weak west indies, try beating a tough team' .....comments from haters when pak loses to windies 'oh you guys can't even beat a weak team like west indies ' .... conclusion is haters will always hate no matter what! By the way....can someone please enlighten me if any pak captain or manager or coach or any other player has claimed 'we are the best bowling attack' ? I don't think so !
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cw
Apr 08, 2017 01:00pm
@Shahid Being Pakistani I have noted so many times the matches which I don't watch are won by Pakistani Team. & the matches which I do are lost. If you know what I mean.
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M.Saeed
Apr 08, 2017 01:03pm
Another easy win thrown away.
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Raza
Apr 08, 2017 01:22pm
@GS must be a conspiracy of big three:)
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Amit
Apr 08, 2017 01:26pm
Noting problem with this Pakistan team if you go through each and every player of this pakistan team...they are good enough to win matches..only problem is that Pakistan has been not changing their style and approach for the game as compared with other good teams and they still with 90s ways. I am a supporter of pakistan cricket team.... whenever India is not playing...best of luck pakistan team... that was a bad day...hope they win next 2 and win series...Good wishes from India..!!
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GS
Apr 08, 2017 02:30pm
@Raza Can be, cannot rule out anything:)
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Amjad
Apr 08, 2017 02:42pm
A defeat is a good result for pakistan if they are knocked out only then will.you see any changes. The world has moved on they are still playing 70s cricket
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Iqbal HADI ZAIDI
Apr 08, 2017 02:49pm
Shame and utter shame on Pakistan for scoring too less runs and then on top of it could not contain West Indies batsmen particularly Jason Mohammad to score at will so how could we win in the match is only question to be answered and not ignored? We gifted and not gave away as many as 20 extra runs while we got 14 extra runs. Hafeez though our highest scorer but scored at very slow pace and killing time and the game. Sarfraz being the captain should have hit all around the ground to boost our total but he instead preferred to remain not out proving timid scoring singles instead of boundaries and sixers which was call of the time. Last but not the least, if we cannot win against such weak West Indians then what chance we have, if any, to win when it fields all their big guns that were missing now due to their commitments with IPL? Wake up and shake up if you can if not then quit cricket and instead play 'gulli danda' Iqbal Hadi Zaidi / Kuwait / zaidi4merdiplomat@hotmail.com
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Ramana Adivishnu
Apr 08, 2017 03:45pm
@Talha @Talha Appears that you have analyzed the team well. Hope PCB management also does the same. But I have one observation. I have seen many talented players entering into Pakistan team with a bang and fading out with the time. There are many examples like Akmals, Imad, Ahmed Shezad, Imaran Nazir, One left arm teen aged spinner (I forgot his name and I felt that he will become another Saqlain but he is disappeared now, Indians struggled against him). On the other side, many players in India entered as mediocre (no need to name) and flourished with the time. I strongly feel that there must be something wrong in Pakistan Management in upbringing the talent and the way they handle them, groom them etc. If I am right, you need to worry about your latest talent Azam and Sarfraz also. There should be a plan for their career growth and they should be nurtured.
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Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmad
Apr 08, 2017 04:34pm
Never mind green-shirts, this is for sure, not the end of the world. In fact, it was a very well contested ODI match which could have gone either way. Keep it up and hang on tough. You can make it next time.
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rezwan
Apr 08, 2017 05:03pm
I wonder No one is talking about the poor bowling changing of Sarfaraz.Had Haffez and Malik given their full quota overs it would have been a different result.I really don't understand why wahab riaz is part of this side?. Highly unpredictable.Junaid should be in the side.He can pick up wickets with the new ball.
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rezwan
Apr 08, 2017 05:04pm
It was also because of poor captaincy of sarfarz.
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Shazad
Apr 08, 2017 05:22pm
For those who could not understand cricket, specially limited overs cricket, let me tell them that batting and bowling in limited overs cricket is not just making runs or taking wickets (as in test cricket). Here, we have 4 factors for batsmen and bowlers. Batsmen: It is average, SR, fielding and start scoring early. Bowlers: It is average, economy, fielding and death overs bowling. Batsmen with SR lower than 80 are unsuitable for ODIs. Here are Ave and SR of current Pakistani ODI batsmen: Azam: Ave 51, SR 90 ... Sarfraz: Ave 35.3, SR 88.6 ... K Akmal: Ave 26.3, SR 84 ... S Malik: Ave 35.1, SR 81.6 ... Shahzad: Ave 34.3, SR 72.9 ...Hafeez: Ave 32.4, SR 75 ... U Akmal: Ave 34.6, SR 85.9. From above one can see that at present, best batsman is Azam, followed by Sarfraz, Umar, Malik and Kamran. While Shahzad and Hafeez with SR below 80 are unsuitable.
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Kash
Apr 08, 2017 05:32pm
Wahab must be dropped. He bowling tripe. Pakistan should call up rahat and Imran khan for tests. Sohail khan would have bowled better than wahab in odi and t20.
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qasim Kazmi
Apr 08, 2017 05:49pm
why these old gaurds Hafez 59 balls vs 28 runs, Malik, useless bowler Amir and Wahab Riaz totally failed these old guards including Kamran Akmal all should be shown home, particularly Wahab, malik and Kamran playing for their own, these are oldage people. PCB have to include new blood. Old guard who played 2 or 3 w/c odi and never won its, they must be given dropped immediately we need hard hitters like J,Muhammad and Nurse well played inning, washed Amir and Wahab and Emmad with hard hitting, these three forget their line and length.
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Saeed Fakhar ali
Apr 08, 2017 05:57pm
@qasim Kazmi : Correctly said, Wahab & Amir should immediately replaced with Sohail Khan and Junaid, Wahab Riaz, already lost line and speed.
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Shazad
Apr 08, 2017 06:12pm
@Iqbal HADI ZAIDI: I thought you make sensible comment, but it seems you are throwing bouncers. Fault of slow scoring lies with Shahzad and Hafiz. Both started inning slow, unacceptable in today's ODIs. Hafeez made 29 runs in first 50 balls faced. Even though he picked up late but one cannot rely on his late acceleration. He wasted lot of balls. Shahzad was slow too. His 67 in 83 balls was pathetic. Together, Hafiz and Shahzad consumed 30 overs. Azam made 13 runs in 21 balls, that was too slow. As for Sarfraz, he came when 29 balls were left. He faced 13 balls for his 20 runs and Pak scored 42 runs in 29 balls. His SR: 154 was comparable to Mohammed's SR 158, and highest in Pak inning. So, you cannot blame his batting. Blame on Sarfraz is playing Hafeez and Shahzad, but selectors have given him no choices. His choice of Wahab in playing 11 was bad (even in T20I). He should play Raees, who is available, economical and wicket taker (better than Hasan Ali and I think even Amir).
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Tech talk
Apr 08, 2017 06:50pm
Its insipid bowling effort !! with 5 full time and 2 part time bowlers , bowling to defend 308 which had been never been achieved by Windies before!...pak should stop living in the fools paradise of past praising and claiming their below average bowlers as world class..as a fact who were proved yesterday no class....cannot match Team India batting prowess with this ordinary bowling attack in big ICC tournaments...
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Shafiq Ashraf
Apr 08, 2017 06:54pm
Answer critics??! That was the most selfish innings I've ever seen. It was solely about self preservation. Came in at 3 with no pressure whatsoever - crazy decision with Babar av 80@3 - and proceeded to play a mind bogglingly innings just to get to 50. Nearly had Babar run out then caused him to play a rash shot as he was just leaving the ball. R/r plummeted to under 5 when it was over 6 when he came in. He should watch Jason Mohammed's innings again and again to understand what playing for the team means. Pathetic.
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Tech talk
Apr 08, 2017 06:55pm
@Talha, mushi bhai, inzy bhai..prayers..very well analysed.. !:)..its real fact seriously ignored...
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Shafiq Ashraf
Apr 08, 2017 06:55pm
@Shahid the most selfish and pathetic innings I've ever seen.
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Shafiq Ashraf
Apr 08, 2017 06:57pm
@Sab se pehle pakistan Hasan Ali was in the team
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Malik Naveed
Apr 08, 2017 06:59pm
@Ashton WI top players were not selected that is why they are playing in IPL,for national duty players are released.
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Shafiq Ashraf
Apr 08, 2017 07:04pm
@Anuj I'm a Pak fan, trust me nobody thinks they're the best bowling unit, those days are long gone.
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Malik Naveed
Apr 08, 2017 07:10pm
Agreed,bowlers did not bowl well,idk what happened to Amir and I don't want to talk about Wahab,I have not seen him containing the batsmen,I hope just before retirement he might learn. Amir ,you should learn to read the batsmen especially when they start slogging. Moreover,pakistani batsmen should learn to rotate the strike,too many dot balls drop the run rate,finally,Malik got out when 17 balls were still to be bowled,Sarfraz and Imad should have played big hits to score some good runs in the end ,they could have easily crossed 330 mark if they had played big hits, whst was the point to save wickets.If you can't play big hits at this stage,you should quit and new players who can play like Jason and Nurse should be hunted for the Pak team.
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Malik Naveed
Apr 08, 2017 07:15pm
@Aamir Jaleel Khan I already know ,soon people will be after Sarfraz,I always consider him an average player.People advocated him to be a captain of the team,now tolerate him till the further debacle of the team. He and Imad couldn't hit big shots,they strike rate should have been over 225 at that stage till end of the inning.
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Malik Naveed
Apr 08, 2017 07:19pm
Our fast bowlers ,I am not talking about Wahab as he is a show piece,I don't know why they pick him up again and again,Amir and Hassan etc why they can't yorkers low full tosses as Imran,Waqar,and Wasim used to do in the slog overs.They used to change pace,line and length after reading the batsmen,why they can't ??
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pakistan
Apr 08, 2017 07:28pm
Sarfraz should come on number 3 and Shoaib Malik number 4. Very slow batting from Shezad, Babar and Hafeez. Ruman Raees should be given chamce, Whahab Riaz has a big purchee, 9 overs 69 runs , very bad for fast bowler against ordinary batting line up
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pakistan
Apr 08, 2017 07:34pm
@Shazad Hafeez strike rate was 95, your analysis not based on fact http://www.espncricinfo.com/west-indies-v-pakistan-2017/engine/match/1077949.html Sarfraz had a best SR (153) , Malik 139 SR with very good inning Rest just play for the spot in the team
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pakistan
Apr 08, 2017 07:36pm
Babar Azam cannot score single boundary in his 21 balls inning. Pakistan position was good, no pressure at that stage, yes we do play slow in middle order. Even openers strike rate was low.
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Talha
Apr 08, 2017 07:40pm
@Malik Naveed One reason why I think our fast bowlers are not doing well is because our bowling coach is Azhar Mahmood. Azhar was a decent all rounder but never had those specialist bowing abilities. I still remember that under Aqib Javed's stint as a bowling coach Umar Gul grew as a player and he learnt reverse and bowling yorkers. Muhammad Amir before his ban was guided by Waqar Younis. People like Waqar bowled yorkers so they can better coach death bowling to Amir and Hassan but Azhar never was a death bowler and I hardly remember Azhar bowling yorkers so he just can't teach that.
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J. Gamble
Apr 08, 2017 07:54pm
@Iqbal HADI ZAIDI -300+ runs is not a bad score in an ODI. It was the poor bowling that made the difference. If you want our Cricketers to play gilli -danda, you will have to become their captain. We won't be able to have any other person to lead the gilli-danda team. Good luck.
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Mnkhan
Apr 08, 2017 07:58pm
Agree with majority of comments except those fickle fans calling for sarfaraz to be sacked after one loss. 308 was below par on this batting paradise. Nothing to admire about shahzad, akmal and hafeez mustering strike rate of less than 100 which is a crime against club level bowling on a flat track There is only place for senior player; either hafeez, malik or akmal and i would prefer malik. I dont understand how ahmed shahzad is an upgrade on azhar ali. I am not a big fan of azhar but as a player, he gives his best, goes out of his comfort zone and he is a handy part timer
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Mnkhan
Apr 08, 2017 07:59pm
Unfortunaterly apart from sharjeel we do not have any explosive 50 over players; have seen fakhar zaman but he is just like owais zia , an agricultural slogger. I also agree with comnents about imad attitude. Despite an educated person, fame has quickly gone into his head and this is showing up in his game; he should be reminded that we have nawaz, asghar and young ahsan who are equally good if not better bowlers and nawaz is a much better batsman Amir and riaz should be dumped back in domestic. While i have no doubt that riaz tries his best unlike amir who is a selfish cheat and conserve his energy to proling his career Its wrong to criticise hasan ali. He is one of the best finds from recent turmoil; just 1 or 2 bad matches should not decide his future Ruman raees, abbas, junaid khan should be given chance in place of amir and riaz.
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Mnkhan
Apr 08, 2017 07:59pm
If PSL was the criteria for selecting kami how come the best bowler of karachi kings, suhail was not even included for T20s. He may not have stamina for 5 day matches but he is one of the smartest and effective bowler in 50 overs and t20 plus he is a mighty good hitter My playing XI Fakhar zaman (only becos no other hitters) Azhar ali/khurram manzoor Babar azam Sarfaraz Malik Nawaz Shadab Hasan Suhail Junaid Ruman
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Talha
Apr 08, 2017 08:00pm
@Ramana Adivishnu The problem of our players utility declining over time is complex. Most players make the team on pure talent and no focus on technique or know how of their games. Their talent is raw, never seen before and jaw dropping which excites the entire Pakistani nation, the excitement and hype also being boosted by media. Players become stars after a couple of brilliant series. Because they're mostly illiterate the reaction of these players to all the hype turns in arrogance where they think they have achieved it all and feel like legends. They don't realize that opposition teams would figure their talents soon. They don't realize that talent would only take them so far. What would make them persistently do good is a great fitness, constant understanding of opposition players and constant adjustments and upgrades in their on games and skill level. Once they realize this, their egos are so hurt that they don't take the game seriously and rely on politics to stick in the team.
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J. Gamble
Apr 08, 2017 08:07pm
@Shazad -Your comments are well-taken.
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J. Gamble
Apr 08, 2017 08:20pm
@cw -IT IS ADVISABLE NOT TO WATCH ANY MATCH, SO THAT PAKISTAN CAN WIN.
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Wasi
Apr 08, 2017 09:05pm
@J. Gamble Pakistan needs world class batsmen to meet the modern day cricket standard against top teams by scoring 350+ on a batting wicket. Scoring just 300 is not enough to defend like many are saying. It's no longer a challenge to chase 300+ at ease. Score bigger if Pakistan wants to win as Pakistan played selfishly yesterday to get to 308 and thinking that is enough. That is totally unacceptable total today. A decade ago, it would be challenging to chase 300+ but now batsmen play aggressively and fearlessly at a higher SR at 100+ in ODI to score 350-400+ against west indies and other teams.
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Desi
Apr 08, 2017 11:45pm
Not enough runs scored on a batting friendly pitch. Hafeez and Shahzad played too many for balls and are mainly responsible for this defeat. But the worst part is that they will be playing in the remaining ODIs since they managed to score runs. Hafeez should be batting at number 6 or 7 instead of 3. Shahzad appears to be scared of balls, the way he plays. I hope the team fixes its issues before the next game, otherwise they will visit Bangladesh to play the qualifiers for the World Cup and they way they are playing right now, beating Afghanistan will be an uphill task.
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Farooq Jawed
Apr 09, 2017 12:26am
Hafeez is not a team player; he was the cause of Babar Azam's demise. If he can bat like, he did in later part of the innings, then why didn't he? He must know that when there are so many dot balls that are being played, will add pressure on his partner and Babar is a young man who was the victim of unnecessary pressure brought on by slow batting of Hafeez.
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Aamir Jaleel Khan
Apr 09, 2017 01:56am
@Malik Naveed Imad can hit but he needs to learn how and where. If he can learn how to spin a bit and perform with the bat he could be a good captain.
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GReAT
Apr 09, 2017 03:22am
Well done West indies B team!
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Shazad
Apr 09, 2017 04:53am
@pakistan @Shazad Hafeez strike rate was 95, your analysis not based on fact You are right, but try to understand what I wrote. Hafeez started his inning very slow (made 29 in first 50 balls and started hitting after reaching 40). Wicket at Guyana was batsmen friendly and Pakistan needed to score over 350 runs if not more. Today's ODI is not played like 10 years ago. Today, team start hitting from first over. ODI wickets are made to score. If any player plays like test cricket than he can score slowly, but team loses. Hafeez (and Shahzad) was playing like test cricket. No one can say when a batsman is going to get out. Hafeez career averages 32 with SR 75. Hafeez 29 in 50 balls was pathetic and caused run rate to plummet. If Hafeez had got out early consuming lot of balls scoring 40 odd runs, than it was lucky if Pakistan had reached 250. In most ODI matches, Hafeez slow inning would be enough for team to lose. Career SR tells a lot.
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mai pagal
Apr 09, 2017 05:04am
and india dont want to play pakistan because they are afraid of world's best bowling attack .
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Dr. Vinay Kumar
Apr 09, 2017 05:31am
First of all, let me say that the comments on Cricket in Dawn are very high quality, and I really enjoy reading them. Pakistani readers of Dawn who comment here seem to have a good reading of the game, and are able to make their points better than most. Kudos. I have been a fan of Pak Cricket for decades now. While all the comments are spot on, I think the bigger picture is simply this: Pak Cricket is dying. What we are seeing is the death throes of a once great team. More concretely, Pak is playing ODIs the way the world used to about 20 years ago. A lot has since changed. There was a time when Pak batsmen were famous for slow starts (lot of dead bats) in the first 40 balls faced, only to accelerate later. In many of Pak's famous wins, Imran and Miandad did that. But today the game has changed. Hafeez came in, and scored at just over 50 rate in his first 50 balls. Today that is not excusable. Pak does not have 6 good ODI batsmen, and no amnt of slicing and dicing can chng
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Dr. Vinay Kumar
Apr 09, 2017 05:36am
(contd) As for the bowling---not really sure why Junaid Khan is not there. He seems to be dropped frequently though he gives a good account of himself when given a chance. Also, I don't think 3 seamers was a good plan against WI (or in general on such pitches). Pakistan surely can find more decent spinners. As for individuals: Imad seems to have a poor attitude. Many are carrying extra weight (Imad included). Sarfraz would be quicker behind the stumps himself if he lost 10lbs. The bowling is B right now, but can be A- with more stable mix (Wahab seems not to be improving, and it may be prudent to let him go) and a better coach like Aaquib or Waqar or Wasim. It is not a world beating attack, but it doesn't need to be this poor either. Fielding still needs lot of improvement, and Pak is probably the worst fielding unit around on average. Back to big picture: if Pak continue to play this way, fans will lose interest, and the game will die. I can see this in my time itself (
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AXH
Apr 09, 2017 07:31am
@Rahul - "There was no Chris Gayle, Darren Bravo, Darren Sammy, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russel playing the T20's." You missed the point. Gayle, Sammy or Bravo were not selected by the WI board because of their own internal rift. How can they be considered as players who could not play because of IPL?
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Divakar
Apr 09, 2017 11:43am
@mai pagal :Nice Sunday joke.
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Divakar
Apr 09, 2017 11:50am
@Abdul Rehman :Whenever your team loses, it is conspiration, right??
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Divakar
Apr 09, 2017 11:53am
@Anuj : Their best bowlers , Imran, Akram, Waqar are not playing in this series
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