43
LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan has said that the national selection committee will look into head coach Mickey Arthur’s request for sending fast bowler Rahat Ali to the West Indies for the upcoming Test series.
“Yes, Mr Arthur has sent for Rahat and the final decision will be taken by the national selection committee soon,” maintained the PCB chief who also showed concern about the performance of pacers in the ongoing West Indies tour.
Shaharyar said that the bowling department should be strong as it was vital for winning matches.
Talking to media after distributing prizes among the finalist teams of the Fatima Jinnah Women Cricket Championships at the Gaddafi Stadium here on Friday, Shaharyar said Pakistan had a great chance to win the three-Test series against the West Indies as home team were missing top players.
Talking about the future Test captain, Shaharyar said the Board would have to appoint a new captain very soon since the incumbent skipper Misbah-ul-Haq has announced to retire after the West Indies tour.
“When Misbah retires after the series against the West Indies we have to appoint a new captain which could be Sarfraz Ahmed as he is the vice-captain of the Test team.
“But we will see every aspect before taking a final decision in this regard,” remarked the chairman.
Appreciating experienced campaigner Younis Khan’s career, the PCB chief said his services were indeed meritorious but he could not have been named captain since PCB is keen to appoint a younger skipper to take the team forward.
“We have great respect for Younis, but captaincy is totally a separate issue,” commented the PCB chief. “Younis is going to retire after the West Indies tour while the Board has to look at the future.”
Talking about the women’s final, Shaharyar said it was heartening that talented female players were coming to the fore.
“Though ZTBL was certain to play the final, it was the Higher Education Commission (HEC) team which made it which is a good sign considering the fact that the team comprises young players,” said Shaharyar.
“The HEC defeated a strong team of the State Bank of Pakistan to qualify for the final which was great to see,” he added.
“A training camp was being held in Abbottabad to select squad to compete in the ICC Women’s Champions Trophy scheduled to be held in England in July this year,” disclosed the PCB chief.
Answering a question, he confirmed that Sabeeh Azhar has been appointed as coach of the women’s team in place of Kabeer Khan.
Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2017
Read more
On DawnNews
Comments (43) Closed
Apr 15, 2017 08:48am
I don't know why the question of awarding Younis Khan the captaincy came up at all. He is retiring with Misbah anyways.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 08:54am
Will Sarfraz be able to handle all the responsibilities? I think it would be too much on his plate. It is my opinion to have a separate Captain to lead the test side.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 09:02am
@J. Gamble i dont know them or what this means.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 09:13am
@backtomywahala -Well, what I meant that he is already captain of ODI and T-20 teams. And he must focus his energy on these games. By appointing him captain of test team would divide his attention and energy. For example, England has a separate captain for their test team.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 09:16am
Make Sarfaraz the captain in all formats and then don't bug him at all for the next 3 years. Let me learn from experience and then see how he settles in the next 3 years. Replace him only if he is below average. But if he is average or above, then keep him.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 10:08am
Azhar Ali should be awarded as Test Captain , because its too much burden for Sarfraz to captain all across formats . Let him concentrate on shorter formats. Sarfraz individual performance will also get impact with this
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 10:08am
Any appointments by this PCB and Team s doomed.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 10:10am
We need a person of strong will and character and Immad Wasim has both.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 10:20am
@JKhan -What do you by any appointment by PCB.......
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 12:40pm
well do we have another choice other than Sarfraz? Azhar already stepped down from captaincy and the way he was treated, I doubt he will be too keen on being next test skipper. Asad Shafiq and Yasir shah don't have the personalities and these three are out permanent players along with Misbah, YK and Sarfraz.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 12:45pm
@Waseem Sarwar Rashid Latif has suggested to make Asad Shafiq the captain. Asad Shafiq can be considered as a Test Captain.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 12:53pm
@Husain.... Rumor is that Younis Khan asked for the captaincy after Misbah decided to quit , when he was told he wouldn't be awarded the captaincy , he decided to quit. Team player ( senior player mentality ) can't play under any junior captain, I guess that is beneath him :
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 01:24pm
I wouldn't advise that. I think PCB should keep Azhar as a test captain. Sarfaraz should be given a year or two in limited over cricket before considering him for test. His temperament during recent series wasn't great. He lacked to thought to fully utilise the bowling resources too in few games.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 01:43pm
Sarfraz would be a good choice. Sarfraz took over ODI and T20I, when Pakistan was languishing at No. 8 in ODI and No. 7 in T20I. Let see the situation in these two format:
Part 1 (ODI): Shoaib Malik win 24, lost 12. W:L ratio 2:1. ...Followed by Misbah win 45, lost 39. W: L ratio 1.15:1. ... Followed by Afridi win 19, lost 18. W:L ratio 1:1.05. ... Followed by Azhar win 12, lost 16. W:L ratio 0.75:1. .. This is how Pakistan team deteriorated under following captaincy after Malik. So, one cannot say that team was bad as Sarfraz started with win 3, lost 1. W:L ratio 3:1.
Distinction of Misbah is that, he introduced tuk-tuk batting in team, such that in 162 ODIs he played as batsman, he could not score a single century. His tuk-tuk attitude as captain made other players (in test, ODI and T20I) to play slow too (obviously, tuk-tuk means not getting out early). Misbah could not have said anything to tuk-tuk batsmen, as Misbah was master of tuk-tuk himself. Thus team suffered.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 02:10pm
Part 2 (T20I): Hafeez won 17, lost 11. W:L rati0 1.55:1 ... followed by Afridi (who was failure as T20I captain in past too) won 19, lost 23. W:L ratio 0.83:1. ... Now, we have Sarfraz who won 7, lost 1. Though ratio is healthy 7:1 (4 wins outside UAE), still it is too early and we have to wait to see his result. But his start is sterling. He captained in 1 T20I against England in England and won. He captained 3 T20I against WI in UAE and won all. He captained 4 T20I against WI in WI and won 3.
(Test): Under Misbah, Pakistan rarely visited top rank countries, and mostly played in UAE (with Pakistani made pitches in front of mostly home crowd). Anyhow, even then Misbah win to lose ratio is not good. He won 24, lost 18 thus have W:L ratio 4:3. Compare with Cap record better than Misbah:
(Min 15 Test as Cap): Miandad (14 W, 6 L), Mushtaq (8 W, 4 L), Imran (14 W, 8 L), Akram (12 W, 8 L), Waqar (10 W, 7 L).
(Less than 15 test as Cap) : Latif (4 W, 1 L), Malik (7 W, 3 L), Moin (4:2) .
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 03:01pm
yes safi as captain is the best thing that can happen to pakistan cricket its simple solution to alot of problems, look when allen border was captain of aus odi side he got steve waugh in the test side, everyone said he wont do well, however steve became the top aussie test player and captain later on so with safi already odi and t20 captain we already saw shadab making it to odi team backed by captain safi as he knew shadab is top bowler , safi is innovative and a good batsman that means he is going to give his 100% and in future we are going to see some great games in all three formats with stars like aamir and wahab performing due to pressure of others performing, i see talat making it to all three formats i also want to see anwar back in the side with fakhar and fawad alam may be in test, i also enjoyed watchin 21 years old saud batting in english conditions so i would like these youngsters performing and fighting, if we get 23 players squad for 3 formats that's awesome
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 03:37pm
@JKhan he has to b in the team first
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 03:43pm
Learning on the job is never a good idea. During the last ODI vs. WIs, captain-cum keeper of the wicket forgot his wicket keeping role twice where possible run outs were strong possibilities. He got carried away with his captain hat instead in the heat of the moment. Do the powers to be monitor such serious lapses?
It is better to have 3 separate teams, with their own captains since skill set required are clearly different for each. Fielding being critical for the game, habitual poor performers in this department are better left out.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 03:49pm
@J. Gamble: It means present PCB is the 'Master of Dooms' and nothing else.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 04:05pm
@Shahid: 'Fielding being critical for the game, habitual poor performers in this department are better left out.'
You mean there is no place for people like Akmal brothers, shoaib, Shahzad, hafeez, Azhar, younis and Misbah ... some are habitual poor performers on field, and some are too old to field. Right?
Actually, in my opinion, Sarfraz would be good captain for all 3 formats, and that is not because of like-dislike, but because of merit. Till now, Sarfraz's ODI and T20I performance as Captain is better than any past Captains, though it is just a start. Nevertheless, when leading the team, Sarfraz is thousands of time better than Afridi (too self-centred), Misbah (to docile) or Azhar (incapable).
Coming to run out chance, actually it was not even chance. Some commentators, like Ramiz, who was himself a big Parchi player with pathetic performance (Test Ave 32, with 2 century in
94 innings) were making stupid comments and those who never played cricket are buying what he says.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 04:20pm
@Husain Younis could have been one of the great captains, a real thinker. To be fair he did win a world cup though. If the PCB has an ounce of sense they would ask him to delay retirement. Sarfraz is not a test captain, not yet. This is too much responsibility on him. His batting will suffer.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 04:30pm
I'd disagree with his appointment. He has not matured enough yet and is extremely hyper on the field. Don't get me wrong-as a player he is ok.
Cricket in Pakistan is sliding backwards.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 05:16pm
@jUNAID: Cricket is game of figures. Performance shows and figures do not lie.
You and some recommending Younis without thinking about performance, so here it is:
Test: Younis led in 9 tests. Won 1, lost 3, drew 5. In the end, he became hyper and left.
ODIs: Younis led in 21 matches. Won 8, lost 13. (W/L ratio: 38 %). Of those who led in more than 10 ODIs, only Ramaiz Raja record is worse than Younis. Ramaiz led in 22 matches, won 7, lost 13, tied 2. Thus W/L ratio is 35%.
Actually, 17 players led Pakistan in more than 10 ODIs. Amongst them, Ramaiz record is worst followed by Younis. Even Azhar record is better than Younis (Azhar shares 3rd worst record with Aamer Sohail... both have W/L ration of 42.85).
So, on what basis you want to recommend Younis as Captain, just because of seniority? Pakistan was ranking 6th but since NZ lost series to SA loosing points, Pakistan got promoted to number 5th. Now, with Younis as captain, do you want Pakistan to go down to rank 10th?
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 05:49pm
Sarfraz clearly shows frustrations on his players on the field when things are not going his way. Soon there could be revolt against him. That is the how the Pakistani dressing room (particularly seniors) react and gives rise to groping.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 06:31pm
@Shakeel Ahmed: We should understand that Captain can only show frustration towards those players who are not performing. Those who perform, they deserve respect and appreciation from Captain, other players as well as fans. Sarfraz performed and that is why he gets respect and appreciation. Babar Azam, Sharjeel, Shadab, K-Latif, Imad, Yasir Shah and few others performed, hence gets respect and appreciation from all sides.
Only baggage players surviving on the strength of Parchi and nepotism, do not only give pathetic performance but revolt too, and such players should be sacked, giving way to other players who deserve to be in team on performance but are left behind due to like-dislike, nepotism, corruption, incompetency of selectors, and connections of Parchi players.
Pakistan cannot afford to get dictated and lose (or change) good Captain because some pathetic players may revolt, rather, those who revolt should be shown the door.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 06:48pm
Total Incompetence on Misbah's part .. he kept pushing for an incompetent Azhar series after series and now during his own last series we are still in a limbo of next captain.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 08:52pm
Sarfraz is micromanaging the payers and shows lack of temper (not to mention his communication skills). We have other senior players, why not use them. Names of Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, wahab Riaz come to mind.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 10:01pm
He is the best choice for captaincy as long as he is playing all 3 formats. It will be much easier for him and coach to build the team for all formats. I don't like to label cricketers that he is only good for this or that format unless cricketer has his own mind set for specific formats. PCB should give Sarfraz test captaincy and captaincy chapter for next few years.
Recommend
0
Apr 15, 2017 11:00pm
@wsyed You have named 2 players who are not permanent members is the team, while the 3rd one has retired from test cricket .
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 03:42am
Sarfaraz will be a great choice.
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 12:42pm
PCB should have been wise to consider Younis on merits and request him to stay.
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 02:54pm
@JKhan Someone who can also play. His place is still not cemented and with youngsters like Shadab breathing down his throat, please don't even bring up Imad's name.
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 03:05pm
Make Younis Khan captain for couple of series and that way you address two issues. 1 transitioning the captaincy to Sarfraz and PCB have its regards to Younis services. India did with Anil Kumble. Think in terms of Pakistan, not in terms of indviduals
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 05:06pm
@J. Gamble - the management should take a good hard look at the options and not rush into this decision. They can easily destroy Sarfraz by giving him too much to handle.
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 05:10pm
@Sab se pehle pakistan - let him mature please and let him focus on the limited over game. Consider other players who can step in and take the role of test captain.
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 05:49pm
@Love Your Country: let him mature please and let him focus on the limited over game. Consider other players who can step in and take the role of test captain.
Why are you so confused? ... Or is it your tasub, not thinking about Pakistan but your biased wishes?
What Y0u mean by mature? When you say 'other players' what you mean, who are the other players? Players who are immature or incompetent or inexperience? ...
I think Sarfraz is more mature and experience than any players we have playing cricket. His short record as Captain is better than any past Captains.
He is ~30 yrs old. His experience as Captain started when he led Pakistan under 19 in 2005 (12 yrs ago), with very good record. Amongst those who led Pakistan under 19, only Khalid latif is older then Sarfraz. So you want Khalid Latif to lead Pakistan?
How about Misbah, Younis, Afridi, Azhar, etc ... players who never led Pakistan under 19? ... Were they mature in your opinion when they took over captaincy of Pakistan?
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 07:48pm
@Shazad : bulls eye, you are right my friend. Sarfaraz will be fine and he has the charisma to be captain because he demands perfection and performance from the team. That is what has been missing all along from the team and not to say very straight forward and honest person. He has all the qualities we need in a captain and I think he will do just fine. Also, he will bring talented players to the team since he wants to win for his country. We finally got a captain that really wants to perform for his country and we have this missing for long long time.
Recommend
0
Apr 16, 2017 11:24pm
@concerned citizen: Brother, you are right. Sarfraz would be most logical and best choice to lead Pakistan. He has no group, neither his captaincy is result of Parchi. I know that many people with bias mind (full of Tasub) hate to see Sarfraz as Captain or even in team, just like Waqar Younis, who did everything to keep Sarfraz away from playing 11 in world cup.
But then, Pakistan is full of tasubi mind, who do not even care for Pakistan or merit. So, you can expect anything from these lot. For them, merit or country, nothing matters.
Recommend
0
Apr 17, 2017 01:47am
Good choice! But other team mates may not follow him due to his ethnicity
Recommend
0
Apr 17, 2017 04:20am
Another mistake by PCB, Azhar Ali should be the choice.
Recommend
0
Apr 17, 2017 12:36pm
100 % agreed he is the best available choice
Recommend
0
Apr 17, 2017 06:50pm
If Sarfraz is made captain in Tests, he must NOT be the gloveman. We need him at mid-On setting fields, not behind stumps! Captaincy in cricket is totally a different ball-game.
He should only continue as wicketkeeper in T20's... PCB must give find a specialist wicket-keeper for ODI's and Tests.
Recommend
0
Apr 17, 2017 10:46pm
To my point of view ,sarfraz has not ready to take this huge responsibility on his shoulders.He was so confused in the first Odi against west indies and lost the match which Pakistan should win. Younus khan must not retire ,and led the team.when the sarfraz settle in both the formats as a skipper ,then he could retire in a honourable way in which a legend batsman should leave.
Recommend
0
