5-0 loss against Australia 'incredibly hard', says Arthur
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Pakistan's cricket coach Micky Arthur said on Tuesday that the 5-0 loss against Australia was "incredibly hard", but accounted the poor performance to the lack of key players in the squad.
“We hate losing as a team — it’s not part of our vocabulary. Losing 5-0 was incredibly hard. We didn’t have our best team against Australia,” Arthur said while addressing a press conference in Lahore
He added that no compromises will be made on players' fitness with the World Cup right around the corner. “There will be no compromise on players’ fitness. We will conduct fitness tests on April 14. We will [then] sit down with the selection committee and make decisions about the World Cup squad.”
Arthur said that he and the management were sure about their squad picks for the World Cup and the strategy they would be using to train for the mega event.
Going back to Pakistan's dismal performance against the team from down under Arthur said, "The series against Australia was disappointing — but there were positive takeaways. We gave opportunity to new talent in order to test them."
He said that five centuries in the series and Hasnain's debut were the a major positive outcome from the games played against Australia.
Arthur further said that Sarfaraz is the management's first pick as a wicket keeper and new-comer Asif Ali will be focusing on taking the sixth spot i the batting lineup.
"We need to give him confidence," Arthur said.
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Comments (68) Closed
Apr 02, 2019 02:29pm
Pakistan a very weak cricket team.
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Apr 02, 2019 02:33pm
What else can he say to stay afloat, prove that he is still in-charge, make sure he is not fired by his employers, calm down the people, deflect the wrath of public against him, get counted and remain in the media limelight?
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Apr 02, 2019 02:35pm
Please leave now Mr. Arthur. . How many medals do you want to your gallery. .?
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Apr 02, 2019 02:44pm
One can only laugh on the statement
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Apr 02, 2019 03:01pm
Congratulations on achieving your goal, you have completely destroyed the team. Anyone, who has even little cricket sense would have not rested all the main players and broken the confidence of new players making their debut.
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Apr 02, 2019 03:01pm
Rubbish, the coach should be fired. When are we going to stop wasting our meager foreign exchange on foreign coaches.
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Apr 02, 2019 03:02pm
We need more IPL news.
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Apr 02, 2019 03:05pm
Dear Mickey
I feel for you because there are couple of players who have let you down but one in particular namely Umar Akmal who you need to dislodge because He is NOT serious about the game but just likes partying. Ditch him.
Wish you well for the world cup and am sure a good selection will turn out trumps.
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Apr 02, 2019 03:19pm
If the idea was to test new players than why were Akmal and Malick included in the squad?
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Apr 02, 2019 03:46pm
This guy , seriously! Imran Khan , are you sleeping or what. Fire this guy and the batting coach and the Bowling coach. We need our own Pakistan born and played cricketer to be our coach. By the way not like a Waqar younis kind of. More like mohsin khan
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Apr 02, 2019 03:46pm
Arthur not doing justice to immense talent of Pakistan.
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Apr 02, 2019 03:50pm
The best part about pakistan cricket is that they remain in a pilot phase all the time...and the final testing activity is done right before the major event so that the final 16 dont get a chance to gel before the event....And to top it up....nobody in the board takes ownership of the dismal performance
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Apr 02, 2019 03:51pm
The weakest got drubbed..nothing unusual
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Apr 02, 2019 03:52pm
Pakistan has the capability to go and win the world cup. This series between B Teams do not define anything.
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Apr 02, 2019 03:55pm
"We gave opportunity to new talent in order to test them".... like Shoib Malik and Umar Akmal?
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Apr 02, 2019 04:06pm
I don’t understand the backing of some players by coach and Selectors. Likes of Shan Masood. Even Rizwan has game at least 10 years back suited to this format. He has very limited shots and would be very vulnerable able against away series especially. They should have rather tried Umar Siddiq as a Wkeeper batsman. Amir again has been very poor. Yasir is proven only test player than why you keep trying him this format. It was a mess up selection. Umar Akmal is only good in t20 format.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:10pm
Selection and head coach cant select they need professional help.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:25pm
Pakistan lost the matches with such close margins because we did not have any hard hitting batsman. Yes, our batsmen scored centuries but they did not really rise to the occasion when needed.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:26pm
@Fahim Khan, Should they have fielded an uncapped team?
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Apr 02, 2019 04:27pm
Not having so called key players in the team is wonderful strategy. If the team wins, it won even without the key players. If lost, its because the team is relatively new and key players are not in the team.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:29pm
Wonder what excuse he will come up with after the World Cup.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:31pm
This was very smart from PCB and Arthur and a manufactured excuse. If Pakistan had lost with the stalwarts 5-0 or 4-1, there would be inconvenient questions asked about the world cup selections. So, keep trying new talents with a top team like Australia and harp on the lucky bright spots.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:41pm
Australia also didn't had their best team.
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Apr 02, 2019 04:41pm
For which team in the world losing 5-0 is not hard??
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Apr 02, 2019 05:05pm
Arthur says, "We didn’t have our best team against Australia". Also the Australians did not have their full team.
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Apr 02, 2019 05:45pm
@Pasha,
Losing by 8 wickets is not a small margin.
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Apr 02, 2019 05:48pm
It is hard for me to understand why he continue to be the head coach despite such a poor performance?
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Apr 02, 2019 05:49pm
Sethi Sb please come back!
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Apr 02, 2019 05:53pm
That’s what happens when home country is not really home.
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Apr 02, 2019 05:53pm
The core issue is with Inzimam..,As long as he is there one cannot see a better Team Pakistan..
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Apr 02, 2019 05:54pm
Congratulations Pakistan!!!
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Apr 02, 2019 06:08pm
Even without dropping any key players the end result would have been same, at least you have an excuse now. Fact is you in league with inzimam has created rifts in team and result is everybody to see. If I would have my say, I will sack you and inzimam and sent you together to coach and select a under 13 cricket team, you both lack sincerity and acumen.
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Apr 02, 2019 06:21pm
They were just having fun and passing their time. No game plan and any remorse on the final result of the series. It's a real shame that coach is just making excuses, should also understand that Australia were also playing their under strength team due to injuries.
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Apr 02, 2019 06:31pm
Very good step taken by Micky;inzy and co.
We needed to give rest to our batsmen and bowlers ..sarfaraz;Babar azam;Hassan Ali; Shaheen Afridi.
No point of palyi g them in I tense heat and useless pitches of UAE.
We needed to give New comers and some older players a chance for world cup squad
We got Harris Sohail ; hasnain Khan; shinwari and new openers in the form of abid ali and other left hander
Umat ukmal ; Yasir shah and Junaid Khan did disappoint though!!amir needs to be seen again coz he is altogether a different class in English conditions
I m very hopeful of the prospects.so with this thing sorted out I think our world cup squad is ready.Openers we have to see again
Pak team just need now to focus on winning from now on
So that they peak at the right time which is world cup
I think we have enough talent to get into semis in this world cup
I think world
Anyways
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Apr 02, 2019 06:40pm
Agreed, the new players did quite well. Best of luck with the World cup!
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Apr 02, 2019 06:40pm
Lack of discipline among players is the main reason.
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Apr 02, 2019 06:47pm
Pakistan Cricket Team: Each game they practice for the upcoming match!
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Apr 02, 2019 06:58pm
With subpar bowling and batting lineups, what else can you expect. Is there a single bowler or batsman in Pakistan that ranks in the top 10 in his category? Pakistan will be lucky to make it to the semifinals.
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Apr 02, 2019 07:05pm
How long you will take to find a balance team?World cup knocking at the door and you still far away of selecting your best eleven!
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Apr 02, 2019 07:05pm
Why is it hard? Winning or losing is not important. I believe this his own statement. Pakistan participated and that too during IPL. What else can Pakistanis ask for?
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Apr 02, 2019 07:07pm
@Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmaod, He could have said that Australia winning is s a "fluke". In fact all five victories were "fluke victories". Only the "green shirts" from the "Land of the Pure" win on merit, rest all win by fluke. Afghanistan is saying to Pakistan "join the club".and come to the "clubhouse".
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Apr 02, 2019 07:15pm
Where is general gafoor tweet congratulating usman khwaja for 5-0 win for his team?
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Apr 02, 2019 07:19pm
Win or lose, everyone gets paid...
Gordon D. Walker
Canada
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Apr 02, 2019 07:30pm
If you have your best team against Australia .result would be same.imam ul haq doesnot justify for pakistani team he needs further cricket for groom himself on domestic level.captain sarfaraz performance very pathathic,dont need to play worldcup.alternative Rizwan better than him.shohaib malik petformance is also worst.not need to select to worldcup team.
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Apr 02, 2019 07:37pm
Mickey says “We hate losing as a team — it’s not part of our vocabulary. Losing 5-0 was incredibly hard. We didn’t have our best team against Australia".
A sign of a good coach is to admit defeat and not making excuses. Nobody asked you to rest key players against Australia. Australia played better and whitewashed pakistan period. PCB needs to hold chief selector/coaches/captain accountable for whitewash. In fact, chief selector/coaches incentives should be based on win/loss as an important variable. My understanding is that pakistan have played a total of 20 ODI with strong teams (India, Australia, New Zealand, England and South Africa) since the 2017 CT. Pakistan have lost 17 out of the 20 ODIs. Pakistan have lost 85% of the matches. What does the chief selector/coaches/captains have to say about that? At least the interim captain (Emad Wasm) admitted after the 5th ODI defeat that pakistan needs to learn how to play ODI cricket. Painful but true.
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Apr 02, 2019 07:38pm
Nobody seems to be talking about the fact that we were let down by our bowlers and that was a major reason for the 5-0 whitewash. Apart from Hassan Ali and Shadab Khan, all the front line bowlers were played and the absence of these two should not have made such a crucial difference. In five matches, the bowlers could only muster a total of 19 wickets and this tells the story of the series. On the other hand, albeit surprisingly, the batters performed fairly well and notched up five centuries between them. Also, except for the 4th ODI where the batters failed badly, the scores were pretty decent in the remaining four games. Had the bowlers done their job, I don't think the results would have been as lopsided as the scorelines suggest.
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Apr 02, 2019 07:56pm
Mr Arthur has been an abject failure both as a coach as well as a motivator. Time for domestic coach who can inspire and take the team back to it's Glory days.
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Apr 02, 2019 08:02pm
But Australia was also not fielding a full strength team. Image if Steve smith, Warner, Star and Hazzelwood were playing. Sarfraz has been in poor form and he should have played as a batsman in this tournament and let Rizwan keep wickets.
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Apr 02, 2019 08:02pm
@Jawad, , selection is not his domain.how many coach you will change.the fault lies some where else.
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Apr 02, 2019 08:22pm
The day team was announced, many including me have predicated a 5-0 whitewash. With current setup, an early exit from WC is a sure bet.
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Apr 02, 2019 08:42pm
@Jor Hoka, what's IPL?
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Apr 02, 2019 10:04pm
We hate losing as a team — it’s not part of our vocabulary. ""
Which dictionary do you use??
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Apr 02, 2019 10:20pm
Players should understand that they should play for the pakistani team and not play with it. Confidence building and high spirits is what the pakistan team requires along with professional strategic tips" a game planner or a strategist can very much help ". We should have batting depth till the last man. Bowling needs the trick of the art, result producing feild placing according to the bowling. Pakistan seemed very much away from these requirements. We have lots of potential if guided well we can again bring back the lost reputation. Pakistan zindabad.
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Apr 02, 2019 10:21pm
@Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmaod, wasnt this the best team that you kept harping?
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Apr 02, 2019 10:24pm
Let's see how well full strength Pakistani team does against England in upcoming 5 ODI series before world cup. It's hard to believe that Pakistan best fast bowling all rounder is Faheem Ashraf I am pretty sure there are more players but not getting opportunities. Pakistan need solid hard hitters in lower order who can add quick 50 to 60 runs even more when needed as of right now I don't see Faheem, Shadab and Imad can do this in front of quality bowling attack.
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Apr 02, 2019 10:25pm
Fire coach and selector
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Apr 02, 2019 10:31pm
@M. Emad, you are a genius!
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Apr 02, 2019 11:01pm
@Sammy, so what "new talent" means? There was a lot of new talent like Umer Khan and fast bowler from Lahore team.
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Apr 02, 2019 11:25pm
I'm afraid Sarfraz no longer merits a place on the ODI squad. Neither on 'wicket keeping' grounds or 'batting' grounds. Please look at the stats.... Rizwan's performance behind the stumps and on the crease warrants his inclusion on the squad as the alternative. Captaincy experience cannot be a sole criteria for inclusion if your not performing as a cricketer.
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Apr 03, 2019 12:17am
Can we please move past Umer Akmal? He had chance to finish some games and yet he failed again. What is the point of giving him so many chances?
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Apr 03, 2019 01:02am
@Feroz, Im pretty sure he has already written down the excuse somewhere in his private notebook :)
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Apr 03, 2019 03:10am
Actually a smart move to lull the opposition into a sense of complacency before the big event
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Apr 03, 2019 06:11am
Time has come for coach MA and Selector Inzi to render their resignation!
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Apr 03, 2019 06:31am
This baldy should go. Hes been more of a pain then any kind of relief to this team. Real piece of art work.
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Apr 03, 2019 08:07am
this man does not give me good vibes...all talk, no substance. 2nd coming of jose moriniho
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Apr 03, 2019 08:55am
Its time to replace arthur with shahid afridi..booom boom
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Apr 03, 2019 10:46am
Dear Mickey
please select players on merit do not bow to pressure where people are put forward due to connections. Get a player that is capable of hitting sixes. Get rid of one or two old school players who are incapable of scoring more than 30. Do not pick anyone with a poor strike rate who is trying to secure his place thus putting pressure on other batsman. You are a great coach a few of these changes will ensure Pakistan wins the world cup.inshaAllah
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Apr 03, 2019 01:06pm
Sir
Micky Arthur messed up Karachi Kings franchise team in all the PSL format despite having a strong squad and he is doing the same with Pakistan cricket team by ignoring the top domestic batsmen and bowlers in their specialist format.
Pakistan has already lost the world cup 2019 even before playing!!!
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