This is Pakistan's weakest ever team to play in a World Cup: Gavaskar
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Former Indian captain and batting great Sunil Gavaskar has rated Pakistan's current squad as their "weakest ever in World Cups", expressing his disbelief at the decision by Misbah-ul-Haq to go into the crunch match against India with a part-time wicketkeeper.
Defending champion India extended its winning streak over regional rival Pakistan to six matches at the World Cup with a lopsided 76-run victory Sunday at the Adelaide Oval. For Pakistan, it was another major disappointment at the showpiece event for the one-day version of the game.
In an interview with NDTV, Gavaskar, who is now a well-known voice in the commentary box, cited a lack of self-belief and confidence as the major reason for Pakistan not being able to beat India in World Cups.
The first World Cup meeting between the two teams was in 1992 - the last time the tournament was co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand - and India has continued its winning sequence in head-to-head World Cup matches since then.
According to Gavaskar, though, the current squad Pakistan has fielded at World Cups lacks quality and depth.
"This Pakistan side is the weakest ever to have competed at the World Cups. In big matches you should always go with your best players. Virat Kohli being dropped by part-timer wicketkeeper Umar Akmal was the turning point of the match. Pakistan always had a chance when they restricted India to 300 but they seem to lack self-belief when they face India in World Cup matches."
Gavaskar echoed former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq's sentiments, who termed the failure to break the World Cup 'jinx' as a 'mental blockage.'
"I can't find a suitable word to describe what goes wrong when we chase against India, but it's more like a mental blockage of players."
Pakistan take on the West Indies in Christchurch on Saturday and captain Misbah-ul-Haq said it was time to move on from the India defeat.
“We can't think of the India loss anymore,” said Misbah.
“If you just keep brooding over it then it will be really difficult to perform well. So I think we need to win the next game. That's the only way to stay in the tournament.”
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Comments (126) Closed
Feb 17, 2015 03:02pm
Come on you cricket experts. It was just a lost. Dont just put more pressure on this team by saying "weakest ever". Give them some confidence and let them play.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:03pm
Gavaskar is stating the obvious. Pakistan should still win this cup.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:04pm
True Sir ( I am Pakistani)
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Feb 17, 2015 03:04pm
Nothing new.......
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Feb 17, 2015 03:09pm
I think it was done to accommodate Yunus Khan sahab! droppin Sarfaraz and bringing in Akmal who can also keep (like that's true!) so that Yunus is in the playing 11.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:13pm
Mr. Gavaskar is 100% right. As a Pakistani, I can not believe that we couldn't find a decent 11 team from a population of 180 million!. I bet there are 100 or perhaps 1000s of young men who could have done a better job.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:16pm
Gavaskar - One of my favorites. We just have a weak captain and weak management(Najam Sethi). If we change both I challenge that it will be completely a different game and we will prove that we are one of the best team. Sohail Khan's performance in his first ever game in the world cup is the prime example.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:19pm
So rightly said !!
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Feb 17, 2015 03:20pm
Is PCB reading this ?
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Feb 17, 2015 03:21pm
Yes sir, we know that. Been screaming this for the last couple of months.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:30pm
“If you just keep brooding over it then it will be really difficult to perform well:.
"I don't know".
These statements from the Captain Mis-bah give us the true story. the captain feels defeated already and has no plan to recover from it.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:34pm
sir i am an indian. what do you think about indian team? Indian team is also in the same category. we have weakest bowling attack. Wait untill we face south africa and other good team. i can gurantee you, india team will fight to win even a single match now onwards, i am afraid even ireland and west indies will thrash us.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:38pm
Sir,
The little master is 100 percent spot on with this analysis.
Due to nepotism the PCB has fielded the weakest team in this World Cup though there is no shortage of talent in the country.
Selection of Fawad Alam, Anwar Ali, Sami Aslam, Raza Hasan and inclusion of Sarfaraz Ahmed in the playing 11 would have made us competitive.
Nasir Jamshed, Yunus Khan, Bilawal Bhatti have failed miserably, Umar Akmal has dropped catches at crucial times being makeshift keeper and omission of Sarfaraz Ahmed who has scored crucial runs in test series shows that Misbah is a stupid leader
The Inept selection of the team and dour leadership of Misbah Ul Haq has put Pakistan in the league of minnows.
Is it the beginning of "The end" of Pakistan cricket like hockey, squash and snooker???
Thanks
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Feb 17, 2015 03:40pm
Very true. Almost as inexplicable as a part time keeper was the decision not to pick Shoaib Malik who can open the batting, is a decent spinner and has considerable experience in Australia
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Feb 17, 2015 03:40pm
I already commented, that it is the weakest team of Pakistan cricket history.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:42pm
Thank you Mr. Gavaskar for right comment. This is a B grade gold plated team ever fielded. as for your observation about a part time wicket keeper your apprehension is partly correct because Misbah has no power to decide inclusion or disclusion of a player. The on & off button is somewhere else, here I should also the accompanying team management is somewhat helpless. Hum Badsha Loog Hain Langra ko Sprinter & Lulay to bowler Bhi Bana Sakte Hain. Andha wicket keeper Bhi Bansakta Hai
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Feb 17, 2015 03:43pm
Waqar Younus said this and Moen Khan said that....Sethi and Sheryar Khan said Bla Bla Bla
Did any one who had to do with the cricket world cup say PAKISTAN.when will the time come when some one will say Pakistan...Please for God's sake Pakistan Pakistan Pakistan
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Feb 17, 2015 03:50pm
Pakistan cricket team for the past ten years is managed by incompetent individuals. Does not matter who is the chief of PCB, appointed by an incompetent government, the faces around him are the same disgruntled individuals like Moin, Intikab, and bunch of others.
Sarfraz is a better batsman and wicket keeper than Umer Akmal and still Umer is in the team. This favoritism is the main cause of demise of all institutions in Pakistan.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:50pm
This is only happen when playrs and slectores are not chosen on merit even the personals of PCB are appointed by the corrupt Govt, Talent and well deserverd players will never get a chancs to get into the side, corruption every where even in Icc.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:53pm
Thank you Mr. Gavaskar for telling us something that we already know!
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Feb 17, 2015 03:55pm
There are. I believe, many good sports spirited Indians who would like Pakistan to win in a competitive way. After all, Sachin Tendulkar, the little mater, much admired by many Pakistanis, played his first match as a substitute fielder for Pakistan.
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Feb 17, 2015 03:59pm
I disagree, they are far from the weakest, totally wrong but an attempt to ridicule the team, uncalled for!!!
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Feb 17, 2015 03:59pm
There should be a stadium at international border, half Pakistani side and half Indian side to play various games between players of both countries. This will encourage not only games but friendship also.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:01pm
Everything that Gavaskar said is true but one! This Pakistan team is not the weakest one. The bowlers are good (Irfan, Sohail, Yasir, Afridi, Wahab Riaz). Batting is also good (Misbah, Shahzad, Haris Sohail, Afridi, Sohaib, Umar Akmal, Younus and Wahab).
The only problem with Pakistan is they always go under pressure chasing (and specially when playing India). Moreover Misbah's captaincy was poor, he did not set proper field for bowlers - every captain uses his bowlers and fielders knowing the weaknesses of batsman, but Misbah did not. Moreover Younus should never have been sent as an opener and Sarfaraz should have kept wickets.
Its not a bad team at all but what we lack is planning and we need to overcome this pressure phobia.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:01pm
fully agreed to what Gavaskar said.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:02pm
Sir Gavaskar you are spot on. We Pakistanis are in denial to admit that.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:02pm
Politics & corruption are destroying this game.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:08pm
how it can be the weakest? in practice match, they have beaten england ....
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Feb 17, 2015 04:09pm
our team is also not gud sir........don't underestimate thm....pakistan team can do any thng.........
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Feb 17, 2015 04:13pm
Gavaskar is a great supporter of Pakistan team, having rubbed his shoulders with the likes of greats like Zaheer Abbas, Imran and Javed Miandad. What he says is right. I feel Pakistan should not "accommodate" players but should "specialize" in selections. Choosing a part time WK was a plain disaster. And there is no need to come under pressure while playing against India.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:17pm
This same team beat India in India 2-1 recently.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:20pm
weakest ever team no doubt. Thanks to Amir Sohail for eradicating all seniors earlier, then impeccable blunders by immature non professional Najam Sethi type people. Then perfect egoism by Shahryar Khan for having grudge against Ajmal Saeed, and asking him to play domestic to prove himself (the no. 1 in world has to prove to PCB chief). And my worst salute to the one who sent yasir shah to play first ODIs even if Ajmal was getting released in 2 days.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:23pm
I am a Pakistani and I confidently say that Pakistan lost because
our Pakistani team is useless.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:35pm
I agree with Sunil Gavaskar
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Feb 17, 2015 04:37pm
So said Gavaskar the original tuk tuk and very respected commentator now. I once saw him carry his bat through and score a patient half century in an ODI that was like watching paint dry. I don't think there is a doubt about this inexperienced side, but we might still cause a few upsets. It's never boring when Pakistan is playing: be it guessing who'll open the batting/bowling this time, if somehow our best ODI bowler Ajmal made it to the starting 11, when will Akmal drop a catch, or watching Afridi nonchalantly stroll out to bat and wondering if Lala's still going to be there when his commercial is over?
No matter how experienced a side we put up we are the original UNPREDICTABLES, so dismiss us at your own peril Sunny - party to ab shuru huwe hai.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:39pm
@Khalid yeah. Like we cant find a wicketkeeper in 180 million.
India cant find good bowlers in a population of 1.2 billion.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:39pm
I am still waiting for that person who can hit the ball, PCB claim that while dropping Fawad Alam. Please wake me up when you find anyone who can win the match atleast three times in this world cup. After all we know the word "Tuk-ka"
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Feb 17, 2015 04:44pm
I follow cricket,but I don't know anything about the fine nuances or fine details about the game.
If there is ONE thing that stands out about Pakistani cricket,it is the lack of PROFESSIONALISM.Betting scandals,selection scandals,personal life scandals...and much more.
That lack of planning or execution or preparedness extends to many a field in Pakistan..the stories that come out of Pakistan about the judiciary is horrifying.
Pakistan just has to pull itself by boot straps I guess?
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Feb 17, 2015 04:53pm
everyone is extracting the conclusions based on single match...which is not good. I think experts should encourage to do best rather than saying weakest ever. CWC is not over yet.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:54pm
I only Agree with the Point about the Decision of Misbah to go in with a Part time Wicket Keeper the Rest i Cant say is true. The weakest i have seen is the 92 WC squad.
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Feb 17, 2015 04:55pm
@Khalid For ages Pakistan beat India with ease and we all wondered why India couldn't find a decent 11 that is good enough to beat Pakistan from a population of billion. The problem is not with the players but the corrupt board and its filthy officials.
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Feb 17, 2015 05:02pm
I beleive Mr. Gavaskar has 4gotten wat his team is doing since past 3 months in Australia and suddenly after 1 win he has started passing on the judgements...man start giving these un called for sermons to your team for the sunday match and dont worry abt Pakistan..
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Feb 17, 2015 05:05pm
These statements put extra-ordinary pressure on the players. Let the team play its natural game. Who could believe that Pakistan would win the cup in 1992.
So, let us wait and see. The team that plays well on that day, wins.
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Feb 17, 2015 05:06pm
Agree with Sunil G. The selection of the team against India was flawed by the selector Moin , coach and Misbah. Drop Younis Khan and rotate Sarfaraz or Afridi as openers with Shahzad and when Ajmal arrives after the WI loss find a place for him, if Yasir Shah has not settled down.
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Feb 17, 2015 05:09pm
110% agreed. Some players side lined due to suspect bowling actions and the others out of the WC due to injury, whatever left is in front of us.
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Feb 17, 2015 05:16pm
i believe that Misbah is cool captain. he can calm his nerves under extreme pressure. PCB should have to hunt for some more talent like him.
None but him have an impressive stats to be a captain
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Feb 17, 2015 05:37pm
Thank you Gavaskar Sh.
I won the bet because of the above comments.
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Feb 17, 2015 05:44pm
How can it be a mental block when it transcends eras. None of the players who were in the 1992 world cup are playing now so how can they carry the scars? They are making selection errors when they are facing India trying to be too cautious. That is all.
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Feb 17, 2015 05:45pm
Gavaskar is absolutely right. It is the weakest Pakistani team ever like the current indian team.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:01pm
I believe it is big slap on face of Pakistan and at the same time double slap to Pakistan cricket control board .
( reason in short: all politics which even killed cricket )
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Feb 17, 2015 06:02pm
@Khurram pakistan as a Team is weak but as individuals they are strong.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:11pm
I think this team can win the world cup - it is actually stronger than the last two, if only because we don't have Kamran Akmal.
And as Gavaskar has rightly stated, Umar Akmal dropping Kohli cost us the match.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:11pm
@Fiz I don't agree, Pakistan did not use the resources properly, the situation would be different if they played Sarfraz as wicket keeper batsman instead of Akmal as batsman/wicket keeper and Jamshed instead of Younus Khan who was probably taken as a specialiest fielder saving about 4/5 runs for the team (anything is expected from Pakistan tour selectors).
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Feb 17, 2015 06:15pm
What is the point having this prophecy after Pakistan has lost? It could be just the toss that decided the outcome?
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Feb 17, 2015 06:15pm
In the survey 90% people agrees with Gavaskar. Waqar Younus and Misbah lacks wisdom and I don't know what Moin Khan is doing over there when all selection matters are controlled by the PCB chairman.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:17pm
maybe yes but still this pak team is good.it is only the madness to beat India at everything is takin u down.there more to life and this world than India pak rivalry
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Feb 17, 2015 06:27pm
but it's pakistan always they surprise so don't understimate
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Feb 17, 2015 06:33pm
@Ajamal Not the same team.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:38pm
World cup has just started and Pakistani fans and media is all over their team. It's highly unfair. All the analysis can happen after the world cup. At this moment, team Pakistan needs people's support. This team is still not the weakest in the world cup. India played Dravid as keeper for a long time and had good success. One player can't win or lose a game, so just talking about Younis also doesn't make sense. Pakistan must start supporting their team NOW.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:40pm
Sunil is right. Pakistan lacks confidence.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:53pm
You have 4 years from the last World cup to the next one and Pakistan was not able find one decent wicket keeper during all this time. It tool India 6 years to groom Virat because they knew from the start who will be the next captain. Pakistan as usual play politics and corruption game and than at the last minute send in an inept team to the World Stage. To all my friends who are loosing sleep and heart broken, please just enjoy the Pakistan games for entertainment only like watching a movie. They win, movie was good, loose, movie was bad. End of story.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:56pm
As an Indian i would say let us not get carried away. I feel too much is being said too soon. Let us wait till the cup is over and till then hold your fire.
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Feb 17, 2015 07:13pm
Unfortunately Afridi and Yasir Shah together are causing imbalance for the bowling. Pakistan needs to go in most matches against strong spin playing team with 4 pacers (and should have done that against India). Younis needs to be dropped and bring Nasir Jamshed. Umer Akmal is ok with keeping, although he dropped the Virat's catch but Sarfaraz has not been great with keeping as well. All the batsmen need to have clear defined goal, yes they can play their natural game but also look at the team's position. I think, 300 was very gettable score but Pakistan loosing Harris Sohail and then followed by 3 quick wickets was the turning point. Sohaib played a bad shot (only his second ball flashing out side off), Ahmed Shahzad wasted 73 deliveries threw his wicket away. If he is well settledhe needs to carry on till 35-40overs
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Feb 17, 2015 07:19pm
@Indian :Yes..Same applies to Indian team which looks like a club team. I dont have hope for indians crossing QF
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Feb 17, 2015 07:25pm
Sarfraz has also dropped catches, missed stumping and run outs. Ideally we need some like Wasim Bari or at least Rashid Lateef or Saleem Yousuf. Since Moin Khan also used to regularly miss the ball behind stumps followed by SORRY WASIM BHAI, he doesn't find anything wrong with whats happening behind the stumps.
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Feb 17, 2015 07:52pm
It's only the first match. India is not as great either just based on one match. India pace bowling needs better line and length and ability to score in last 10 overs. What if Pakistan beat SA and SA beat India. Even Stevens.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:10pm
This was possibly the only Indo-Pak game that I never felt stressed. The Pak bowling juggernaut which was always threatening looked innocuous. This team is not half the team that Pak has fielded before.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:21pm
@Mahbub - "..Is PCB reading this ?.."
If PCB was literate enough, cricket would not be where it is today in Pakistan.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:23pm
@Viking Star - "..The only problem with Pakistan is they always go under pressure chasing (and specially when playing India)..."
If this was the case then Pakistan would not have 71-52 ODI record against India.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:24pm
Get a foreign (read: Non-Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi) merit-based PCB head and higher management to run PCB as well as a non-Pakistani coaching staff and watch the wheels turn. Oh yes, make sure the staff is below the age of 60.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:26pm
Great Gavaskar tells me something that I already know!
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Feb 17, 2015 08:52pm
Misbah's attitude is the right one. You can't carry the baggage of this defeat into the next few matches. Gavaskar is probably right but Pakistani players would do well to forget what others tell them. That can only hurt their confidence.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:58pm
WE are prejudice by nature and our standards are not consistent. If likes of Sarfaraz or Fawad Alam did not perform good couple of games then they are out and in contrast if Akmal or Ahmed Shehzad are below par in ten plus games they are still OK. On the other hand we have to recognize our limits and talents and please try to be deal fairly across the board.
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Feb 17, 2015 09:03pm
I disagree Mr. Gavaskar. This is not the weakest team but the best team Pakistan could put up for this world cup.
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Feb 17, 2015 09:19pm
Agree with Mr Gavaskar
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Feb 17, 2015 09:23pm
Just simple very true...
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Feb 17, 2015 09:36pm
@Farhan Gavaskar did not compare Pakistan team to Indian team. He has spoken about the Pakistan team being weakest compared to the team's predecessors.
And i agree with him, God knows what was going on in the PCB's mind in regards to going with a part time wicket keeper. And it's not Umar Akmal's fault at all. If at all the strategy was to make Umar keep wickets, shouldn't that have been put to practice at least a few months before the world cup?
Pakistan can still go ahead and win the cup, but a non specialist keeping wickets is going to reduce the chances.
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Feb 17, 2015 10:18pm
What has happened to Pakistan....Once a powerhouse of world cricket now just a shadow of it's former self.....The head to head statistic has Pakistan winning more games than India but that statistic is now an old adage on Pakistan's tombstone.....The World Cup since 1992 has been the decline of Pakistan cricket....and the 6-0 trouncing is it's cue....Wake up people of Pakistan and take your cricketing/political dynasties to task....NOW...........
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Feb 17, 2015 10:30pm
Gavaskar is of course correct. If a weak India team that has won nothing in the past 3 months can beat Pakistan comfortably then it is obvious that Pakistan is pathetic. Why, if the rules permitted, Younis Khan would have opened the batting, bowled pace and spin from both ends and kept wickets whenever he needed rest. The others would stand wherever they wanted in the field and watch Kohli and Raina take 3 runs by tapping the ball to silly point.
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Feb 17, 2015 10:40pm
As Indian I always had high regard for Pakistani cricket team, every win against Pakistan was hard earned and every loss was a treamndous effort. However recently Pakistan lost its mojo I want you to come back just for the sake of game, I love cricket more than Indian cricket team who are going to make money anyway by selling toothpase and IPL
best wishes
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Feb 17, 2015 10:49pm
Agreed! But it's the lack of leadership and corrupt PCB officials who made this team look meager. Only specialists can play quality cricket in tough Australian conditions, part-timers have no place. Save part-timers for UAE pitches.
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Feb 17, 2015 10:52pm
Im an Indian. Still i am like pakistan Cricket.The way pakistan played against India is just a Shame. This kind of useless cricket is not expected from an international team. Afridi should be kicked out from the team.He has no game spirit.He is thinking that he is a great batsman and so he always try to hit six.I will say he is a very chip batsman.In india, such batsman are not allowed in team.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:20pm
He is 100 percent right.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:26pm
@ Khurram - I completely agree. It was only a game. Pakistani players tried hard and will do better in other matches. I think as cricket lovers we do injustice to our (India in my case) teams by expecting them to win against each other rather than allowing them to focus on winning the cup. As an Indian I will say that Pakistan may have lost to India but just like 1992 they can still win the World Cup. Cricket experts do not decide the results of the game - players do.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:42pm
This team had lost the day it had selected team with one Batsman Misbah.Rest 10 there to just make up the number.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:43pm
Is Younis Khan most shameless cricketer on this planet? Just wondering.
He fails and fails but never goes out.Had he been in any country he should have seen the way out to exit door.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:53pm
I do not see Pakistan even in the quarter final if same strategy is adopted by the incapable captain Misbah. Board should replace Misbah to Afridi as soon as possible. Misbah should be declared unfit and Fawad Alam should be sent immediately.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:54pm
Look who is talking - the one whose best shot was " Well Left" - HaHaHa
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Feb 17, 2015 11:58pm
@Mahbub They are better knowledge able than us but money is every thing for them.
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Feb 17, 2015 11:59pm
@Abdulla Hussin Hillarious...
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Feb 18, 2015 12:42am
I totally agree with him. Based on their weaknesses, Pakistan will not make it to the next round. They will lose against WI and have a hard time against IRE and ZIM as well.
Mark my words!
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Feb 18, 2015 12:44am
Yes Sir! One solution-remove Najam Sethi from the cricket scene.
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Feb 18, 2015 12:51am
What is the future of Pakistan cricket after the retirement of players like Misbah, Afridi, Younus and Saeed Ajmal?
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Feb 18, 2015 01:13am
Fawad Alam, Asim kamal, Asif Mujtaba and many more ....... Story is same! (Talented but unlucky)
Hafeez, Shoiab Malik, Kamran Akmal, Sohail Tanveer and many more ....... Story is same! (Parchi)
PCB, PIA, WAPDA, Pak Steel and many more ...... Story is same! (Dis-functional, Nepotism …. List is endless)
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Feb 18, 2015 01:21am
You need to take things in context.
I watched this interview, it was rapid fire segment with no time to think and analyze, he was asked if this was the worst Pakistan team played in World Cup and he had to answer right away.
You need to note that this is not a well thought out and analyzed. You can't make an article out of such context.
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Feb 18, 2015 01:28am
No doubt YK has done great for Pakistan and may score one odd big score in this tournament too, but in the absence of Hafeez and Ajmal, Pakistan should have selected Azhar Ali or Umar Amin instead of YK. Since Azhar could bowl leg break and Umar could bowl medium pace, especially Azhar could have done consolidating work better.
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Feb 18, 2015 01:37am
Well said Sunny bhai. In ICC events, Pakistan's performance is poor against India.
50 overs = 6-0
T20 = 3-0.
ICC champions trophy = 1-1.
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Feb 18, 2015 02:22am
Gavaskar is absolutely correct. Winning or losing is a part of the game but the team selection is really bad. Umar Akmal should not be a wicket keeper. He drops catches and his batting is average as well. Sarfraz was a much better option. Younis Khan should retire from ODIs. He threw a fit when they dropped him for ODIs before but his ODI performance is still pathetic. Fawad Alam should have been included or Sharjeel Khan.
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Feb 18, 2015 02:41am
Gavaskar has the right assessment for the current team- it needs to have an X factor.
Mr. misfires of our team aka Afridi and Akmal need to be dropped and Sarfraz and Ehsan need to come in.
Cricket is a game that needs a combination of aggression and defense. Afridi just continues to play recklessly and couldn't care less about what Misbah is doing on the other end.
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Feb 18, 2015 03:22am
Gavasker should please mind your own business. He is playing the psychology games to play with the feelings of Pakistani players and fans. We don't need his assessment. I was never your fan and never will be. I know your true face from 1982 comments.
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Feb 18, 2015 04:30am
I am an Indian and I do not agree with Mr Gavaskar.
Alright, Pakistani team management did a rather poor and inept job of playing eleven against India. Couple of catches went down and key players like Afridi didn't fire. But these do not justify painting the entire team as 'weakest ever'.
In that match, our Indian team committed many mistakes as well -- only we were fortunate that these mistakes didn't cost as much. For instance, Rahane batting down the order, Dhoni missing the run out or Umesh Yadav's wayward first spell.
One definite positive for Pakistan from that game was the real standout performance by Sohail Khan. Dhoni is one of the smartest cricketers and among the best finishers in the game. And Sohail Khan outsmarted even him.
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Feb 18, 2015 04:58am
You are 100% Correct Sir!!!
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Feb 18, 2015 05:44am
Show this same bunch of guys Petro Dollars and see how they turn around.
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Feb 18, 2015 05:45am
Misbah is a ZERO leadership and the WORST batting technique in the world. A very poor example to other Batsmen. A lost cause and featherbed pitches bully only. He was past his prime 10 years ago. Why the Board has persisted is because of statistics against: Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, weaker teams. They were the teams to play with us multiple times. And because of some underlying dark reason why Misbah the worst captain ever is persisted with.
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Feb 18, 2015 06:15am
I know Imran's best team also lost to India in 92 world cup but during his time the confidence against India was very high. Pakistan defeated India in the T20 World Cup which we ended up winning in the end. Right now we are in very bad shape because of bans and injuries but T20 world cup next year could be a different story altogether.
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Feb 18, 2015 07:30am
Don't lose mentallly before the matches., and do not heed to negative propaganda. Half of the victory is won by the attitude, coolness, and not a show of bravado
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Feb 18, 2015 07:48am
The weakest? You ain't seen nothing. The weakest is yet to come. PCB is working hard towards this goal. Wait and watch.
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Feb 18, 2015 07:56am
Well I agree with SG on the mental block part.... I don't thibk Pakistan has a weak bowling attack if anything irfan didn't seem physically fit ... Playing Yasir in such a high pressure game was a mistake... Yunus Khan not fit for one day cricket.... Shahid Afridi not yet fit for any cricket that invovles him batting....Umar Akmal fails under pressure always... Haris sohail and mishab are the only batsmens in form.... In bowling Sohail Khan, Wahab Riaz are in form ...Yasir is good leg spinner he should be part of Pakistan team.
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Feb 18, 2015 11:06am
Gavaskar should stop commenting on Pakistan and giving them clues to improve. He should keep his sympathies for Asian teams at home and focus on helping West Indies.
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Feb 18, 2015 11:35am
@Khurram
it was not merely a "loss"!
Yes it was a great one! but to me, the factors are obvious:
- Lack of performance under pressure - quite "as usual"
- Failure as ever in chasing
- Epic failure in fielding
- Howsoever i admire the efforts of bowlers trying their best
i wonder why on earth our bowlers not much taught for batting in case they are required to bat. Also their strategy to counter the other teams!! Yes this must be done which i, after discussion with a cricketer, came to know that there is nothing of such sort!!
so, they they must not only improve individual fields of cricket (fielding bowling and batting) but also understand the strategy of countering each batsman and the max efforts of economizing the score by say, 2 balls above shoulder!
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Feb 18, 2015 07:04pm
Very true Sir....
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Feb 19, 2015 01:40am
@A Pakistani i think misbah believe what dhoni always do""""""
i mean take the match till the end. everything was going well.
but the way that shehzad lost his wicket was the main reason. i mean he should have play anchor role. so other batsmen could attack.
in case of ur bowling i think indian batting has that much veriety. i mean they have left right combinations, any batsman among them have capacity to trigger at any moment of the inning.+ they havecaptain. who plays chess in field.
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Feb 19, 2015 08:21am
Excellent Article. I was also questioning about playing Umar Akmal, Younis Khan, and other new and injured players. We had a lot of experienced players were available to play like Abdul Razzaq, Junaid Khan, Asad Shafiq, Nasir Jamshaid, shaib Malik, Saeed Ajmal, Sarfaraz Ahmed.
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Feb 19, 2015 08:22am
This team was selected to be humiliated by the bad people in PCB.
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Feb 19, 2015 08:35am
@Howzat
"I once saw him carry his bat through and score a patient half century in an ODI"...
That was in 1975...how old were you then? Just curious? And Pakistan TV showed 1975 league matches live back in 1975?
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Feb 19, 2015 11:04am
@Khurram .....why ? You can not stomach the truth. This is the problem with Pakistan today, instead of admitting and fixing our shaort comings, we hide our head in the sand. Misbah and captaincy don't mix. We need a leader with a resolve and a vision, until then, just watch our teamslide even more.
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Feb 19, 2015 11:05am
@Khalid agree with you 200%
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Feb 19, 2015 11:11am
Misbah & Co, give us a win. For god sake send Afridi at no.3 when batting first and while chasing you come at no.4 and rotate the strike
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Feb 19, 2015 11:14am
@Khurram
i Really like your thoughts , Big biys need to take some rest and keep young players play in their was
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Feb 19, 2015 11:17am
@Ebrahim what did you say....as individuals we are strong. Oh yehhhh....look at Younis Khan.....look at Umar Akmal and look at Wahab Rooz....very strong individuals. Go back to sleep Ibrahim.
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Feb 19, 2015 12:02pm
I think Misbah's batting form is good but his captain ship form and decision making ability is not that good. If he wants to lead from the front, few major decision need to make. The foremost is the specialist Wicket keeper which is pretty obvious. The other thing is he should bat up the order and try to get the scoreboard ticking by leading from the front.
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Feb 19, 2015 03:03pm
all he meant was he won against better teams
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Feb 19, 2015 09:56pm
I sadly agree. That being said, let bygones be bygones. However, we should definitely get rid of Umar Akmal. There is no excuse for dropping important catches in crucial games. That's just too much.
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Feb 19, 2015 10:38pm
Gavaskar; you are stating the obvious! This team is worst, BY FAR, to have represented Pakistan in the 11 WCs to date. Our 2 best players, Sarfaraz and Fawad, are languishing in Karachi, due to the waderas (Zardari/Sharif) running PCB.
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Feb 20, 2015 12:30am
One game does not reflect the whole. Wait and see. They will bounce back. New players adjusting to experienced ones, takes time to gel.
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Feb 21, 2015 01:48am
Nothing original from Gavaskar. He is just repeating what every Pakistani experts have been saying since long but if we lose today, heads must roll starting with Sethi and Shehryar.
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