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ON all counts, the Pakistan cricket team’s tour of Australia was more of a case of professionals versus schoolboys.
The visitors were comprehensively out-batted and overwhelmingly out-bowled by the hosts. Pakistan was trounced by a team that was operating on a different level altogether. Not only were the Australians at their zenith in terms of performance, they also executed their game plan with utmost discipline.
Meanwhile, Pakistan lost back-to-back Tests at Brisbane and Adelaide that followed the comprehensive T20 drubbing. The absence of a strategy was evident throughout, starting from the unceremonious removal of Sarfraz Ahmed on the eve of the tour. He may not have fared well at the World Cup, but he is a better leader any day than the clueless Azhar Ali.
The PCB also blundered by putting all its eggs in Misbah-ul-Haq’s basket. With no prior experience, Misbah selected raw teenagers Naseem Shah and Moosa Khan to be the bowling spearheads, a move which hugely backfired. Inexplicably, Misbah left out experienced batters such as Fawad Alam, Sami Aslam and Abid Ali from the team and continued to back Haris Sohail and Iftikhar Ahmed for the Tests, both of whom were unable to survive the Australian onslaught.
Pakistan’s dependence on leggie Yasir Shah must also end now and slow bowlers Mohammad Asghar, Umar Khan and others must be considered. Babar Azam’s exploits as a batsman of exceptional quality remained the only real high point. The brilliant right-hander was undaunted by the strength of the opposition. The same, however, could not be said of Pakistan’s other top order players Azhar, Asad Shafique, Imam-ul-haq and Shan Masud.
The PCB may be engrossed in preparations for the first home Test series in a decade, but it must realise that teams need to develop their players according to the challenges of the moment. The PCB should always keep in mind the importance of professionally grooming players, regardless of whether it’s a home series or an away tour. The game is more competitive now than ever before.
Published in Dawn, December 4th, 2019
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Comments (62) Closed
Dec 04, 2019 10:20am
Professionals Australian cricket team badly defeated minnows Pakistan.
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Dec 04, 2019 10:27am
Agreed a 100% . The analogy applies to the coaches Misbah and Waqar more so than the players though. Rank amateurs as coaches ..just wont cut at this level .
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Dec 04, 2019 10:37am
Sarfaraz is better than Azar ???? Really ?
Sarfraz got so many years of chances to get to where he was. And that too the looser lost all t20s to Sri Lanka. He has put on weight too.
The results would have been worst if it was sarfaraz.
Give some time to new coach and new team.
You all are so impatient. Team is young and Australia pitches have been out r problem for last 13 tours. Suddenly this is the worst team ? Sarfaraz and team lost last two times.
You all are just supporting Sarfraz to bring him back without any merit. It’s a total game you are playing.
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Dec 04, 2019 10:42am
expected
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Dec 04, 2019 11:10am
Congratulations for an excellent analysis of the abject surrender by our cricketers in Australian T20I and Test series. Losing and winning is part of any game but one sided humiliating defeat can not be digested. As such, accountability of the Cricket Committee members and tour management demands that they all should be immediately sacked. Putting all the blame on players will be unfair.
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Dec 04, 2019 11:55am
India won the series when it visited last year!
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Dec 04, 2019 12:10pm
@TruthPrevails, don't compare India with Pakistan, Pakistan has a long way to come up now, PCB has destroyed the world's best bowling talent.
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Dec 04, 2019 12:13pm
That was the outcome! Someone has to accept the blame.
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Dec 04, 2019 12:54pm
Pakistan's real problem is that they do not back the youngsters long enough to see them succeed. A few years ago, Umar Akmal was as good as Virat Kohli but the team kept changing his batting position and dropped him for poor keeping. Today, Akmal is past but Pakistan has any number of talented players. The focus has to be on results first and not style. Selectors and Coaches also need to be backed and have a tenure of around 3-4 years to produce results
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Dec 04, 2019 01:01pm
Why don't PCB get rid of these so called experts (Misbah and Waqar) at the earliest and bring back the real professional coach who can help Pakistan cricket.
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Dec 04, 2019 01:01pm
Where is Imad Wasim ? I thought that boy was captaincy material
Fawad Alam must be brought in
Yasir is only good for UAE
stop blaming Misbah or Azhar
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Dec 04, 2019 01:08pm
Not only the players but the support staff as well! Very poor planning and execution...including slection of captain who all knew was struggling with form and yet he agreed to open against Aussie bowlers! Then he goes to number 3 too late perhaps he should have batted after Yasir, who showed with bit of guts and determination what can do
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Dec 04, 2019 02:06pm
Pakistan need leadership of Arthur and Sarfaraz
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Dec 04, 2019 02:13pm
@TruthPrevails, I believe this was the same team that was missing Steve Smith and David Warner.
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Dec 04, 2019 02:17pm
mike waghan clearly says that the one and only country could win Aus in its soil is India.
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Dec 04, 2019 02:39pm
Nothing will change in Pakistan, like Show in Akhter says pcb will keep bringing parachuters for short cuts. Merit is always in the country and no one is there to question. This sucks, we need some bold characters in the PCB and in the team like we had in 90's early 2000. We don't need bunch of timid people playing for Country. we need bold characters that's we were always known for in cricketing world, I'm sure there many out there among hundreds and thousands playing cricket in Pakistan. But question is who can do that in Pakistan and in PCB?
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Dec 04, 2019 03:20pm
Bring back Mickey Arthur and Co. asap if you want Pakistan to win the T20 cup and Test match championship.
Mickey was building a solid team for all formats butthe PCB ruined everything and here we are now, being called schoolboys, and rightly so!
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Dec 04, 2019 03:43pm
Asad and Shan cannot play swing and has no foot-work & you blame Misbah.
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Dec 04, 2019 04:50pm
Stop berating the team after every loss. Lower your expectations first. The current Pakistani team is nowhere near the one that ruled world cricket in eighties or the nineties. They can do only so much, and that has been the case at least for a decade now.
Reboot Pakistan cricket by dismantling a structure that's not fit for purpose. Start building a team for tomorrow, and you will see results during the next ODI world cup. In the meantime relish your team's top T20 ranking and see if they could make difference at the next T20 world cup.
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Dec 04, 2019 05:03pm
This is the reason why there is a sudden urge to watch clips of 1970's test cricket, an era when Pakistani Cricket Team was a force to reckon with.
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Dec 04, 2019 05:11pm
100 percent true. Nevertheless, with unelected, hand-picked, eccentric, inept and unilateral hierarchy running the cricket affairs of greenshirts, what else can you expect?
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Dec 04, 2019 05:50pm
Lets bring shahid afridi from retirement.
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Dec 04, 2019 05:52pm
Let's not draw conclusion from this Australia series after all pakistan never won a test series in Australia....this is a young team....got thrashed but they have potential to come out strong....have little faith in youths....
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Dec 04, 2019 06:21pm
With the criticism and knee jerk reactions for coaches/selectors and great players like Misbah and Waqar after this 1st outcome, no cricketer, however reputed, will be accepted as a coach or selector. One should be patient and give them few years to build a good team.
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Dec 04, 2019 06:42pm
Need to bring back Sarfraz.
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Dec 04, 2019 06:43pm
@Milan, "One should be patient and give them few years to build a good team." No one is asking them to leave. On the contrary, we want them to continue until their abilities are fully exposed. In the meanwhile they will be harshly criticized for the failure of the team alone. They are the ones who pick up players of their choice and sack those they want. Thy are sole responsible. period.
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Dec 04, 2019 07:07pm
Cricket like much else in shambles.
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Dec 04, 2019 07:26pm
Australia has always been a very hard place to tour for Pakistan. 14 consecutive test losses during the past two decades says it all. Batting has always struggled in Australia (we rarely score more than 300 in an innings down under) but the bowling too was a total flop this time around. That said we should bear in mind that even the two W's were not as successful in Australia as they were in England
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Dec 04, 2019 07:39pm
When will our management understand one simple rule? Just because someone is a good player does not mean that he will turn out to be a good coach. At least under Mickey Arthur, Pakistan team was performing somewhat. Now it's a bunch of school boys as the author correctly states.
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Dec 04, 2019 07:53pm
Completely agree with the article.
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Dec 04, 2019 07:55pm
Pakistan has a poor record in Australia and it is getting worse and worse. Misbah should not have been given the current responsibilities as it was his poor leadership on the last Australian tour that had let the team down. Azhar, Asad, Shan are good batsmen but they need more games on international level to keep their flow going. Currently, the team has no stamina to play 5 day match. The batsmen only play for one session and bowlers are there just to complete their overs. Domestic cricket should introduce 5 day matches.
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Dec 04, 2019 08:02pm
It is the continuation of our state dysfunctionalism which shows up everywhere
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Dec 04, 2019 08:09pm
@Milan, my friend they already spent several years together. We know what they did. Did you forget humiliation at 2015 WC.
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Dec 04, 2019 08:21pm
Make hard efforts and painful practices and no excuses. Get a professional coach and recruit a professional team. Stop personality worshiping!
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Dec 04, 2019 08:37pm
Nice editorial. Pl sack them all and bring Sarfaraz back. If not then face more defeats. Whether the Prime Minister will go and lead the team by leaving the Government ?????????
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Dec 04, 2019 08:53pm
One series is not enough! but what about Sri Lanka? It was their C team that defeated Pakistan flat, same way as Aussies did and that too in Pakistan's own home ground.
Pakistani team needs discipline and a very charismatic real motivator.
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Dec 04, 2019 09:37pm
"The PCB should always keep in mind the importance of professionally grooming players, regardless of whether it’s a home series or an away tour. The game is more competitive now than ever before."
Professionalism no where to be found in Pakistan cricket!
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Dec 04, 2019 10:16pm
Pakistan team is just street talent (with no institution developing them) where-as Australia team was composed of highly groomed talent through a professional development of the game as it has been institutionalized through Cricket Australia. There is no comparison.
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Dec 04, 2019 10:21pm
Disaster is a mild word...everything in Pakistan cricket...from management to performance...has gone totally under...and no corrective action is in sight.
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Dec 04, 2019 10:47pm
Not players fault, fix the management and you can win with more or less the same players!
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Dec 04, 2019 11:19pm
Agreed. Its look like a school team was playing against Australia not a professional cricket team. The players do not want to learn from their mistake, infact they don't even noticing what is going wrong. Just coming to ground throwing everything as usual. The coaches and managers are useless because either these player does not want to be a professional cricketer or coaches and managers are themselves not good capable of the jobs assigned to them. Simply, if you are professional you don't make mistake repeatedly instead you improve your skills.
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Dec 04, 2019 11:52pm
@TruthPrevails, India won against a team sans Warner and Smith- not much to talk about! How is it relevant here!
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Dec 05, 2019 12:05am
Misbah should take it easy and share his roles with others--two heads are better than one. Also, get rid of Imam-ul-Haq, Iftikhar, Imran Khan, etc. What the team needs are players like Sami Aslam, Fawad Alam and Abid Ali.
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Dec 05, 2019 12:39am
@TruthPrevails,
Truth prevails indeed, Australia minus Warner and Smith and with limited bowling options :-)
Though, no denying the fact India have been perhaps the most solid all round side of late
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Dec 05, 2019 01:37am
Give some time folks , new setup will surely takes some time to execute .Grooming player is as much important as the will and hard work required by the player himself. . now a days due to Technology every player can immensely improve himself if he wanted to do.. Excellence level is solely based on player himself.
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Dec 05, 2019 05:37am
i always used to admire the Pakistani cricketers and team for the talent they had and the fighting spirit. Lately i don’t see the talent or the fighting spirit. It’s a shame.
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Dec 05, 2019 06:02am
Coach and selectors should be removed as soon as possible because they are burden on taxpayers and government isn't paying from the own pocket.
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Dec 05, 2019 06:09am
These are the consequences of the acts of coach, selectors and removal of Sarfaraz Ahmad.
No strange.
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Dec 05, 2019 06:20am
once again if it were not for Imran khan there is no waseem Akram and Waqar Younis, and many others. there was no guidance and then a team member will never be influenced by a new inexperienced leader. if the scores of both the innings were to sum up in the first innings the result was to be different. such a new captian cannot have a strategy unless he performs himself first. the bowling attack was good but the leader had to guide them the whole nine yards, where to bowl how to bowl at which length. then the bowlers had no experience how to use the field to get a wicket and they were hasty to get the batsmen out which was very expensive. but the good part is that now Pakistan has an all rounder and some batsmen and some thinking.
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Dec 05, 2019 06:52am
what a complete disaster
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Dec 05, 2019 07:02am
Internal politics always prove bottleneck for Pakistan cricket. This happens when organization structures are not robust and individuals decide everything. Unless Pakistan strengthens organization structures with checks and balances these stories will keep repeating most of the times.
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Dec 05, 2019 08:33am
When you select national team ,you select the best talent available ,not so called planning for 10 years ahead. Just because you feel a 16 year has a potential does it mean if there is a better bowler who is say 26/28 ,should be ignored.What logic is this.
Then you are playing against one of the best in business and not against team like Zimbabwe.
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Dec 05, 2019 09:47am
@zahid, Who selected them ? Definitely not me.
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Dec 05, 2019 11:06am
How true!
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Dec 05, 2019 11:48am
Would any heads roll to take corrective action?
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Dec 05, 2019 11:57am
@Jehengir khan, "Let's not draw conclusion from this Australia series after all pakistan never won a test series in Australia." Pakistan had never won any world cup since 1992 either, but they had drawn conclusions and sacked Sarfraz. They told us it was because of him. Now they should take the blame for the same that happened down under. Why different standards for different people?
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Dec 05, 2019 12:00pm
@Redrock, "Bring back Mickey Arthur and Co. asap" He's coming back immediately as coach, but as Sri Lanka's coach.
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Dec 05, 2019 12:02pm
@zahid, "Asad and Shan cannot play swing and has no foot-work & you blame Misbah." Misbah selected and coached them. If they can't play, what is Misbah for?
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Dec 05, 2019 02:11pm
One of the worst and substandard bowling display by Pakistan in Australia since that memorable Sarfaraz Nawaz magic ! Bring back Sarfaraz Ahmad as wicket keeper and as captain!
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Dec 05, 2019 02:28pm
Too much weightage on results could be misleading. It's also a fact that none of the teams that have visited Australia in the past have any success. Having said that, what is bothersome is the total lack of any coherent strategy in preparing Pakistan Cricket for future. If we're blooding youngsters to prepare them for future, not sure what did we achieve? There is no leadership in display to guide the youngsters. There is no improvement in their performance and we saw some abject surrender. The will to fight (if not for the team, at least for themselves?) was lacking. What it points out is that the team truly lacks professional guidance. Not all good players can become good leaders. Bringing professionals who could set clear strategy and are accountable for the progress is the need of the hour.
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Dec 05, 2019 03:40pm
Mickey was dealt an unfair hand.Misbah back stabbed him and recommended that Mickey be removed because of his criticism of Sarfraz.Guess what , sarfraz was still removed and correctly so.HARIS SOHAIL isa class act but badly out of form.The problem lies with the useless Azhar Ali and Shan Masood.
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Dec 05, 2019 08:39pm
@mj cricket, Pakistan should try Abdul Razzak...as coach. He says he can blast Jasprit Bumrah, he is a baby bowler. So Razzak should be able to coach his batsmen how to play Bumrah. If they can blast Bumrah, 90% of world bowlers they can blast
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