England v Pakistan- test series thread.

Rjd2

England four wickets down thanks to Aamer bowling like the marvel he is.

Sadly however no matter what he, Asif and to a lesser extent Gul do, you fear their flimsy batting line up will be their downfall at the end.

125-4 with Morgan and Colly at the crease.

Royale with Cheese

Morgan up to 44, nice to see him going well.

I have tickets to the final day of the 3rd test at the Oval. It was the only day I could go so I'm praying it somehow lasts the 5 days.

RoyMcC

Morgan has his half-ton, including 10 x 4s

D3PO

Come on Moggy lets get the ton and then double it

whatawaster

Hits a six to get his hundred. Delighted for him

booth70

Morgan cements his place in the starting XI for the Ashes:)

Beasty

booth70 wrote: »

Morgan cements his place in the starting XI for the Ashes:)

Not with one innings he doesn't. Was listening to TMS commentry most of the day, and they were all talking about Bopara, and Morgan cannot afford to rest on his laurels. He has been criticised for not exploiting Bangladesh more, and needs to show some consistency at Test level before he can be guaranteed his place (personally I would stick with him regardless, but the argument for Bopara is he is not only in tremendous batting form, but can also offer something to the bowling)

The real pressure is now on Trott, although there will almost certainly be a place in the squad for Bell if he shows any form when he gets back from injury

Rjd2

Beasty wrote: »

Not with one innings he doesn't. Was listening to TMS commentry most of the day, and they were all talking about Bopara, and Morgan cannot afford to rest on his laurels. He has been criticised for not exploiting Bangladesh more, and needs to show some consistency at Test level before he can be guaranteed his place (personally I would stick with him regardless, but the argument for Bopara is he is not only in tremendous batting form, but can also offer something to the bowling)

The real pressure is now on Trott, although there will almost certainly be a place in the squad for Bell if he shows any form when he gets back from injury

True, but what does Cook have to do for people to even question his guaranteed inclusion all the time?:pac:

djimi

Beasty wrote: »

Not with one innings he doesn't. Was listening to TMS commentry most of the day, and they were all talking about Bopara, and Morgan cannot afford to rest on his laurels. He has been criticised for not exploiting Bangladesh more, and needs to show some consistency at Test level before he can be guaranteed his place (personally I would stick with him regardless, but the argument for Bopara is he is not only in tremendous batting form, but can also offer something to the bowling)

The real pressure is now on Trott, although there will almost certainly be a place in the squad for Bell if he shows any form when he gets back from injury

I like Bopara but honestly I just dont see him playing an innings like that having coming in with the team under pressure. I think that Ashes spot is Morgans to lose tbh, and frankly there are at least two players in that current team whos place is more shakey that Eoins right now; Cook needs to find form fast and KP has some convincing to do to show he actually remembers how to play test cricket. In the case of KP I dont think he will be dropped, but there is only so many times he can get away with playing outragous shots without getting a big score and coming out with "well thats just how I play".

djimi

Rjd2 wrote: »

True, but what does Cook have to do for people to even question his guaranteed inclusion all the time?:pac:

This is the first time in a while that Ive heard both TMS and Sky talk about dropping Cook. Great player, all the talent in the world to be a top class opening batsman, but needs to find some form and consistency. He no longer warrants the automatic inclusion he once enjoyed.

TheDrog

cook, pietersen and trott are all under pressure

Rjd2

TheDrog wrote: »

cook, pietersen and trott are all under pressure

Trott is under pressure, the other two are untouchable.

Beasty

Rjd2 wrote: »

Trott is under pressure, the other two are untouchable.

I think in the current set-up this is pretty much the case.

The problem England have is they have no back-up opener, which is why Cook will probably go whatever his form. Interestingly it goes in Trott's favour also, as he could act as back-up opener on tour - he may end up as the spare batsman in the squad for this reason.

The fact England have no proper all-rounder at present works in Bopara's favour and, like it or not, Bell has been the blue-eyed boy for some time now.

This is why Morgan must keep performing, as the selectors will not need much of an excuse to leave him out of the Test squad for Australia (and he was already under pressure coming into the present match) - so far he has done everything he can to cement his place, but he could undo it all with a bad run during the rest of the series

Mothman

Interesting morning ahead.
New day, fairly new ball
Asif and Aamar and possibly cloudy.

Needless to say that Morgan will be looking to kick on to big score but I think he'll need to see off the 2 front line bowlers and then make hay.

booth70

Beasty wrote: »

Not with one innings he doesn't. Was listening to TMS commentry most of the day, and they were all talking about Bopara, and Morgan cannot afford to rest on his laurels.
The real pressure is now on Trott, although there will almost certainly be a place in the squad for Bell if he shows any form when he gets back from injury

England starting X1 for the Ashes

Strauss
Cook
Trott/Bell
Petersen
Collingwood
Morgan
Prior
Swann
Broad
Bresnan
Anderson

Mothman

Pakistan making progress during first hour.
3 wickets, England adding 20 runs.

Collingwood, Morgan and Prior all back in pavilion, latter run out.

Mothman

Swan gone, 3rd LBW for Asif this morning

Edit,
Asif on hattrick another LBW

PeteEd

Anderson gone 1st ball! england back to their usual self destruct mode!

Mothman

Innings over
354 runs.

Anderson may well be in wickets soon. Good bowling conditions

djimi

Well that was an English collapse to bring me back to the good old days of watching England in the 1990s! Shame Collingwood and Morgan couldnt have stuck around for longer.

The run out was a joke; what on earth were they at trying to take a third run like that?

djimi

Beasty wrote: »

I think in the current set-up this is pretty much the case.

The problem England have is they have no back-up opener, which is why Cook will probably go whatever his form. Interestingly it goes in Trott's favour also, as he could act as back-up opener on tour - he may end up as the spare batsman in the squad for this reason.

The fact England have no proper all-rounder at present works in Bopara's favour and, like it or not, Bell has been the blue-eyed boy for some time now.

This is why Morgan must keep performing, as the selectors will not need much of an excuse to leave him out of the Test squad for Australia (and he was already under pressure coming into the present match) - so far he has done everything he can to cement his place, but he could undo it all with a bad run during the rest of the series

I honestly think that Cook is no longer as untouchable as he once was. There was a time when it could have been said he was going thru a lean patch, but that lean patch has been going on for too long in my opinion, and I think a lot of people are coming to that conclusion. Im not saying that the selectors need to drop him never to be seen again, but I do think they need to be seen to be actively looking for a backup opener, let Cook know that his place is not a god given right.

I dont think the selectors see Bopara as an all rounder tbh; not so that it would be much of a factor in terms of selection anyway. The impression I get is that the England selectors see Bopara as either a number 3 or a number 6/7 batsman who can bowl a bit if necessary.

I think Morgans test place is his to lose for the Ashes tbh. The biggest thing working in his favour is public opinion; everyone from fans to pundits to commentators love him, hes exciting to watch and he makes things happen. He is a match winner, which they havent had since KP and Freddie. I get the impression that the ECB want him in the team, and unless he hits a real stinker of a rough patch of form I think they will persevere with him for the Ashes. Im not for a second saying that he can afford to sit back and relax; he very much needs to keep the runs flowing, especially seeing as how his reputation for England has been based on limited overs cricket and he is still proving himself as a test cricketer, but I think the likes of Bopara are going to have one hell of a job dislodging him from that test team.

Adamcp898

Well judging by what Test Match Special is telling me at work, Pakistan are collapsing big style, couldn't hit the ball with a barn door

EDIT: 48/6

Dozen Wicked Words

Pakistan (sort of) steady the ship. 90 for 6 at tea. Very bowler friendly pitch, but I would prefer that to the ridiculous track India and SL just bored their way through 5 days of.

Rjd2

Some useful resistance from Malik and the tail, but its not enough is it?

I hate to rattle on about it, but they must do something about the batting line up, either

A .. Bring back Younis and Yousef
B.. Bring back one at least! Their seems to be bad blood towards both so pick the one that is liked the most if worried about upsetting team morale.:)
C... Malik must move the order, he has the experience to play the number three role.Its not going to make the batting invincible but its a start.


Then the Kamran issue! the amount of runs he cost Pakistan this test has been disgraceful. His batting today as well..:mad:

Sadly they can't really drop him, as his brother may throw a tantrum like he did in Oz, and we can't can't have that can we! :pac:


I

boksmashoffice

It is embarrasing watching Pakistan at the moment. The so called batsman would struggle if the Brits were bowling with a beachball.

They have no 'Guts' to tough it out. The 3 and 4 guys are out of depth and belong on a sunday league team.

The PCB need to swallow their pride and bring back the 2 Y's. They will stiffen the middle order and Malik needs to move up the order.

The Akmals need to start switching to Test match cricket and earn their runs.

Plastic 'Englishman' Morgan should have been caught way before he got into double figures.

The Tigers of Bangladesh would beat Paskistan at the moment.

Enough of my rant

Cremated

The Akmal's can not play Test Cricket, they just want to get in and score quick runs, it was shown today and also against Australia in the last Test,

Umar tried to grind the runs against Australia but failed,

Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan would add great strength to the team, now maybe not the players you would want for the 20/20 Cricket and ODI's, but certainly they are the players you bring in when you are struggling in Test Cricket,

and should be brought in for the Akmal brothers,

who else is a Wicket-keeper for Pakistan?, I don't see how he could be worse than Kamran right now...

Dozen Wicked Words

Is Kamran as bad outside england? I thought he just had problem with the late swing there.

Rjd2

Cremated wrote: »

The Akmal's can not play Test Cricket, they just want to get in and score quick runs, it was shown today and also against Australia in the last Test,

Umar tried to grind the runs against Australia but failed,

Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan would add great strength to the team, now maybe not the players you would want for the 20/20 Cricket and ODI's, but certainly they are the players you bring in when you are struggling in Test Cricket,

and should be brought in for the Akmal brothers,

who else is a Wicket-keeper for Pakistan?, I don't see how he could be worse than Kamran right now...

Thats a bit of a knee jerk reaction regarding Umar. The lad is struggling right now but he has done the business before in test cricket. He was the top overall run scorer in the New Zealand series and Butt is the only Pakistan player who outscored him in Australia. He is a special talent who they should persist with despite his poor run of form.

Assuming either of the Y's come back then you suspect Amin is ****ed. Ali while no Ponting has been a little unlucky this summer.

Kamran has always been flaky with the gloves but his batting always saves him. The other option would be Sarfraz Ahmed who kept wicket in the third test in Australia. He is really good with the gloves but as a batsman nobody really thinks he is as dangerous as Kamran.


He's also very inexperienced in international cricket, and their is only so many kids you can have in your team!

Cremated

Maybe it's a bit harsh on Umar, he has youth on his side, I just seen that Umar is only 20 years old, plenty of time to improve,

and poor Azhar Ali, he left the field without going for the Referral, when replays shown the ball went against his pocket...

Rjd2

Cremated wrote: »

Maybe it's a bit harsh on Umar, he has youth on his side, I just seen that Umar is only 20 years old, plenty of time to improve,

and poor Azhar Ali, he left the field without going for the Referral, when replays shown the ball went against his pocket...

Ali has had no luck really in England, very few of his dismissals have been down to poor shots unlike most of the other batsman.:)

Umar Gul should open from now on. :pac:

Rjd2

From hero to zero for Kamran in two balls. :pac:

Cremated

Rjd2 wrote: »

Ali has had no luck really in England, very few of his dismissals have been down to poor shots unlike most of the other batsman.:)

Umar Gul should open from now on. :pac:

Ha exactly,

65 from 46, something the top order would have been proud of...

jimmynippy

bopara can look great when the pressure is off but in my opinion he hasn't got the temperament to stick around when the goings tough.

Cremated

Mohammad Yousuf has been called in the squad for the rest of the England tour, and Danish Kaneria has been dropped, but will be available if needed...

Rjd2

Cremated wrote: »

Mohammad Yousuf has been called in the squad for the rest of the England tour, and Danish Kaneria has been dropped, but will be available if needed...

Its a start I suppose. I would have preferred Khan, but beggars cant be choosers.:pac:

The problem is though, Yousuf can only do so much. He can't make Farhat into a competent batsman, he can't stop Kamran from been rubbish with the gloves.

Its still going to be very difficult for Pakistan really to avoid a 4-0 drubbing in this series.

boksmashoffice

As predicted the pakistani's callopsed. They have made one good call by bringing back Yousef BUT why can't they bring back Younis Khan. The guy averages 50 at test match level and can tough it out unlike the spinless guys they have at the moment. with experience I believe Umar Akmal will beneift. Having said that he needs to work on his batting technique. Talent can only get you so far without application. The 3 and 4 guys should be sent home as they look out of their depth.

I can see this being a 4-0 beating.
I hope I am wrong but can't see the batsman piling on 300 + runs.

Rjd2

boksmashoffice wrote: »

As predicted the pakistani's callopsed. They have made one good call by bringing back Yousef BUT why can't they bring back Younis Khan. The guy averages 50 at test match level and can tough it out unlike the spinless guys they have at the moment.

The players don't like him

Intikhab calls Pakistan players 'mentally retarded'
Cricinfo staff
May 8, 2010


Intikhab Alam revealed of a plan by six to seven players to stand united against Younis Khan

Former Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam has launched a scathing attack on the national players, calling them 'mentally retarded' during their forgettable tour of Australia earlier this year, where they failed to win a single match. The English daily, Dawn had secured documents from the Pakistan Cricket Board, which contained Intikhab's views on his players while he was in charge. The board had set up an inquiry committee to identify the players responsible for the defeats.

Intikhab, who was replaced by Waqar Younis after the tour, revealed that apart from their woeful on-field performance, the players failed to conduct themselves in a proper manner off the field as well.

"I felt that they are mentally retarded people," Intikhab was quoted as saying to the committee. "There is a mental problem with our players. They don't know how to wear their clothes and how to talk in a civilized manner."

The PCB took action against seven players it believed were responsible for Pakistan's failures. The captain Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan were banned indefinitely, Shoaib Malik and Naved-ul-Hasan were banned for a year while Shahid Afridi and the Akmal brothers were fined and placed on probation for six months.

Yousuf and Younis were accused of infighting and having a negative influence on the team. Yousuf announced his retirement from international cricket after the ban and is the only one among the punished players who didn't appeal. The six players who appealed will appear before a one-man tribunal headed by Irfan Qadir, a retired high court judge.

Intikhab, however, identified Malik as someone with a "negative attitude" who was "active in intrigues in the team". Quoting an example of the factions that had developed within the team, Intikhab confessed to hearing that a group of "six to seven" players had gone to the former captain Inzamam-ul-Haq's house before the UAE tour prior to the Australia series, where they "took oath on the Quran that they will remain united against (the then captain) Younis Khan".

But Malik, a former captain, denied that allegation and said that the players had vowed to remain united in case a team member was dropped "unjustifiably". He added that the oath was taken in Yousuf's hotel room and not at Inzamam's house.

When Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi was asked at a press conference to comment on Intikhab's views, he said: "I don't know about these things but when I do I will definitely tell you."

http://www.cricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/458926.html

Beasty

boksmashoffice wrote: »

As predicted the pakistani's callopsed. They have made one good call by bringing back Yousef BUT why can't they bring back Younis Khan. The guy averages 50 at test match level and can tough it out unlike the spinless guys they have at the moment. with experience I believe Umar Akmal will beneift. Having said that he needs to work on his batting technique. Talent can only get you so far without application. The 3 and 4 guys should be sent home as they look out of their depth.

I can see this being a 4-0 beating.
I hope I am wrong but can't see the batsman piling on 300 + runs.

Maybe, just once in a while, credit is due to England, rather than it being automatically assumed it's their opponents fault whenever England do well:rolleyes:

The top order of both teams struggled against the new ball throughout this match - different conditions, and who knows what runs Pakistan could put on the board. It's only a week since Pakistan beat Australia, and they remain perfectly capable of beating England, although conditions are always likely to favour the home team.

boksmashoffice

Beasty wrote: »

Maybe, just once in a while, credit is due to England, rather than it being automatically assumed it's their opponents fault whenever England do well:rolleyes:

The top order of both teams struggled against the new ball throughout this match - different conditions, and who knows what runs Pakistan could put on the board. It's only a week since Pakistan beat Australia, and they remain perfectly capable of beating England, although conditions are always likely to favour the home team.

Pakistan struggled to beat the Australians. If the Aussies had 20 more runs on the board I am pretty sure they would have lost.

It really grinds with me that Younis is not called back because the players don't like him. This is the problem. The guys need to look at the bigger picture. The people of Pakistan are suffering. Terrorism, Natural disasters, poverty, Bad-Corrupt politicians to name a few. The one thing they look to is the Cricket team doing well but they don't even have that now. So sad.

dfx-

Kamran Akmal lost Pakistan the Sydney test dropping Hussey several times and the 1st 20/20 caught at Long on at 100-4 chasing 130.

People say Yousuf and Younis will bring solidity back...they didn't in Australia. Younis was awful when he finally appeared...and Yousuf doesn't like Butt or Malik or so I read somewhere. Still would take any chance to see Yousuf bat though.

djimi

Im not sure how bringing back two players who were dropped indefinately for being a disruptive influence on the team is going to solve anything, unless they single handedly put 400+ runs on the board every game. Doesnt matter how good they are, if they disrupt the balance and chemistry of the team and cause problems for other players then they are not worth it. I dont know fully what happened with them to lead to their bannings, but if it was as serious as it seems then bringing either or both back is a step in the wrong direction.

Rjd2

Andy Zaltman from Cricinfo wrote about Pakistan:pac:

Pakistan and the art of ineptitude
James Anderson: top class and toothless by turns © Getty Images
The evidence of the last two Pakistan Tests would seem to suggest, incontrovertibly, that England will win this winter’s Ashes by at least 10 matches to nil. Pakistan beat Australia; England beat Pakistan; that is a two-win per Test difference between England and Australia.

Of course, cricket does not always pan out as statistics suggest it should, and trying to divine what might happen in the forthcoming Ashes from this summer’s two series involving Pakistan is a task as futile as trying to predict whether a champion boxer will win his next fight based on how many wasps he swats at a picnic.

England played a good, decisive match, but scored the bulk of their important runs in each innings against some fairly dismal back-up bowling, and were aided by fielding that was borderline appalling (and that borderline was not between appalling and acceptable, but between appalling and catastrophic). Strauss’ team bowled well and caught magnificently, but against a batting line-up that looked as confident in their technique against swing bowling as their ability to play Beethoven’s piano sonatas on an ironing board.

On current form, Pakistan’s batsmen, a poorly conceived salad of proven adequates and total novices, will do well to match in this entire four-Test series, the 708 runs they scored in one innings at The Oval in 1987. They looked vulnerable on paper at the start of their tour, and that assessment now looks like eye-gougingly blind optimism. Obviously, these are not useless batsmen, but they are flawed and inexperienced, and their collective confidence is now more shattered than a stunt motorcyclist’s porcelain piggy bank.

Statistically, it is hard to overstate quite how completely, historically inept, Pakistan were. Following on from almost snatching defeat from three-quarters of the way down the oesophagus of victory at Leeds, their top order put on a 19th-century display, the worst combined match performance by a top five against England since 1907.

Pakistan were six wickets down for 47 and 41 in their two innings, thus becoming only the ninth team in Test history to lose its first six wickets for less than 50 in both innings of a match, and the first since England sank like an impatient Titanic to one of its most humiliating ever defeats in Christchurch in 1983-84. Then, Hadlee, Boock, Cairns and Chatfield double-scuttled a decent-looking England top seven of Fowler, Tavare, Gower, Lamb, Gatting, Randall and Botham, whose performance in that Test was so bad that the Queen was rumoured to be on the point of abdicating.

Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer, constantly threatening again, must go to sleep every night dreaming of bowling at their own batsmen. In fact, a leak from within the Pakistan camp has revealed that Aamer has a tour bowling average of 3.5 against his team-mates in the nets, even when using the net as a boundary.

Umar Akmal, after a stellar entry onto the world cricket stage, has had a particularly disappointing summer. His debut series in New Zealand less than a year ago included innings of 75 off 174 balls and 77 off 144, so he clearly is capable of not batting as if he has to simultaneously catch an extremely imminent train, file an overdue tax return, pop back home to check whether he left the refrigerator door open, and avoid turning into a pumpkin if he bats for longer than 15 minutes.

It is hard to imagine a worse match performance than that by Umar’s brother Kamran, a spectacular array of wicketkeeping howlers neatly interlocked with a pair of noughts with the bat, comprising perhaps the worst individual performance in any medium since novelty children’s entertainer Mr Chicken’s dismal effort at playing King Lear, which consisted of a three-hour chicken impression in which he persistently called all of his daughters "Eggie".

It was almost as if the cricketing gods allowed Kamran a couple of excellent catches to dismiss Strauss and Pietersen (who continues to look every inch a man who doesn’t play much cricket any more), solely in order to dash the beleaguered gloveman on the rocks of destiny by making him shell a simple edge by Collingwood. They then further punished him, as his brother’s wasted referral led to Kamran being unable to refer his own obviously-missing-the-stumps lbw dismissal. If Kamran’s Test career had been a racehorse, his owner would by now surely have done the decent thing.

Clearly, there is not just room for improvement for Pakistan’s batsmen; there is a luxury eight-bedroom house for improvement. But they are having to cope not only with the difficulty of unfamiliar conditions – and, as England and Australia have themselves shown this summer, few teams play swing bowling well even with experience – but also with an impolite schedule that is allowing them no time to rebuild their broken techniques and confidence between Tests.

It has led to a bizarre role reversal, in which England are sticking with an unchanged squad, while their visitors have packed off a failing player to county cricket, and summoned up an ageing old star from the county game. How times have changed.

James Anderson was at his intermittently fluidly brilliant best once he started pitching the ball up. He has been promising for seven and a half years now, his occasional top-class outbreaks offset by periods of toothlessness. The winter will show whether he now has the resourcefulness of his England swing predecessor Hoggard, who was less naturally dangerous but developed a range of crafts that made him a successful bowler around the world. The Lancastrian now averages 27 at home and 43 away, whereas Hoggard’s equivalent figures were 30 and 30.

Anderson has never taken 20 wickets in a series before. If Pakistan continue to bat as they did at Trent Bridge, he could bowl underarm for the rest of the series and still be confident of taking another 15 wickets.

On to Edgbaston on Friday, with Pakistan’s one and only trump card, their seam attack, about to go into its fourth back-to-back Test, weighed down by the knowledge that, even if they bowl with their now customary excellence, their fielders and batsmen have an almost unstoppable range of options for contriving to lose games anyway.

For any Confectionery Stall readers in the Edinburgh area wishing to see me doing my “day job”, my new show at the Edinburgh Fringe − Andy Zaltzman Swears To Tell The Truth, Half The Truth, And Everything But The Truth − begins on Friday 6th August, at The Stand on York Place, daily at 4.20pm, until 29th August (except 16th, when I have a day off to think about cricket).

Rjd2

Another article from the Guardian explaining the hatred between the older players in great detail



Mark Ramprakash leaned forward and lowered his voice. "I've heard a lot in cricket recently about how we have got to have the right characters in the team, how we have got to gel in the dressing room and have 11 individuals going in the right direction. That is great." He paused and did a quick sweep of the room with his eyes, "But individuals have got to go out and perform. You don't have to love each other and go out for beers and be together 24/7. It doesn't have to be that way. You just need to come together to perform."

Judging by his Test record a cynic would say Ramprakash seems an unlikely sort to be providing psychological insights into what makes a successful team. But at domestic level he has won three Championships and every single limited-overs competition going. He was a key part of two great county teams – Middlesex in the early 90s, and Surrey in the early 2000s. Neither were sides, it seems, where players were expected to get on with each other off the field, only to work together on it.

Pakistan's problems run a little deeper. Their players do not just feel antipathy towards each other, but genuine abhorrence. The internecine squabbles between the three recent captains Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan and Shoaib Malik and the cliques they caused to form within the team were the chief reason for Pakistan's awful performances in Australia last winter, when they lost every single international match they played. The upshot was that all three were banned by the PCB, Yousuf and Younis indefinitely and Malik for a year. Two of them, of course, are now back in the team. The missing man is Younis, who is undoubtedly the player who would make the single biggest difference to the team's fragile batting, despite his poor form for Surrey in the Twenty20 this summer. At least Younis has been playing top-level cricket, Yousuf has only played two club Twenty20 matches since last March.

The PCB'S logic in handing out those bans – such little of it as there was, their innumerable critics would say – was supposed to remain confidential. That plan was scuppered in May, when a video of the player inquiry hearings was leaked to the Geo Super TV station. The Board blamed the players for the leak. Suddenly the extent of the discord inside the dressing room was laid bare for all to see. Malik, it became clear, hated Yousuf. Yousuf hated Malik back in return. Everybody disliked Younis.

So severe was the feuding that Malik was accused of refusing to play for Younis in a warn-up match on tour in New Zealand and for Yousuf in the second Test in Australia. There were strong suggestions that Malik's ally Rana Naved-ul-Hasan (also banned) wilfully underperformed on the pitch just to make Younis' captaincy look bad. Specifically suspicions were aroused by his innings of one run from nine balls while batting at No8 in a T20 match against Australia on 5 February. Pakistan, chasing 128, needed 29 runs from 35 balls and yet ended up two runs shy with a wicket to spare. Rana Naved later insisted that the videos which were leaked had been selectively edited to distort his evidence. Still, Malik was alleged to have led a group of eight players who took an oath of allegiance not to play under Younis' captaincy.

Malik was "like a termite" said one PCB member. "He played politics all the time," says Yousuf in the video, "Former chairman Dr Nasim Ashraf made a big blunder and hurt Pakistan cricket when he appointed Malik captain in 2007 when his place in the side was also not confirmed. This led to other players also believing they could become captain, it set a wrong precedent in Pakistan cricket."

"His captaincy in Australia was pathetic," shot back Malik at Yousuf, "he has no confidence to take decisions." Shahid Afridi was also getting stuck in, accusing Malik of "double-standards" and insisting that he "would not have him in the team" if he was captain.

The root of the spat stretches back to the 2007 World Cup, and the retirement of Inzamam-ul-Haq. Malik, Younis and Yousuf were the three candidates to succeed to the captaincy. Younis turned it down, Yousuf was snubbed and Malik was appointed. He lobbied to have Yousuf dropped from the World Twenty20 team. Yousuf seems never to have forgiven him. Now, of course, both men are back in the same dressing room. In 2009 Malik resigned and Younis took over. When the team won the 2009 World Twenty 2009 under his leadership it looked as though the right man may have been in charge. But Younis does have a remarkable ability to alienate his teammates and the Board members, and he too resigned after being accused of throwing matches by a Pakistani politician. Yousuf took over and things took a turn for the worse.

In the light of all this, the insistence of head coach Waqar Younis and new captain Salman Butt that the time has come to make a clean break from the past and commit to the younger squad who played in the first Test against England seems a sensible policy. The flip side of it is that in doing so they will most likely lose a lot of games along the way. Still, that was a price that the two were willing to pay for long-term progress. And at least the win against Australia at Headingley provided evidence of the team's potential. It is not apparent who is responsible for the flip-flop decision to recall Yousuf, given that both captain and coach were clear that they did not want him in the team.

Teammates do not need to like each other, as Ramprakash pointed out. But active hatred is another thing altogether. Salman Butt will need to be made of strong stuff to lead this mob. The reintroduction of Yousuf may improve his team's batting, but it will do nothing for their morale.

boksmashoffice

Only in Pakistan could this nonsense take place. An outsider looking at this would laughing.

Ramps hit the nail on the head. You don't have to get along. Just shut you mouth, do your talking on the pitch which the batsman have failed to do.

Roll on part 2 of this episode.

Rjd2 wrote: »

Another article from the Guardian explaining the hatred between the older players in great detail



Mark Ramprakash leaned forward and lowered his voice. "I've heard a lot in cricket recently about how we have got to have the right characters in the team, how we have got to gel in the dressing room and have 11 individuals going in the right direction. That is great." He paused and did a quick sweep of the room with his eyes, "But individuals have got to go out and perform. You don't have to love each other and go out for beers and be together 24/7. It doesn't have to be that way. You just need to come together to perform."

Judging by his Test record a cynic would say Ramprakash seems an unlikely sort to be providing psychological insights into what makes a successful team. But at domestic level he has won three Championships and every single limited-overs competition going. He was a key part of two great county teams – Middlesex in the early 90s, and Surrey in the early 2000s. Neither were sides, it seems, where players were expected to get on with each other off the field, only to work together on it.

Pakistan's problems run a little deeper. Their players do not just feel antipathy towards each other, but genuine abhorrence. The internecine squabbles between the three recent captains Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan and Shoaib Malik and the cliques they caused to form within the team were the chief reason for Pakistan's awful performances in Australia last winter, when they lost every single international match they played. The upshot was that all three were banned by the PCB, Yousuf and Younis indefinitely and Malik for a year. Two of them, of course, are now back in the team. The missing man is Younis, who is undoubtedly the player who would make the single biggest difference to the team's fragile batting, despite his poor form for Surrey in the Twenty20 this summer. At least Younis has been playing top-level cricket, Yousuf has only played two club Twenty20 matches since last March.

The PCB'S logic in handing out those bans – such little of it as there was, their innumerable critics would say – was supposed to remain confidential. That plan was scuppered in May, when a video of the player inquiry hearings was leaked to the Geo Super TV station. The Board blamed the players for the leak. Suddenly the extent of the discord inside the dressing room was laid bare for all to see. Malik, it became clear, hated Yousuf. Yousuf hated Malik back in return. Everybody disliked Younis.

So severe was the feuding that Malik was accused of refusing to play for Younis in a warn-up match on tour in New Zealand and for Yousuf in the second Test in Australia. There were strong suggestions that Malik's ally Rana Naved-ul-Hasan (also banned) wilfully underperformed on the pitch just to make Younis' captaincy look bad. Specifically suspicions were aroused by his innings of one run from nine balls while batting at No8 in a T20 match against Australia on 5 February. Pakistan, chasing 128, needed 29 runs from 35 balls and yet ended up two runs shy with a wicket to spare. Rana Naved later insisted that the videos which were leaked had been selectively edited to distort his evidence. Still, Malik was alleged to have led a group of eight players who took an oath of allegiance not to play under Younis' captaincy.

Malik was "like a termite" said one PCB member. "He played politics all the time," says Yousuf in the video, "Former chairman Dr Nasim Ashraf made a big blunder and hurt Pakistan cricket when he appointed Malik captain in 2007 when his place in the side was also not confirmed. This led to other players also believing they could become captain, it set a wrong precedent in Pakistan cricket."

"His captaincy in Australia was pathetic," shot back Malik at Yousuf, "he has no confidence to take decisions." Shahid Afridi was also getting stuck in, accusing Malik of "double-standards" and insisting that he "would not have him in the team" if he was captain.

The root of the spat stretches back to the 2007 World Cup, and the retirement of Inzamam-ul-Haq. Malik, Younis and Yousuf were the three candidates to succeed to the captaincy. Younis turned it down, Yousuf was snubbed and Malik was appointed. He lobbied to have Yousuf dropped from the World Twenty20 team. Yousuf seems never to have forgiven him. Now, of course, both men are back in the same dressing room. In 2009 Malik resigned and Younis took over. When the team won the 2009 World Twenty 2009 under his leadership it looked as though the right man may have been in charge. But Younis does have a remarkable ability to alienate his teammates and the Board members, and he too resigned after being accused of throwing matches by a Pakistani politician. Yousuf took over and things took a turn for the worse.

In the light of all this, the insistence of head coach Waqar Younis and new captain Salman Butt that the time has come to make a clean break from the past and commit to the younger squad who played in the first Test against England seems a sensible policy. The flip side of it is that in doing so they will most likely lose a lot of games along the way. Still, that was a price that the two were willing to pay for long-term progress. And at least the win against Australia at Headingley provided evidence of the team's potential. It is not apparent who is responsible for the flip-flop decision to recall Yousuf, given that both captain and coach were clear that they did not want him in the team.

Teammates do not need to like each other, as Ramprakash pointed out. But active hatred is another thing altogether. Salman Butt will need to be made of strong stuff to lead this mob. The reintroduction of Yousuf may improve his team's batting, but it will do nothing for their morale.

d'Oracle

Too many players thinking they should be captain.
They all think they are untouchable.

Waqar is right.
Boot them all and pick lads who want to play.

Royale with Cheese

Pakistan one down already.

Chances of me seeing any play in 2 weeks time are looking very very slim.

boksmashoffice

The way things are going I reckon England will be batting after Lunch. This is a JOKE. Men againest Boys and why Yousef is not playing is beyond me. He would have done better than Malik, Farhat and Ali put together. They scored a grand total of 0 runs.

Cremated

To be fair, Malik scored 3 runs ,

it's beyond words how bad they are...

boksmashoffice

Apologies to Mr Malik he did score 3.

Cremated wrote: »

To be fair, Malik scored 3 runs ,

it's beyond words how bad they are...

Rjd2

Cremated wrote: »

To be fair, Malik scored 3 runs ,

it's beyond words how bad they are...

And those three runs may be crucial..:pac:

Farhat and Ali's knock were dismal, nothing wrong with protecting your wickets but lads you have to score runs. Butt was way to negative as well. Umar the only player who looked like he could score runs really should have appealed his dismissal as it probably would have been overturned.

They probably should not have batted first really. :pac:

Broad has been very good I must say, some of his deliveries would have troubled much superior batsman so well done to him.

D3PO

what a sham. How can the ICC sit behind their reason not to include Ireland in test match cricket when Pakistan can perform the way they are.

ICC 2 division structure with a test match championship please

Div 1

Australia
India
Sri Lanka
England
South Africa
New Zealand

Div 2

Pakistan
West Indies
Bangladesh
Zimbabwe
Ireland
Associate Select (Best of Scotland, Holland, Afganistan etc)

Home & Away series in each country (spread over a 2 year period). top side plays bottom side to decide promotion / relegation.