There is a lot of discussion on other threads here about Woolmer's attributes and the positive changes brought in by him into the Pakistani set-up, so I thought it a good idea to start a separate thread on how we all think he is dong.

My feeling is that most Pakistani supporteres, not just here, but also in Pakistan (eg the hundreds who contribute to his web-site) and elsewhere, agree that Woolmer needs a lot more time. Good Test players are not manufactured overnight, and it takes even longer to mould good players into competitive teams. At the moment, apart from two exceptions, we do not even have any good players, chaps who would be contenders to play in the other quality Test teams around (India, England, SL). The two exceptions are of course Inzamam and Shoaib, but both are nearing the twilight of their careers, and though they are both miles ahead of the alternatives, their best days are definitely behind them.

Hence, making Pakistan competitive is a tall order; first BW needs to coach some good quality Test players, and the raw materials are there in the likes of Shoaib Malik, Razzaq, Sami, Kaneria, Salman Butt, Hasan Raza, Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Umar Gul and Shabbir. The next stage, after maybe 2-3 years, would to make the good Test players into a team which is more than the sum of its parts, and which works together, fights together and wins together as a unit, each player feeding off and benefitting from his fellow players.

All this requires time. Shahryar Khan, to his credit, recognises this and many Pakistani supporters agree with him. What do we all think?

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