Pakistan squad for one day series

[workkey]

One-day Squad
Salman Butt, Younis Khan (vice-capt), Inzamam-ul Haq (capt), Yousuf Youhana, Asim Kamal, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Mohammed Hafeez, Abdul Razzaq, Kamran Akmal (wk), Shahid Nazir, Rana Naved-ul Hasan, Mohammed Sami, Danish Kaneria, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Arshad Khan.

No shoaib akhtar and shabbir and also very surprised on the ommision of yasir hameed..
What are your views

[Zainub]

I sometimes think our selectors just pick 16 players from the top of their mind when they should be actually first picking an eleven and then adding cover for key positions like opening bats, middle order bats, all rounders and bowlers.

Just Look at this squad.

There is just 1 opener:
Salman Butt

There are on the other hand as many as 5 top to middle order bats:
Younis Khan, Inzamam-ul Haq, Yousuf Youhana, Asim Kamal and Shoaib Malik (who are we going to leave out?)

Then comes the 4 all rounders:
Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq and Kamran Akmal (w/k, batsman)

And finally the barage of bowlers:
Shahid Nazir, Rana Naved-ul Hasan, Mohammed Sami, Danish Kaneria, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Arshad Khan.

7 bowlers and just 1 genuine opener? I know Hafeez is supposedly a genuine opener, but he has been terribly unsuccessful at the international level with the bat, his bowling though is more then a handful, which perhaps justifies his inclusion in the squad. But someone like Arshad Khan could have easily been left out for a genuine opener (like Yasir Hameed) IMHO, that would give the squad much more balance.

[Shaka]

I don't understand why Yasir Hameed isn't in the squad ahead of Asim Kamal. Asim is a good test player but we have plenty of better options to play in the middle order for ODI's. Arshad Khan shouldn't be there either, Hafeez will be providing the spin option I would have thought.

[Zainub]

Another failure for Mohammad Hafeez at the top of the order, he made just 11 in our only warm up game that againt India A. Pakistan are currently well placed at 147-1 chasing 190 to win. Both Butt and Malik are unbeaten having crossed the 50 run mark and seemingly playing very well. Everytime I hear Malik's name any where I'm reminded of the fact that despite repeated attempts by the team and Shoaib him self that he isn't a chucker he still isn't allowed to bowl. And needless to say that annoys me no end, every time.


We have we gone back to the neo green [] kit of the 1999 world cup ...oh why oh why ???

[workkey]

i read in a newspaper that yasir has been held back...is that true

[Maranello]

Yes I read an article stating exactly that. Inzi had asked Shehryar Khan at Bangalore that he wanted Yasir to stay back, and SK Khan squared it with Bari. Good move by Inzi, as always

[King Aragorn]

I'm afraid it was not to be so.

According to the latest reports, Yasir Hameed will indeed be sent back to Pakistan because otherwise the squad limit would be exceeded...

Malik was unstoppable today. His performance today again shows how important a player he is for Pakistan, even as a mere batsman. I do wish though that the ICC would clear his action as soon as possible because otherwise the balance of the team is disturbed.

Zainub,

Four players in the current squad can opener: Butt, Akmal, Hafeez and Afridi.

Yes, they are no specialists, bar one, but at least two of them are very much capable of fireworks (and more). I agree that Hafeez is a burden on the squad, if only Malik could bowl! But Akmal performed well as an opener even in Australia and I am sure he can do so here as well. And Afridi has of course been in blazing form. He will most probably be played somewhere at positions 6-8 but Afridi as an opener is a good option because the pitches will be flat and there won't be too much swing to trouble Afridi early on.

Did anyone see the match live though? Who was more impresive today - Shahid Nazir or Rao Iftikhar?

[workkey]

yes thats right yasir is back home ..

[Zainub]

Yes, after a series of keep him, send him scenarios, he is finally back. And I presume he will be playing in the Patron's cup as well.

I don't think the our warm up match was televised. But from all that I have read Rana Naved ul Hasan bowled particularly well with the new ball.

I agree that Malik not being able to bowl does hamper team balance, it makes the task of picking an 11 very difficult.He's a very good batsman, and looking to be in good form.

I also agree with Shaka on Asim Kamal. I'm not in favor of the theory that says that every successful test batsmen MUST be tried out at one-day level. Some players (even in this modern age of cricket) are best kept specialist in one form. We might have to do that to Shoaib Malik (for one-days) and Asim Kamal (for tests).

KA, I know we have plenty of options for openers, and ones that have been really successful too in the recent past. But I'm still thinking we should have at least 2 genuine options in our squad in case any of the nonspecialist ones or the sole specialist Butt gets injuried or desperately out of form. I would probably have sent Asim Kamal or Arshad Khan back home and kept Yasir Hameed.