23 probables undergo fitness tests at National Cricket Academy ahead of World Cup squad announcement

[The Viper]

A few baffling selections like Yasir, Abbas and Nawaz. But they most likely won't be picked anyway.

[Chokli]

· Sarfaraz Ahmed (captain)
· Babar Azam
· Faheem Ashraf
· Fakhar Zaman
· Haris Sohail
· Hassan Ali
· Imad Wasim
· Imam-ul-Haq
· Mohammad Amir
· Mohammad Hafeez
· Mohammad Rizwan
· Shadab Khan
· Shaheen Shah Afridi
· Shoaib Malik
· Usman Shinwari

the World Cup squad

[Hawkeye]

I'm not too fond of Umar Akmal but this is just too harsh on him. Nawaz, Abbas and yasir shah have been selected over him.that's just disrespectful

The guy scored a 136* and a 99 in the space of a few days with a strike rate of 120+. He also had a successful PSL campaign just about a month ago. He's here to stay. What did Shoaib Malik do in these last few months that makes his automatically better than Umar Akmal?

Well said.

Umar is our only hope for getting to 300 or above score.


With Imam, Malik, Sarfraz, Rizwan, Nawaz, Imad, all we're looking at is a maximum of 250-260 per match.

Many of the PPers do not have this insight, they do not this way. They're inspired by the 80s/90s brand of cricket and are always rooting for Malik, Fawad Alam, Khushdil, Amir Yamin, Sahibzada Farhan.


Umar is the heaviest scorer in recent times, has shown he's the only one capable of hitting boundaries at will on good batting surfaces.

Pakistan just reduced their chances by 30-40%.

Miracle to even reach the semis with this accumulator galore. We're back to 1992!

[Hawkeye]

Fakhar, Hafeez, Babar (playing at above 90 strike rate).

If these three do not fire, we're 100% out of the tournament in the first stage.

Umar Akmal was a must addition to this accumulator galore.

[Forum363]

Fakhar, Hafeez, Babar (playing at above 90 strike rate).

If these three do not fire, we're 100% out of the tournament in the first stage.

Umar Akmal was a must addition to this accumulator galore.

Rohit, Dhawan, Kohli, if these 3 dont fire India are 100% out in the first stage.

[Forum363]

Well said.

Umar is our only hope for getting to 300 or above score.


With Imam, Malik, Sarfraz, Rizwan, Nawaz, Imad, all we're looking at is a maximum of 250-260 per match.

Many of the PPers do not have this insight, they do not this way. They're inspired by the 80s/90s brand of cricket and are always rooting for Malik, Fawad Alam, Khushdil, Amir Yamin, Sahibzada Farhan.


Umar is the heaviest scorer in recent times, has shown he's the only one capable of hitting boundaries at will on good batting surfaces.

Pakistan just reduced their chances by 30-40%.

Miracle to even reach the semis with this accumulator galore. We're back to 1992!

Why didn’t Umar help us get to 300 this series despite batting higher up and having tons of overs against an Australia B bowling attack? Oh yeah it was the slow pitches (the same pitches he was making runs for fun in PSL). Any other excuses for his rubbish international performance?

[Hawkeye]

Rohit, Dhawan, Kohli, if these 3 dont fire India are 100% out in the first stage.

Yes, and Umar is our Dhawan/Rohit.

Your hate for him is masking your judgment. It's unbelievable that a person with some cricketing IQ would be okay with Malik, Sarfraz, Nawaz and Rizwan being preferred over Umar Akmal.

It's useless to reply to your posts.

[Forum363]

Yes, and Umar is our Dhawan/Rohit.

Your hate for him is masking your judgment. It's unbelievable that a person with some cricketing IQ would be okay with Malik, Sarfraz, Nawaz and Rizwan being preferred over Umar Akmal.

It's useless to reply to your posts.

You have never managed to back up your opinion with anything. It is amazing that someone with any cricketing iq would compare umar akmal with dhawan/ rohit...

Rizwan and Malik shouldnt be in the squad. However Malik has won us games in the past, is a brilliant fielder and was a decent ODI cricketer at some point. But still he’s past it and shouldnt be playing. Rizwan played the recent series, same conditions as Umar and scored runs at a decent rate. I think he is a limited batsmen and a terrible keeper but hes ahead of a failure like Akmal. Nawaz has no chance of making the squad. Sarfaraz is the captain, i can debate that in a seperate thread.

Now please explain why Umar is better than so many players yet has not shown it? If you manage to do it without sweeping statements like he is dynamic and can take on the bowling, i will agree with you.

[asma_cricfan]

Lol for junior joker's fan boys.

The guy just failed in 5 matches against Australia B team that too on UAE pitches.

Today's match, he scored against a mighty attack consist of 40 years old umar gul and b cat bowlers rahat and amin and new bowlers.

Intl cricket is no joke. WC is the biggest tournament not a bench test series against a b team.

He is fully responsible for his own demise.

[Chokli]

You have never managed to back up your opinion with anything. It is amazing that someone with any cricketing iq would compare umar akmal with dhawan/ rohit...

Rizwan and Malik shouldnt be in the squad. However Malik has won us games in the past, is a brilliant fielder and was a decent ODI cricketer at some point. But still he’s past it and shouldnt be playing. Rizwan played the recent series, same conditions as Umar and scored runs at a decent rate. I think he is a limited batsmen and a terrible keeper but hes ahead of a failure like Akmal. Nawaz has no chance of making the squad. Sarfaraz is the captain, i can debate that in a seperate thread.

Now please explain why Umar is better than so many players yet has not shown it? If you manage to do it without sweeping statements like he is dynamic and can take on the bowling, i will agree with you.

Dhawan I agree with but Rohit no.

Rohit was even worse in the middle order than Umar Akmal...We only know of the current Rohit Sharma when he was made to open the innings.

Malik is a liability, his average in England is 13 and the only matches he's helped us win was against Afghanistan.

Umar didn't take his chances but I think he should be tried as opener, not now obviously since it's too late but maybe after the World Cup.

[GreenKhan]

Well said.

Umar is our only hope for getting to 300 or above score.


With Imam, Malik, Sarfraz, Rizwan, Nawaz, Imad, all we're looking at is a maximum of 250-260 per match.

Many of the PPers do not have this insight, they do not this way. They're inspired by the 80s/90s brand of cricket and are always rooting for Malik, Fawad Alam, Khushdil, Amir Yamin, Sahibzada Farhan.


Umar is the heaviest scorer in recent times, has shown he's the only one capable of hitting boundaries at will on good batting surfaces.

Pakistan just reduced their chances by 30-40%.

Miracle to even reach the semis with this accumulator galore. We're back to 1992!

Umar Akmal had 5 matches to prove him self , and was completely out gunned by his peers . He could not even manage a 50 in a series where two batsman scored 100s!

What is a good batting surface ? The recent series was a high scoring one but he managed an average of 30. Now just because the World Cup is in England he is all of a sudden going to become a world beater!

He failed in 2015 World Cup as well on “ good batting surfaces “.

Umar Akmal has a List average of 34 and a only 6 hundreds In over 200 games because quite frankly that is level .
Asif Ali may not set the world alight but neither as Akmal and I do believe English pitches will suit Asif

[Cric_lover4487]

Pak won CT without Umar. Don’t think they are gonna miss Umar. Once Sarfaraz is back he will play the finisher role.

[gazza619]

Dont like the list

[Ronaldo7]

Pak won CT without Umar. Don’t think they are gonna miss Umar. Once Sarfaraz is back he will play the finisher role.

How many times did we score above 250?

I can only recall the final that's it. We nearly lost the match against sl. People really need to forget the ct. Move on. The world cup is only 3 months away.

[logicsupreme]

The definition of madness of doing something again and again and expecting a different result.

Umar has been given considerable chances at the international level. Despite his positive start and obvious talent - his performance level has not been satisfactory, his fitness is awful and he has disciplinary issues. For these reasons he has been dropped. At the domestic level, his poor technique, fitness issues and bad discipline has less of n effect and he is able to get runs. As such, he gets selected despite no visible improvement in fitness or technique or game awareness.

This leads to failure at the international level. So he is dropped. He goes back and scores runs at domestic level and uneducated impulsive fans along with the media ask for his inclusion and so he’s given another chance. He fails again...goes back to domestic and scores run...and......


You get the idea. He has had enough chances. I believe his career is done because his attitude stinks and he will never improve.

As for Malik, he is the least deserving member of the likely squad that will travel to England. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

Couldn't agree with the Akmal description more. Why are people calling for his inclusion when he fails time after time. I mean especailly after this series, how can you possibly ask for his inclusion after his performance. Let's not even bring hsi discipline into the fray.
If he couldn't score on batting wickets against avg bowling how does he warrant a spot? It is unfortunate that nobody else has made that spot his own. Hopefully Asif Ali or somebody like Sohaib Maqsood can make it there.

[Bilal7]

I wanted Akmal to make the squad but it is understandable why he wasn't considered. He has no one to blame but himself and that dumb concert. No surprise that Inzamam wasn't impressed by Wahab Riaz's performance in the UAE and Pakistan. We all remember what he did at the CT two years ago and there is nothing to suggest that Riaz is a better bowler now.

All in all, a good pool of players to choose from. Shah and Nawaz making the 23 shows how shallow our spin stocks are.

[Bilal7]

How many times did we score above 250?

I can only recall the final that's it. We nearly lost the match against sl. People really need to forget the ct. Move on. The world cup is only 3 months away.

Why do we need to be scoring 300 in every match when we won the CT without doing so?

[Bilal7]

Yes, and Umar is our Dhawan/Rohit.

Your hate for him is masking your judgment. It's unbelievable that a person with some cricketing IQ would be okay with Malik, Sarfraz, Nawaz and Rizwan being preferred over Umar Akmal.

It's useless to reply to your posts.

You're speaking solely based on his performance without taking into account his behaviour. The management clearly want nothing to do with Akmal and his antics during the most important month of their careers. You cannot fault them for that. You should however, fault Akmal for throwing it all away.

[aloo paratha]

How many times did we score above 250?

I can only recall the final that's it. We nearly lost the match against sl. People really need to forget the ct. Move on. The world cup is only 3 months away.

We bowled first in every other match. Barring the opening India game, we never had to chase a total over 250.

[Cric1234]

There's a number of players who's selections are questionable at least:

Yasir
Abbas
Faheem
Nawaz
Malik
Shan
Imam

It would be interesting to know their strengths and how they can contribute to making match winning contributions in ODIs there are others who also just do enough but still making match losing innings.

[Bilal7]

There's a number of players who's selections are questionable at least:

Yasir
Abbas
Faheem
Nawaz
Malik
Shan
Imam

It would be interesting to know their strengths and how they can contribute to making match winning contributions in ODIs there are others who also just do enough but still making match losing innings.

Shan is one of the best domestic performers, Abbas has been selected on potential, Faheem has done well in the past, Imam? Seriously? The guy averages 60 in ODIs.

[Cric1234]

Shan is one of the best domestic performers, Abbas has been selected on potential, Faheem has done well in the past, Imam? Seriously? The guy averages 60 in ODIs.

Shan has done well in domestics but his strike rate suggests long term he is another anchor type batsman Abbas has been selected on potential what exactly 125kph length bowling on flat wickets?
Faheem might have done well at some point but I've missed it remind me and Imam averages 54 it's dropping quickly minus minnows he's a 75 strike rate player losing more matches with his batting as an opener than winning.

[PakLFC]

I think it's farewell to Umar Akmal now. Although he did okay versus the Aussies being caught again in some concert could mean the end of his WC dreams.

[Ronaldo7]

We bowled first in every other match. Barring the opening India game, we never had to chase a total over 250.

I was rather referring to our ability towards chasing 300+ totals. Our bowling saved us in the CT. But that isn't going to happen everytime especially if it is against a strong team.

[Ronaldo7]

I think it's farewell to Umar Akmal now. Although he did okay versus the Aussies being caught again in some concert could mean the end of his WC dreams.

But would you really take asif ali over him?

[PakLFC]

But would you really take asif ali over him?

Probably neither. We still have time to find someone else. Thing with Asif Ali is that he could provide some much needed lower order firepower that we lack.

[Ronaldo7]

Shan has done well in domestics but his strike rate suggests long term he is another anchor type batsman Abbas has been selected on potential what exactly 125kph length bowling on flat wickets?
Faheem might have done well at some point but I've missed it remind me and Imam averages 54 it's dropping quickly minus minnows he's a 75 strike rate player losing more matches with his batting as an opener than winning.

I can't believe how many people i've seen talking about imam's average. Look at his strike rate. He's born in the wrong era. Tbh he wouldn't even fit in the 90s with a strike rate of 75. The guy has a strike rate of 76 in List a.
And get this.
In the 30 matches he played in list a before his debut he only had ONE CENTURY. It's obvious why people call him a nepotistic player.

Compare that with Shan Masood. Averages 54 at a strike rate of 81 and has 10+ centuries. People are already discarding him. Like what?
What did Imam do in against aus? Inzi knew imam's ability and sneaked him out of the squad to prevent further embarrassment.

[NoBallZombie]

Probably neither. We still have time to find someone else. Thing with Asif Ali is that he could provide some much needed lower order firepower that we lack.

Asif Ali should definitely be above Umar Akmal in the pecking order. People forget that he has not half as many chances as Akmal Jr has got and he has probably been more impactful in the limited opportunities he has got. AFAIK he has had one bad series. Asif definitely deserves some more time to show his potential. And it is not like we have more hard-hitters waiting in the dug out.

[Angrez Pakistani]

Umar Khan should have been selected over Nawaz.

[hasanali22]

Did you ever watch Inzamam play? and im not talking about youtube videos. Ludicrious to suggest the runs IUH made didnt benefit pakistan.

[criclove34]

Highest score in Pakistan Cup so far 229 run (170 ball) not included is injustice. Umar Akmal was 3rd highest score in AUS series batting at no. 5.

[sjahmed23]

Hasnain who is atleast 2 years away from being an international quality bowler is in the training camp, but no Rauf who has looked like the superior bowler every time. Mashallah Inzi

He doesn't like bowlers with attitude problems, it reminds him of Akhtar days.

[aloo paratha]

I was rather referring to our ability towards chasing 300+ totals. Our bowling saved us in the CT. But that isn't going to happen everytime especially if it is against a strong team.

So then what was the point of referring to the CT? It didn't prove your point.

[badsha001]

i don't have the stats with me but i'm pretty sure Umar Akmal outscored some of the other batsmen in the team who made it to the list. Both Umar Akmal and Asif Ali are required in the team followed by Faheem Ashraf, Shadab, Hasan Ali to further support the batting...

[TeamPak95]

· Sarfaraz Ahmed (captain)
· Babar Azam
· Faheem Ashraf
· Fakhar Zaman
· Haris Sohail
· Hassan Ali
· Imad Wasim
· Imam-ul-Haq
· Mohammad Amir
· Mohammad Hafeez
· Mohammad Rizwan
· Shadab Khan
· Shaheen Shah Afridi
· Shoaib Malik
· Usman Shinwari

the World Cup squad

The most predictable squad, I'd say. If one of the openers got injured, who in the squad would you say is a good replacement?

[Slim]

Probably neither. We still have time to find someone else. Thing with Asif Ali is that he could provide some much needed lower order firepower that we lack.

That firepower being 6(3).

[Mujtaba2900]

Babar Azam .He Opens In T20 Haris at 3.
Faheem Is Wicket taker Don't know why people Don't Like Him.
Imad Scores In Recent Mathes .Includes 2 matches He batted against South Africa.
1.43*(23)
2.47*(31)
3.28*(13)
4.19*(10)
5.43(53)
6.1.(5)
7.50(34)

His bowling average is decent if used. Properly .it's Not fair on him if he don't know his bowling role in team sometime u use him to open bowling attack . Sometime from 11th over .

[IMMY69]

The guy scored a 136* and a 99 in the space of a few days with a strike rate of 120+. He also had a successful PSL campaign just about a month ago. He's here to stay. What did Shoaib Malik do in these last few months that makes his automatically better than Umar Akmal?

Whilst I agree that Shoiab Malik should not be selected I can see the merit in having an experienced head in the squad. Trust me it pains me to say this as the only thing he has going for him is experience and a professional attitude towards training and fitness.

Umar Akmal on the other hand is a proven disruptive individual who lacks the brains to do consistently well in International Cricket. The last person you would want walking out there when 80 or 90 runs are required. This is despite his slogging saying off in recent domestic matches.

[Sytariq]

In place of Yasir shah and Abbas there should be Umeer Khan and Wahab

[Mirpur express]

To all the Umar Akmal lovers... GET OVER IT.

[Arsalan Pro]

Shan Masood
Mohammad Nawaz
Yasir Shah
Mohammad Abbas

These 4 players have no chance of making it to the WC Squad, it means the 15 will be selected out of the 19 other members.

[SensiblePakFan]

To all the Umar Akmal lovers... GET OVER IT.

You might want to tone down your expectations

[Shafi]

Shan Masood
Mohammad Nawaz
Yasir Shah
Mohammad Abbas

These 4 players have no chance of making it to the WC Squad, it means the 15 will be selected out of the 19 other members.

With Inzamam you will never know. He may choose these 4 players and take 11 out of other 15. We don't know what type of behind door agreement has made.

[the Great Khan]

umar Akmal is the greatest player to ever play for Pakistan. Never have I seen a player that hits just beautiful shots without actually connecting with the ball..lol..equivalent of an air guitarist..

[the Great Khan]

With Inzamam you will never know. He may choose these 4 players and take 11 out of other 15. We don't know what type of behind door agreement has made.

Inzi has done a good job..i suggest you go back and see how past selectors have been e.g. iqbal Qasim..just do a search on pp for Iqbal qasim..

[Shafi]

Inzi has done a good job..i suggest you go back and see how past selectors have been e.g. iqbal Qasim..just do a search on pp for Iqbal qasim..

He could have selected Umer Khan, Haris Rauf, Saud Shakil/ Saad Ali in those probable lists.

[Bilal7]

He could have selected Umer Khan, Haris Rauf, Saud Shakil/ Saad Ali in those probable lists.

Inzamam does not have to make you or anyone else happy. Umer Khan has done absolutely nothing in his career thus far to deserve being selected for the WC, Haris Rauf is not ready yet either, if you don't believe Inzamam, ask Mickey. As for Saad Ali, he got his chance albeit in only two matches, and couldn't take it. The blame lies with him.

[Sultan Baba]

20 players are good but me make 3 changes............
Imam ul Haq out Umar Akmal in......
Shan Masood out Umar Amin in......
Mohammad Nawaz out Anwar Ali in.....

[amvbfm]

I want to know Sir @Mamoon's take on this.

So they finally knighted @Mamoon for his invaluable services to the cause of spreading awareness about how useless the Pakistan team is/was/will be? Highly deserved too :p

Don't see why people are surprised at this list knowing Mickey, Inzi and Sarfaraz's conservatism. Moreover, barring injuries, i am sure the squad has already been finalized and the remaining 8 are just there to make up the numbers. As for Akmal, he is his own worst enemy and probably deserved to be axed for his antics, if not for his fitness and attitude. His Pakistan Cup performances notwithstanding, his supporters need to admit that he is just not fit (physically or mentally) to play international cricket.

[JibranAnsari]

Did not umar akmal just play 5 odis in a row and got out every single time slogging? Averaged 30 and its not like his SR was 130 plus.

Guys , get over him.

[Markhor]

Highest score in Pakistan Cup so far 229 run (170 ball) not included is injustice. Umar Akmal was 3rd highest score in AUS series batting at no. 5.

Would that be the same series we lost 5-0 where he kept giving his wicket after making starts, and then broke a curfew despite numerous past disciplinary infractions ?

[Shafi]

Inzamam does not have to make you or anyone else happy. Umer Khan has done absolutely nothing in his career thus far to deserve being selected for the WC, Haris Rauf is not ready yet either, if you don't believe Inzamam, ask Mickey. As for Saad Ali, he got his chance albeit in only two matches, and couldn't take it. The blame lies with him.

I didn't say Inzamam has to make me happy.
What Yasir, Abbas etc had done to be in the probable list?

Also, Micky is not that smart as he pretend to be. He took 1 spinner (Yasir) in spin friendly pitch against Sri Lanka where Sri Lanka played 3 spinners, so we got whitewashed by a weak team.

Same thing he did against Australia and NZ. We were lucky to win over Australia but lost to NZ.

Hasnain is not ready yet and went for plenty against Australia
But both Hasnain and Rauf should play in that series along with Umer Khan and Saud Shakil so we could have better idea about our bench strength.
Both Yasir and Abbas were waste!!!!

[Markhor]

I didn't say Inzamam has to make me happy.
What Yasir, Abbas etc had done to be in the probable list?

Also, Micky is not that smart as he pretend to be. He took 1 spinner (Yasir) in spin friendly pitch against Sri Lanka where Sri Lanka played 3 spinners, so we got whitewashed by a weak team.

Same thing he did against Australia and NZ. We were lucky to win over Australia but lost to NZ.

Hasnain is not ready yet and went for plenty against Australia
But both Hasnain and Rauf should play in that series along with Umer Khan and Saud Shakil so we could have better idea about our bench strength.
Both Yasir and Abbas were waste!!!!

If Sarfraz had showed some responsibility and leadership for once as captain in the two Abu Dhabi chases - we would've drawn against SL and beaten NZ.

[HGhazanfar]

Inzamam does not have to make you or anyone else happy. Umer Khan has done absolutely nothing in his career thus far to deserve being selected for the WC, Haris Rauf is not ready yet either, if you don't believe Inzamam, ask Mickey. As for Saad Ali, he got his chance albeit in only two matches, and couldn't take it. The blame lies with him.

Saad Ali should never have been slected to begin with if you were going to play him at 6. Rather they gave Asif Ali, Iftikhar or Khushdil the 6 to fight out a spot against Umar Akmal. Pathetic thinking from Inzimam.

[Chokli]

If Sarfraz had showed some responsibility and leadership for once as captain in the two Abu Dhabi chases - we would've drawn against SL and beaten NZ.

Still doesn't justify them not selecting proper spinners

[Chokli]

1.Imam Ul Haq
2.Fakhar Zaman
3.Babar Azam
4.Haris Sohail
5.Sarfraz Ahmed
6.Mohammad Hafeez
7.Imad Wasim
8.Shadab Khan
9.Hasan Ali
10.Mohammad Amir
11.Shaheen Afridi

Ideally Rizwan comes in for Sarfraz... but we need to keep the passenger in the team.

[Dr_Bassim]

The fact that Umar is heavily scoring in domestics but fails to average more than 30-35 in internationals tells us more than anything, that the gap between domestics and internationals is much larger in Pakistan than one would believe.

If you feed Umar in his areas, he will create havoc.

However, nearly every international bowler has worked out that if you keep Umar quiet for 4-6 balls and maximum around 12 balls, he will inadvertently get ready to play that hoick that will seal his fate for rest of the match.

The only difference is that local players haven't figured this out and keep losing patience and the skills aren't there to exploit this weakness.

This is the reason for such a discrepancy in his statistics.

[logicsupreme]

It seems to me after reading this thread that people are so desperate for a lower order hitter that they are blinded by U Akmal. A lifetime has gone by people wishing for what he 'can' do instead of what he does do. Can you really expect a person of his past record and disciplinary issues to be selected after the performance against AUS?
People will blame the PCB, the selectors the coach but its his fault. He doesn't have the discipline or fire to play for Pak. Focus on giving Asif Ali or another batsmen a go!

[Hasan123]

Inzamam does not have to make you or anyone else happy. Umer Khan has done absolutely nothing in his career thus far to deserve being selected for the WC, Haris Rauf is not ready yet either, if you don't believe Inzamam, ask Mickey. As for Saad Ali, he got his chance albeit in only two matches, and couldn't take it. The blame lies with him.

You literally don’t make sense. Umer Khan hasn’t done anything to be selected but what has Yasir Shah done to be selected in ODIs other than be beaten black and blue by batters? Also Saad Ali is more of a test player but he has been selected in ODIs.

Genius from your favourite selector. The problem with you is if Inzi selects someone you find ways to defend it but when someone who deserves to be selected isn’t , you defend Inzi. Why can’t you just be objective? Why it is your personal goal to defend someone who doesn’t even know you exist?

[b.lesner]

Do you see them in the list, god damn it?

Ahm ahm you were saying something

Brilliant 153 by khushdil today with 140+ strike rate

[Jeetlodil]

It is a mistake not to take Umar Akmal. He is the number 5 Pakistan needs. He has the ability, has experience which any newcomer will not have. He has played 2 world cups.

Always can be kicked out after WC.

On a lighter note, bowlers will be happy to see Asif Ali (LOL) walking in than Umar Akmal

[Bilal7]

Saad Ali should never have been slected to begin with if you were going to play him at 6. Rather they gave Asif Ali, Iftikhar or Khushdil the 6 to fight out a spot against Umar Akmal. Pathetic thinking from Inzimam.

Yet another person who does not understand where the responsibility of the CS ends and where the job of the coach and captain begins. Inzamam does not hand out batting positions, he selects the squad. The team is chosen by the team management and yes, Saad batting below Rizwan wasn't a very good decision.

I didn't say Inzamam has to make me happy.
What Yasir, Abbas etc had done to be in the probable list?

Also, Micky is not that smart as he pretend to be. He took 1 spinner (Yasir) in spin friendly pitch against Sri Lanka where Sri Lanka played 3 spinners, so we got whitewashed by a weak team.

Same thing he did against Australia and NZ. We were lucky to win over Australia but lost to NZ.

Hasnain is not ready yet and went for plenty against Australia
But both Hasnain and Rauf should play in that series along with Umer Khan and Saud Shakil so we could have better idea about our bench strength.
Both Yasir and Abbas were waste!!!!

Mohammad Abbas was a good selection. We needed to see if he was ready for ODIs after his stellar start in test cricket. He is in his prime right now while Umer, Hasnain and Rauf have a lot more to do to be ready for international cricket. This is the WC, not age group cricket.

We have far better pace bowlers than those two and although Shadab and Imad are not world beaters, they have a better chance at success in England than some newbie who's only claim to fame is a couple of matches in the PSL.

You literally don’t make sense. Umer Khan hasn’t done anything to be selected but what has Yasir Shah done to be selected in ODIs other than be beaten black and blue by batters? Also Saad Ali is more of a test player but he has been selected in ODIs.

Genius from your favourite selector. The problem with you is if Inzi selects someone you find ways to defend it but when someone who deserves to be selected isn’t , you defend Inzi. Why can’t you just be objective? Why it is your personal goal to defend someone who doesn’t even know you exist?

How does Yasir Shah's selection justify Umer Khan's selection? Selecting Shah was a bad call, yet you are upset that Inzamam did not make two bad calls with spinners?

Also, I'm quite objective about our selectors. It is you who is biased and irrational regarding them. There are bound to be a couple of bad selections by anyone, we are all human after all. However, you seem to be living in a fairy-land where the only people who should be making the team are 21-year old Wasim Akrams and Sachin Tendulkers.

[PakLFC]

That firepower being 6(3).

What do you mean firepower being 6?

[Hasan123]

Yet another person who does not understand where the responsibility of the CS ends and where the job of the coach and captain begins. Inzamam does not hand out batting positions, he selects the squad. The team is chosen by the team management and yes, Saad batting below Rizwan wasn't a very good decision.



Mohammad Abbas was a good selection. We needed to see if he was ready for ODIs after his stellar start in test cricket. He is in his prime right now while Umer, Hasnain and Rauf have a lot more to do to be ready for international cricket. This is the WC, not age group cricket.

We have far better pace bowlers than those two and although Shadab and Imad are not world beaters, they have a better chance at success in England than some newbie who's only claim to fame is a couple of matches in the PSL.



How does Yasir Shah's selection justify Umer Khan's selection? Selecting Shah was a bad call, yet you are upset that Inzamam did not make two bad calls with spinners?

Also, I'm quite objective about our selectors. It is you who is biased and irrational regarding them. There are bound to be a couple of bad selections by anyone, we are all human after all. However, you seem to be living in a fairy-land where the only people who should be making the team are 21-year old Wasim Akrams and Sachin Tendulkers.

To be honest I am not that upset about Umer Khan not being selected because Imad is there and you don't want to left arm spinners. But Yasir Shah is a proven failure in LO cricket . On what basis was he selected? You still have not answered that.

You are not objective about selectors at all LOL. Whatever Inzi does you will defend. For instance had Inzi not selected Imam you would be waxing lyrical about him not selecting him.

I never said I want only players under the age of 21 to be selected. Nice deflection tactic. You specialise in that. You completely ignored my point of Saad Ali being a test player who played in ODIs.

[Ronaldo7]

The fact that Umar is heavily scoring in domestics but fails to average more than 30-35 in internationals tells us more than anything, that the gap between domestics and internationals is much larger in Pakistan than one would believe.

If you feed Umar in his areas, he will create havoc.

However, nearly every international bowler has worked out that if you keep Umar quiet for 4-6 balls and maximum around 12 balls, he will inadvertently get ready to play that hoick that will seal his fate for rest of the match.

The only difference is that local players haven't figured this out and keep losing patience and the skills aren't there to exploit this weakness.

This is the reason for such a discrepancy in his statistics.

Not really. He's played 80 list a matches (barring internationals) and has only made 2700 runs. This spark in his batting in domestic is new. If you look at his domestic performances in One days over the years they've been not great.
So it is not correct to say he's a bully in domestic cricket. He's been equally bad in both international and domestic cricket.

[Bilal7]

What do you mean firepower being 6?

He means that Asif Ali will rarely last more than a few deliveries which is correct. He is not an ODI player yet.

To be honest I am not that upset about Umer Khan not being selected because Imad is there and you don't want to left arm spinners. But Yasir Shah is a proven failure in LO cricket . On what basis was he selected? You still have not answered that.

You are not objective about selectors at all LOL. Whatever Inzi does you will defend. For instance had Inzi not selected Imam you would be waxing lyrical about him not selecting him.

I never said I want only players under the age of 21 to be selected. Nice deflection tactic. You specialise in that. You completely ignored my point of Saad Ali being a test player who played in ODIs.

Dude, seriously. Learn to read. There is no defending Yasir Shah's selection on my end, he should not be part of the ODI team. Like I said, no one is perfect. Also, Shah is not going to make the WC squad because Inzamam, unlike our previous selectors, learns from his mistakes. If Inzamam did not select a batsman who averages 60 in ODIs, I would be critical of that too. Stop pretending like you know what I would or would not do. It makes you look silly.

I ignored it because I did want to embarrass you further but it seems like you're in the mood for a phainty. Saad Ali is a 25-year old who averages around 45 in List 'A' cricket at a SR of 85, along with having pretty decent numbers in T20s as well. Only an idiot would say that such a player is a "test player" who did not deserve the opportunity to be show what he had. You can be cheap and say that him failing proves that he should not have been selected because you have the benefit of hindsight, but any unbiased person would see that it was definitely not a wrong call at the time. I hope Saad receives more opportunities in the future in all formats.

[aloo paratha]

Did not umar akmal just play 5 odis in a row and got out every single time slogging? Averaged 30 and its not like his SR was 130 plus.

Guys , get over him.

But, but he just scored 1 century and a 99 against some random nobodies. I think we should bring him back because he is a dynamic player and is the only one who can take on the bowling...

Just kidding. It's PP, people never learn, they'll always want TTFs like Shehzad and Akmal in the team based off of 1 or 2 decent performances.

[saeedhk]

Umar Akmal ain't a great bastman. But if Faheem, Yasir, Imam, Abbas,Shan can be selected after the Aus series. Then, Umar deserves to be in.

[Dr_Bassim]

Not really. He's played 80 list a matches (barring internationals) and has only made 2700 runs. This spark in his batting in domestic is new. If you look at his domestic performances in One days over the years they've been not great.
So it is not correct to say he's a bully in domestic cricket. He's been equally bad in both international and domestic cricket.

Had a great PSL, flopped in internationals, has a great few domestic matches again.

Last I recall, he was also very good in domestic numbers which is why he earned a recall.

Even if what you are saying is true, that he recently struck a vein of form in domestics, where did his form go between PSL and domestic matches?

You can certainly expect him to fire, but it would be a futile expectation fulfilled only when a broken clock somehow manages to strike the right time.

[Slim]

What do you mean firepower being 6?

Thats his total score per innings..

[Slim]

Ahm ahm you were saying something

Brilliant 153 by khushdil today with 140+ strike rate

god, you are so thick.

Is Khusdil khan in the list of probables?

[Hasan123]

He means that Asif Ali will rarely last more than a few deliveries which is correct. He is not an ODI player yet.



Dude, seriously. Learn to read. There is no defending Yasir Shah's selection on my end, he should not be part of the ODI team. Like I said, no one is perfect. Also, Shah is not going to make the WC squad because Inzamam, unlike our previous selectors, learns from his mistakes. If Inzamam did not select a batsman who averages 60 in ODIs, I would be critical of that too. Stop pretending like you know what I would or would not do. It makes you look silly.

I ignored it because I did want to embarrass you further but it seems like you're in the mood for a phainty. Saad Ali is a 25-year old who averages around 45 in List 'A' cricket at a SR of 85, along with having pretty decent numbers in T20s as well. Only an idiot would say that such a player is a "test player" who did not deserve the opportunity to be show what he had. You can be cheap and say that him failing proves that he should not have been selected because you have the benefit of hindsight, but any unbiased person would see that it was definitely not a wrong call at the time. I hope Saad receives more opportunities in the future in all formats.

So if Yasir Shah isn't going to be in the WC squad why select him? Why not select a bowler who could actually play at the WC?

Well if you look at how he batted instead of just looking at stats you can see his a test player. Since you love your stats , what position did he bat at to score those runs ? A strike rate of 85 is not good enough for a number 6 player in ODIs.

I don't hate Saad Ali. I think he can be a good test player. But number 6 in ODIs, that is a joke. There is no chance he was going to the WC regardless of how he played . Inzi doesn't have the balla to drop Malik or Hafeez.

[TalentSpotterPk]

After Pakistan Cup Too 2-4 players of the tournament might be added to List of 23 as per Shakeel Sheikh.


I would want


1. Saud
2. Khushdil
3. Wahab &
4. Haris Rauf


to be added to the camp.



Khushdil needs to score another fifty or two and than he will be challenging Asif Ali.

[TalentSpotterPk]

Umer Khan has chance to impress aswell.

[TalentSpotterPk]

Inzamam and Mickey should have announced players for the Camp/Fitness Test after Pakistan Cup final.


Meanwhile Pak players not playing Pakistan Cup should have been called up to NCA.

[TalentSpotterPk]

After Pakistan Cup Too 2-4 players of the tournament might be added to List of 23 as per Shakeel Sheikh.


I would want


1. Saud
2. Khushdil
3. Wahab &
4. Haris Rauf


to be added to the camp.



Khushdil needs to score another fifty or two and than he will be challenging Asif Ali.

* Top 2-4 players

[PakLFC]

If Sarfaraz walks in at six we need some hard hitters after him. That is my greatest fear here that we don't seem to have anyone dependable. Whose gonna get those boundaries and big ones in the last ten overs?

[Bilal7]

So if Yasir Shah isn't going to be in the WC squad why select him? Why not select a bowler who could actually play at the WC?

Well if you look at how he batted instead of just looking at stats you can see his a test player. Since you love your stats , what position did he bat at to score those runs ? A strike rate of 85 is not good enough for a number 6 player in ODIs.

I don't hate Saad Ali. I think he can be a good test player. But number 6 in ODIs, that is a joke. There is no chance he was going to the WC regardless of how he played . Inzi doesn't have the balla to drop Malik or Hafeez.

Unless we suddenly unearthed a new Saeed Ajmal, the only spinners that were going to the World Cup were Shadab and Imad. It didn't matter who Inzamam selected for the Australia series. However, someone with an ODI future would have been a better option than Shah.

Saad Ali batting at six in ODIs is the fault of the team management, not the player himself. He's a good #3 or #4 and deserved his chance. As for dropping seniors, Inzamam has shown that he has no issues with doing so. If Hafeez and Malik did not offer any utility to this side, they would have been dropped a long time ago.

[Hasan123]

Unless we suddenly unearthed a new Saeed Ajmal, the only spinners that were going to the World Cup were Shadab and Imad. It didn't matter who Inzamam selected for the Australia series. However, someone with an ODI future would have been a better option than Shah.

Saad Ali batting at six in ODIs is the fault of the team management, not the player himself. He's a good #3 or #4 and deserved his chance. As for dropping seniors, Inzamam has shown that he has no issues with doing so. If Hafeez and Malik did not offer any utility to this side, they would have been dropped a long time ago.

You don't need to be the new Saeed Ajmal to play for Pakistan. There has been more than enough series to try a new spinner and Inzi tries Yasir before the WC and has still selected him for this upcoming camp. It's clearly a political selection.

We already had player who took up positions at 3 and 4 so why not try a player who can actually bat at 6? A position we we are struggling to fill?

Malik has been rubbish for months and been selected . They will only be out of the team when they retire.

[cricketfan11]

Pretty much 90% of the probables were entirely predictable. The only surprising inclusions are Abid and Yasir. Abid has won the race from Shehzad who should count himself unlucky for missing out, but you also have to give credit to Abid for grabbing his opportunity against Australia.

Yasir is a political selection. Those visits to Bani Gala have paid off. It is a shame for the several spinners in Pakistan who are much better than this ODI tried and tested failure.

This list also tells us that Wahab's Limited Overs career is over. The emergence of Shaheen and Hasnain in the last two years has closed the door on him.

The most interesting exclusion is Umar Akmal. The way I see it, he is the 24th probable here, and would be the first pick if someone like Hafeez fails the fitness test or if another middle-order batsman gets injured.

The Australian series was a shootout between him and Rizwan for a place in the 23 probables as backup middle-order batsman and WK. Umar blew his chances while Rizwan took full advantage to the extent where he is now presenting a headache to the management.

They will have to find a way to accommodate him, Malik, Hafeez and Haris in the playing XI for the first ODI against England.

All in all, this squad is not remotely good enough to win the World Cup. Even a place in the semifinals would be nothing short of an achievement.

your last sentence could be said of any Pakistan squad since the 1999 world cup