Bazid steers pakistan A to last ball win.

England fall to narrow defeat

Another match against Pakistan A at Bagh-e-Jinnah, another setback for England. Last month it was Hasan Raza who sealed a memorable match with an unbeaten 71; today another young cricketer with a point to prove also pushed his claims for an international recall. Bazid Khan, the son of the legendary Majid, guided Pakistan A to the finish with a superb unbeaten 90 from 88 balls, and served notice that he is not satisfied with his current haul of one Test cap and three ODI appearances.

Chasing 237 for victory as the light faded in the leafy surrounds of Bagh-e-Jinnah, Bazid stood firm in spite of a late wobble from the tail, and applied the coup de grace with a brilliant piece of improvisation. James Anderson, who had bowled impressively with the new ball, returned at the death to grab three wickets in six deliveries, and at 217 for 8, Pakistan A's challenge appeared to have faded.

Bazid however, had other ideas, and wrested back the initiative in Anderson's next over, as he dropped to one knee, and deflected a full-length delivery high and handsomely over the keeper for a one-bounce four. A crestfallen Anderson was then clobbered over the covers for the winning runs, and England have now gone five matches and as many weeks without a victory since their opening three-day fixture in Rawalpindi.

In mitigation, England were missing three of their biggest guns. Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison were all rested after their exertions in the Test series, leaving the captaincy in the hands of Andrew Strauss, who has only just returned to the tour following the birth of his first child, Samuel. After losing the toss and being asked to bat first, Strauss was also the first wicket to fall, caught behind off Riaz Afridi for 5 as England struggled in the misty morning conditions.

But as the sun cut through the clouds and the early life in the pitch died down, Matt Prior began to unfurl the selection of strokes that could earn him a role as England's Supersub when Trescothick returns to the top of the order. He added 76 for the second wicket with Vikram Solanki, who has been offered another opportunity in the absence of Michael Vaughan, before Solanki was superbly caught for 26 by Tahir Khan, running back from point to take a skied swish over his shoulder.

That gave Abdul Razzaq a welcome wicket on his comeback from injury, and soon afterwards Kevin Pietersen's difficult tour continued, as he was bowled by a beauty from Yasir Arafat for 2. Prior's performance then ended as he top-edged a sweep to short backward square-leg, giving Tahir his first wicket of the innings.

At 134 for 4, the innings was in the balance, but Paul Collingwood came into his own in the middle order, marshalling the final overs as a selection of colleagues played handy cameos around him. England's team for this match included all three one-day specialists - Solanki, Kabir Ali and Ian Blackwell, as well as Prior and Anderson, neither of whom took part in the Test series.

Blackwell, who has a golden opportunity to cement a slot in the side ahead of the World Cup next winter, had moved along to a quickfire 15 when he was caught behind off Iftikhar Rao, while Kabir's innings ended in freakish circumstances, when his thumping straight drive cannoned off Collingwood's shoulder and looped into the hands of Rafitullah Mohammad at mid-on.

England's total was more or less par for the conditions, and when Yasir Hameed edged a beauty from Anderson to Solanki at first slip, it looked doubly impressive. But Pakistan rallied through a third-wicket partnership of 60 between Bazid and Rafatullah Mohmand, who made 55 before he was brilliantly caught by Pietersen off Collingwood.

Collingwood added a second when Razzaq was bowled for 8, but Faisal Iqbal cracked four fours and a six in a quickfire 33 to keep Pakistan A's challenge alive. But ultimately it was Bazid who made the difference between the teams, as England's problematic tour of Pakistan hit another spot of turbulence.

THis is eaxctly what we need after inzis gone; a batter who puts his hand up and keeps it up for the next ten years. Lets hope bazide is that guy. Today's performance is what its all about. He won us the match, he gave it everything and thats what inzamam is looking for. It was on Inzis insistence that bazid was drafted into the PAK XI a while back. He certainly likes the young batsman. That can only be a good thing for young bazid.

I'm surprised that Riaz Afridi wasnt promoted to help accelerate the run rate after the 40th over. He can slog it at Afridiesque rates and might have helped make it a more comfortable finish.

All credit though goes to Bazid, he's seen us through to the end but it seems he's vying for a middle order place as i dont think i've seen him open in A team matches. As good as he seems to be he wont get past YK, MoYo or Inzi (who all averaged over 50 in 2005) and with Afridi holding down the number 6 slot (with a 42 average) for now it wont be easy.

That was an intenses match wish someone had highlights.

It's very unfortunate Bazid Khan is not part of the ODI squad. May be he is not a team man?????

he's just lucky he played this game. nepotis at its best. you give a guy enough chances and he's bound to make some runs once in a while.

well done bazid!

great knock i have always rated bazid, he can be a good batsmen in the middle order, ill have him for inzis replacement

I called home and BK was there. I had a chat with him. Just like his dad, the lad doesn't say much. I was more excited then him about his 90. But I could tell he was happy. He had a good laugh when I told him that I saw his picture of "air pumping" Anderson. He is hopeful that he might get another chance after the first two one days.

ZP, dont u live in practically the same neighbourhood? Y call him wen u can jus pop over and say hello?

Zaman park: can you ask him did inzi or bob or selectors told him a reason not to pick him?
thanks

I'm still curious, how do u know him?

Like I said before, two of asim, hasan or bazid shd be in every pak squad.

The name Zaman Park gives a hunt. All the Khans live there as we say dont even look at a Girl in Zaman Park chances are she is realted to you.

Bazids best friend are his younger brother. thats were he chills the whole time. And they are all cousins. But zaman park is much older than bk.lol. No there all close, we have a close knit circle. Zaman Parks brothers play video games together.

by any chance are you noddy part 2.

^^ haha

that is wicked

Damm you know Bazid Khan kool. Plz post more info on him Zaman Park.

I still think Bob and Inzi should be honest with him - there is no point in having a batsman wait years for a chance in the first team.

Heck, he doesnt even make the 16 - forget about the XI.

Second, if has potential, it is not going to be improved by not exposing him to higher level cricket - you cant just have all your experience in Pakistan against somewhat mediocre bowling. So for them to keep saying, "keep on scoring runs in side games" is not enough.

Players need to be introduced at a young enough age into test cricket, so they are moulded reasonably early. Too late and they are set in their ways.

I am keen to have a look at Shahid Yousaf now because a lot of positives have been written about him. If he has the talent, he should be next in line - cause he is young and will learn.

Lest you think this is wrong, just imagine if they had held Salman Butt back for various reasons till he was 25. Butt would have withered in domestic cricket.

Bazid averaged 112.0 as an openor in the A test series in Sri Lanka last year with scores of 124, 84 & 128 (after not being chosen for the first test). As usually the case with him he often provided a lone hand.

Strauss takes the baton but England are unstrung by Bazid

England 236 for seven; Pakistan A 239 for nine; Pakistan A won by one wicket

David Hopps in Lahore
Thursday December 8, 2005
The Guardian


Andrew Strauss has often been heralded as a future England captain but his introduction to the job was not quite what he had anticipated. Barely back in Pakistan after the birth of his first child, he was still viewing life through a contented jet-lagged fog when Duncan Fletcher loomed at his side with some happy news of his own.
"Congratulations on the baby - you're captain tomorrow." Not the exact words, admittedly, but presumably it was the gist of Fletcher's message. Even the toss must have been challenging enough for a man with a baby son, Samuel, still on his mind. "Heads or tails?" "Eh, shouldn't the head always come out first?"

At least the sight of Strauss standing in as captain for a stand-in captain calmed the fears of anybody who mistakenly imagined that Marcus Trescothick might be in a fluster about his role as Michael Vaughan's replacement for the one-day series. Trescothick's first decision, back in temporary charge, was to take the day off. England make little pretence these days that practice games matter but prefer their most influential players to take their relaxation where they can. Trescothick will probably switch to captaincy duties some time on Saturday morning, when he will look up and move mid-off slightly wider.

Strauss lost the toss, failed again with the bat ("the first time I have picked a bat up for 10 days") and duly lost the match. The margin could hardly have been narrower - one wicket with one ball to spare - but it was a defeat nevertheless in England's only one-day warm-up, on the same Bagh-e-Jinnah ground where they also slipped up in a three-day practice match before the first Test. Trescothick, Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison, England's big trio, were all rested, but it does not augur well for the five one-day matches to follow.

"There were some positives," said Strauss, whose book of captaincy cliches had clearly been rescued from beneath the piles of nappy samples. Those were a stout, pinch-hitting 72 from Matt Prior, an unbeaten 75 from Paul Collingwood to continue his excellent form during England's third-Test defeat, and four wickets for Jimmy Anderson, including three in the 43rd over, which briefly promised to bring England victory until Bazid Khan's unbeaten 90 from 88 balls proved supreme.

Pakistan A needed 10 from the final over, with eight wickets down but Bazid on strike. Anderson, collecting Bazid's return hit, ran out Tahir Khan at the bowler's end, leaving eight from four balls. That fell to six from three, at which point the trickster Bazid walked outside his off stump and imperiously flicked a straight ball over his left shoulder for four down to the sightscreen.

Such extravagance, with nine down, was astonishing, and the screams of delight from the crowd, most of which, for security reasons, peered through the park railings, had not subsided when Bazid slammed Anderson's next ball through extra cover.

It was tough luck on Anderson, who had bowled a solid new-ball spell, an outswinger dismissing Yasir Hameed at second slip, and who then seemed to have rescued England with three wickets in his penultimate over, the best of them a quick yorker to bowl Zulqarnain Haider. Perhaps, in this restful park ground encircled by trees, with the kites wheeling overhead and before a pavilion curiously reminiscent of Thailand, Anderson has taken the first, faltering steps back towards the England side. He should play in the first ODI on Saturday, edging out Kabir Ali. Kabir's day was summed up by his dismissal, a fierce drive which was diverted off the middle of Paul Collingwood's bat, as he took evasive action, straight into the hands of mid-on.

Such, then, were the incidents that Strauss might have reflected on. But he is so much the diplomat that diplomatic chat forever befalls him, as if it is his lot in life. So his post-match press conference, the usual ad hoc affair, was dominated by benign questions from Pakistani hosts seeking only pleasantries. "The ground reminds me of England," said Strauss, who should have been sipping a small sherry as he suggested it. But what of the captaincy? "It's been a pleasure to do it," he said. "It was tricky, coming straight off the plane, but it did have the advantage of keeping me awake."