Asif series by series...proof and stats that he can perform on difficult pitches...

[shaykh1985]

Thought it would be useful to look at Asif's performances series by series to show how he has stood head and shoulders above all other bowlers...and also to show that he doesnt simply perform on wickets suited to him or against easy opposition...

note only players who have played atleast 50% of games in the series have been used in statistics...

No point starting with his isolated game against Australia...he started with 2 games against India on dead wickets in Pakistan 2005/2006

Heres the table for leading wicket takers and averages for that series...

INDIA

Number of wickets...
(1) Z Khan 10 wickets
(2) Razzaq 9
(3) RP Singh 9
(4) Kumble 9
(5) Asif 8

The averages are more indicative of Asif's effect...Kumble averaged 69.88 for each of his 9 wickets for instance...Asif led the table...there was some shocking averages for some bowlers this series and Asif was the only sub 30 bowler in conditions that certainly were not easy for bowling...

(1) Asif 28.62
(2) Razzaq 31.22
(3) Z Khan 37.40
(4) RP Singh 38.33
(5) Pathan 60.75

SRI LANKA

His next series was away to Sri Lanka...here are the leading wicket takers for that series...this is for those who say he only performs in conditions suited to him...

(1) Asif 17
(2) Murli 11
(3) Kaneria 8
(4) Maharoof 6
(5) Malinga 4

Averages...its fair to say that in a series for spinners Asif produced something quite special...the next leading paceman took a 1/3 of the wickets he did...he outdid every pace bowler on this tour and even outdid the spinners and by a long way as well...

(1) Asif 10.76
(2) Murli 20.00
(3) Kulasekara 26.33 (only played 1 match)
(4) Kaneria 29.37
(5) Malinga 31.50

He only played the one test against England and took 5-135...

SAFRICA

He then played 3 Tests away in South Africa 06/07

Along with Ntini he was leading wicket taker against a top class team away from home who deal with pace effectively and signficantly better than we do...
(1) Asif 19
(2) Ntini 19
(3) Kaneria 15
(4) Kallis 10
(5) Pollock 8

He also possessed a better average than any other bowler across the series...the rest of our pacemen Shoaib Akhtar aside struggled immensely against the might of Safricas batsmen at home...
(1) Asif 18.47
(2) Ntini 18.68
(3) Harris 22.50
(4) Pollock 23.37
(5) Kallis 25.00

SAFRICA

He followed this up with a home series against Saffas at home 07/08...this is the one blemish in his career...Steyn to his credit was very impressive on a tough pitch...

Wickets...
(1) Harris 12
(2) Rehman 11
(3) Kaneria 10
(4) Steyn 9
(5) Gul 6

Asif was 9th and worst regular bowler of the series only taking 2 wickets essentially in 2 innings...this was indicated in the averages...

Averages...
(1) Harris 20.66
(2) Steyn 24.66
(3) Kallis 26.66
(4) Rehman 32.00
(5) Ntini 36.80

Asif finished last on 10th with an average of 97.00...a pretty awful series for Asif really...

NZEALAND

The Comeback in 09 came against New Zealand where he led the wicket charts...fair play conditions suited but again these are conditions that NZealand are used to and we arent...yet Asif outbowled everyone on the tour including all of New Zealands bowlers...

(1) Asif 19
(2) O'Brien 15
(3) Kaneria 13
(4) Martin 11
(5) Vettori 10

And he led the averages too...

(1) Asif 19.78
(2) Kaneria 20.69
(3) Tuffey 27.75
(4) O'Brien 29.86
(5) Martin 31.18

AUSTRALIA

Next up was the Aussies...this series was dominated by Nathan Hauritz and our ability to gift him wickets...Asif was the leading pace wicket taker in the series...and was easily our best bowler of the series...

(1) Hauritz 18
(2) Asif 13
(3) Bollinger 12
(4) Johnson 12
(5) Kaneria 9

Averages...our bowlers were generally poor average wise...Aamer, Kaneria and Gul all averaged between 40 and 50...which puts Asifs 28 into perspective...a sub 30 average away to the Aussies is not to be scoffed at...

(1) Bollinger 21.83
(2) Hauritz 23.05
(3) Watson 25.00
(4) Johnson 25.66
(5) Asif 28.46

AUSTRALIA

Now to England where conditions have certainly suited...first against the Aussies...worth noting our batting has been pretty atrocious since we have got here...Asif and Amir had really good series with the ball...

(1) Watson 11
(2) Aamer 11
(3) Asif 11
(4) Gul 8
(5) Hilfenhaus 8

Averages...Watson and North ridiculously top this list...Amir has taken full advantage of conditions...Asif has naturally benefitted but has done what he usually does and that is bowl effectively...throughout his career he has adjusted to the pitch in front of him...something Australia's bowlers couldnt do in England...

(1) North 9.16
(2) Watson 10.63
(3) Aamer 22.27
(4) Asif 23.00
(5) Gul 23.62

ENGLAND

Then onto the England series currently taking place...this is after Day 1 of the 3rd Test...Asifs our best bowler in a series of dropped catches and is 2nd only to Anderson who unlike Asif ONLY performs in conditions that suit him...

(1) Anderson 17
(2) Asif 11
(3) Broad 9
(4) Finn 8
(5) Aamer 8

Averages...again Asif has been our best bowler...fair enough these are conditions that suit him but the argument can be made their batsmen are more accustomed to these conditions that our own and again Asif produced a sub 25 average...

(1) Anderson 10.11
(2) Swann 13.00
(3) Finn 18.12
(4) Broad 23.77
(5) Asif 23.81

Think its fair to say Asif has performed on a variety of pitches and faced touch opposition and conditions. Other than one series against the Saffas Asif has generally been the bowler of the series.

He has faced top opposition in the form of Australia (twice), sAfrica (twice), Sri Lanka (away)...which is pretty much the only place they perform...India (home)...

He hasnt even had the luxury of bowling to Bangladesh or the Windies which will make his figures look even better than they are...

His best performances are his Lankan performance and his away performance against Aus...i find it absolutely unfathomable how some argue that he only performs on wickets that suit his bowling...

The guy has impeccable thought and that is his best weapon and when you can outthink batsmen as well as he does your a threat on any wicket...

[z2_daredevil]

nice info, no doubt he is a great bowler in test cricket !!!

[aqeelPK]

Good work shaykh.

[Geordie Ahmed]

The guy is quality - the stats back him up BUT look beyond the stats and he is a brilliant Test bowler - as other posters have mentioned you could easily watch this guy bowl all day long

The accuracy he possesses is phenomenal and the way he teases and sets up the batsmen is a joy to watch - has had a few off the field problems BUT hopefully those are well and truly past him - he needs to concentrate on cricket and im sure he will continue to do the business for us

[PerfectionPersonified]

Which idiot says that he can perform only certain conditions?
I believe someone who doesn't know cricket ,

This Guy is Legend

[shafkath]

good work shaykh. you definately proved a point that some criticts wrongly like to hold against asif. he's a truely skillful bowler

[masterblaster10]

That is sterling working on the stats. Someone should send this into sky sports so they can put his stats up for everyone to look at.

[zimran72]

Many compare him to McGrath but I think they are slightly different bowlers. Asif, unlike McGrath, does not have too much natural bounce and is somewhat less accurate. However, Asif can seam the ball both ways and it is nearly impossible to pick while what McGrath had was natural zip. I agree with those that call Asif an artist, he is a pure joy to watch as he taunts and teases batsmen by pitching it up then moving it. Just goes to show at 80 miles you can be world class just need to put in the hardwork.

[Awesome_Username]

Legend in the making really. That's all you can say about the guy.

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by shaykh1985 SAFRICA He followed this up with a home series against Saffas at home 07/08...this is the one blemish in his career...Steyn to his credit was very impressive on a tough pitch... Wickets... (1) Harris 12 (2) Rehman 11 (3) Kaneria 10 (4) Steyn 9 (5) Gul 6 Asif was 9th and worst regular bowler of the series only taking 2 wickets essentially in 2 innings...this was indicated in the averages... Averages... (1) Harris 20.66 (2) Steyn 24.66 (3) Kallis 26.66 (4) Rehman 32.00 (5) Ntini 36.80 Asif finished last on 10th with an average of 97.00...a pretty awful series for Asif really...

thnx for confirming my point. he does the job when conditions suit him which has been the case in almost all of his career, but all the andersons, watsons, kulasekaras of the world do the same job for their countries. see kulasekara taking 17 wkts in 3 tests at avg of 15 against pak:
http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...ng;view=series

But when the pitch is flat, Saffers exposed his mediocrity. Fact is he neither has the pace or the bounce to trouble the batsman on flat tracks

[Eagle Eyes]

Good in Tests, not good in ODIs and T-20s. Fact.

[Solid Snake]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi thnx for confirming my point. he does the job when conditions suit him which has been the case in almost all of his career, but all the andersons, watsons, kulasekaras of the world do the same job for their countries. see kulasekara taking 17 wkts in 3 tests at avg of 15 against pak: http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...ng;view=series But when the pitch is flat, Saffers exposed his mediocrity. Fact is he neither has the pace or the bounce to trouble the batsman on flat tracks

As soon as Asif does well, its because the pitch is a minefield right? Have you ever seen him bowl? The fact that you are judging him on two innings where he hasn't performed out of something like 50+ innings is laughable really.

[Xoib]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi thnx for confirming my point. he does the job when conditions suit him which has been the case in almost all of his career, but all the andersons, watsons, kulasekaras of the world do the same job for their countries. see kulasekara taking 17 wkts in 3 tests at avg of 15 against pak: http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...ng;view=series But when the pitch is flat, Saffers exposed his mediocrity. Fact is he neither has the pace or the bounce to trouble the batsman on flat tracks

we should bow down to Ishant Sharma feet because he bowled one good spell to Ponting however 2 bad games out of 20 for Asif means he is rubbish.

[Ummer Khan]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi thnx for confirming my point. he does the job when conditions suit him which has been the case in almost all of his career, but all the andersons, watsons, kulasekaras of the world do the same job for their countries. see kulasekara taking 17 wkts in 3 tests at avg of 15 against pak: http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...ng;view=series But when the pitch is flat, Saffers exposed his mediocrity. Fact is he neither has the pace or the bounce to trouble the batsman on flat tracks

he was nursing elbow injury during that(sa 07) series and then he didn`t feature in the test series held in india shortly afterwards.and btw he played just one test in sa series,so can`t hold it against him,can we.
so,overall he has performed well 5 out of 6 times on flat pitches,guess that is sterling performance(oh i forgot that india is a land a express faaaaast bowlers,whose bowlers are known for their loop and guile in the air rather than burst off the pitch,drift rather than swing and spin rather than seam).
and it is asif who made u r cricketing god kneel on his knees in the karachi test,along with ripping your top order intop shreds

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake As soon as Asif does well, its because the pitch is a minefield right? Have you ever seen him bowl? The fact that you are judging him on two innings where he hasn't performed out of something like 50+ innings is laughable really.

http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...g;view=innings
in karachi test, 1 for 97 of 32 overs
in Lahore test. 1 for 97 of 38 overs

these are the typical flat wickets tht I am talking abt. Seen almost all of the test matches to come out to this conclusion. You are being a blind man if u do not acknowledge his lack of pace and bounce And his ineffectiveness on flat tracks on which he hasnt played on more than 2-3 occasions

[Xoib]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...g;view=innings in karachi test, 1 for 97 of 32 overs in Lahore test. 1 for 97 of 38 overs these are the typical flat wickets tht I am talking abt. Seen almost all of the test matches to come out to this conclusion. You are being a blind man if u do not acknowledge his lack of pace and bounce And his ineffectiveness on flat tracks on which he hasnt played on more than 2-3 occasions

it seems you watch your cricket only on cricinfo if you can't see the extra carry Asif gets off the pitch.

[vaibhav_delhi]

yterday also he was looking pretty slow compared to the debutant. speeds between 78-80mph.Not much bounce either. When conditions arent there for him he is definitely gonna struggle.
And to suggest tht aamer-asif is best combo in world over steyn-morkel etc is utterly ridiculous.

[kingusama92]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...g;view=innings in karachi test, 1 for 97 of 32 overs in Lahore test. 1 for 97 of 38 overs these are the typical flat wickets tht I am talking abt. Seen almost all of the test matches to come out to this conclusion. You are being a blind man if u do not acknowledge his lack of pace and bounce And his ineffectiveness on flat tracks on which he hasnt played on more than 2-3 occasions

I think it's natural for any bowler to not perform on typical roads.

Even Dale Steyn has trouble at times on flat pitches. It's normal.

Plus, Asif's consistency is out of this world and only second to Steyn. Highly unfair to downplay his achievements based on him not being able to pick wickets in a few innings.

The guy is a brilliant bowler. I don't think there are too many people that state he is pacy. Although, I don't think he lacks "bounce". He's quite tall and his deliveries do tend to carry through. However, you are judging him quite poorly by choosing a few bad innings of his out of a whole bunch of great ones.

[kingusama92]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi yterday also he was looking pretty slow compared to the debutant. speeds between 78-80mph.Not much bounce either. When conditions arent there for him he is definitely gonna struggle. And to suggest tht aamer-asif is best combo in world over steyn-morkel etc is utterly ridiculous.

Who said he was fast? He's just the finest medium pacer in the world. No problems with that.

Bounce is tough when he was consistently pitching it up for swing. Certain conditions ask for certain lengths. Thus, you didn't see the bounce.

However, I do agree that Aamer-Asif are not good enough in comparison to Steyn-Morkel. They might be one day, but not right now.

[Xoib]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi yterday also he was looking pretty slow compared to the debutant. speeds between 78-80mph.Not much bounce either. When conditions arent there for him he is definitely gonna struggle. And to suggest tht aamer-asif is best combo in world over steyn-morkel etc is utterly ridiculous.

yes Steyn-Morkel > Asif-Amir but Paksitan support bowlers are better then SA support bowlers though SA feilding is light years ahead, and Asif low bounce was dicatated by the fact he was consistently pitching it up to get the swing watch the analysis Nasser did on Asif bowling where he showed he bowled the fullest of all the bowlers yesterday when Asif bowls back of a length he hits the splice of the bat consistently.

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by kingusama92 I don't think there are too many people that state he is pacy. Although, I don't think he lacks "bounce". He's quite tall and his deliveries do tend to carry through.

bounce to carry to keeper he has, bounce to trouble the batsman he doesnt. I hav seen many of his edges not carry to slips also.

[LegendsXI]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi yterday also he was looking pretty slow compared to the debutant. speeds between 78-80mph.Not much bounce either. When conditions arent there for him he is definitely gonna struggle. And to suggest tht aamer-asif is best combo in world over steyn-morkel etc is utterly ridiculous.

We are happy with our mediocre bowler, Only the indian team poses the real fast bowlers, right?

Bro stop listening to Ramee Raja, the guy is truly an idiot.

As far as i am concerned, asif is one of the most intelligent cricketers around.

[Xoib]

Vaibhav name once current bowler who takes wickets through pace and bounce?

[Digital]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi thnx for confirming my point. he does the job when conditions suit him which has been the case in almost all of his career, but all the andersons, watsons, kulasekaras of the world do the same job for their countries. see kulasekara taking 17 wkts in 3 tests at avg of 15 against pak: http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...ng;view=series But when the pitch is flat, Saffers exposed his mediocrity. Fact is he neither has the pace or the bounce to trouble the batsman on flat tracks

Typical Indian jealousy....

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by LegendsXI We are happy with our mediocre bowler, Only the indian team poses the real fast bowlers, right?

bro indian bowling attack is better than pak attack. We thrashed eng 1-0 in england , and you are getting a thrashing.
asif is mediocre on flat tracks in my opinion

[Digital]

^^ In your dreams kid :p

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Xoib Vaibhav name once current bowler who takes wickets through pace and bounce?

pace,movement and bounce are the weapons of a fast bowler . Every fast bowler uses them.
when SA toured india, steyn morkel demonstrated that pretty well on flat tracks

[SG]

You're being deluded if you think Indian 'attack' is anywhere near Pak attack. How can anyone even compare Indian 'bowlers' with Pak's bowlers is beyond me. See even a debutant takes a 5-for for them on a pitch which wasn't a bowlers' paradise by any stretch of imagination.

In reality, Indian 'attack' is worst among all test playing nations.

[SG]

Yes, we've results on our side probably because our fielders aren't as bad as Pak's. And our batting is amongst best in world.

Pak's problem of late is that they've been very poor in 2/3 disciplines of cricket and you don't win tests by doing that.

[LegendsXI]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi bro indian bowling attack is better than pak attack. We thrashed eng 2-0 in england , and you are getting a thrashing. asif is mediocre on flat tracks in my opinion

Anyone who says that the Indian Batting is weak or That Paks Bowling is weak, is an idiot.

You have your opinion and that is fine. but if someone says that Asif is not a quality bowler ( or miles ahead of all the indian bowlers ), does not know much about the game of cricket.

[Xoib]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi pace,movement and bounce are the weapons of a fast bowler . Every fast bowler uses them. when SA toured india, steyn morkel demonstrated that pretty well on flat tracks

and Morkel averaged 60 with 4 wickets so your point gets nullified once again and no reason to bring Steyn in this he is just once in a generation bowler bowling at his peak.

[Vegitto1]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi bro indian bowling attack is better than pak attack. We thrashed eng 2-0 in england , and you are getting a thrashing. Asif is mediocre on flat tracks in my opinion

1-0

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by SG How can anyone even compare Indian 'bowlers' with Pak's bowlers is beyond me. See even a debutant takes a 5-for for them on a pitch which wasn't a bowlers' paradise by any stretch of imagination.

if their bowling reserves r so good, why they keep playing a sohail tanvir or a abdur rauf or a kaneria till very recently?
To say tht indian attack is better than pak attack is very fair and correct . You cant base your opinion just by seeing a debutant bowl in just 1 innings.

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Xoib and Morkel averaged 60 with 4 wickets so your point gets nullified once again and no reason to bring Steyn in this he is just once in a generation bowler bowling at his peak.

dont u think tht extra bounce alongwith movement frm riaz assisted in getting 2 people out yterday?

[SG]

As far as I know, Tanvir hasn't played test cricket for more than an year now. As for Rauf, has he even made his test debut yet?

Kaneria, well there aren't too many promising spinners coming out from Pak. Probably thats why they kept on picking experienced Kaneria in hope that one day he'll come good. Plus, Ajmal never shown promise prior to last test.

Besides, their bowling attack is mostly about their fast bowlers. Even a die hard critic won't deny the potency of their pace attack.

[shaykh1985]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi thnx for confirming my point. he does the job when conditions suit him which has been the case in almost all of his career, but all the andersons, watsons, kulasekaras of the world do the same job for their countries. see kulasekara taking 17 wkts in 3 tests at avg of 15 against pak: http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/...ng;view=series But when the pitch is flat, Saffers exposed his mediocrity. Fact is he neither has the pace or the bounce to trouble the batsman on flat tracks

Lol I guess you only read that one paragraph...of his 22 matches you are going to 'expose his mediocrity' based on 2 matches...he had a poor series but he has performed against the best sides consistently...are you honestly going to suggest his other 20 performances are because they arent flat tracks...for just one example go check his first full series where he played against your lot...

Not being funny but the reverse is true for some of your bowlers...you judge them on their 2 good matches and forget the rest of their mediocre career...

Its a very poor argument if your honestly going to try and present your bowling attack as superior to ours...we lose matches because of our batting...some of the bowlers you have produced in the last few years are some of the worst in world cricket...

As for your Kulasekara argument...its not a particularly strong argument when you show that bowlers do BETTER in positions that suit them...pretty obvious no...batsmen will perform better on flat tracks but their test is in alien conditions...if anything the stats above show that Asif is CONSISTENTLY the best bowler in whatever series he is involved in and whatever the conditions are...

You keep moaning about his lack of pace...he has shown what accuracy, variety, patience and possession of the best bowling mind in world cricket can produce for you...

[vaibhav_delhi]

and havent seen the ability to ball bouncers, yorkers, slow balls, reverse swing etc variety needed on flat decks.

[Poison]

Vaibhav stop posting you're embarassing yourself.

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi if their bowling reserves r so good, why they keep playing a sohail tanvir or a abdur rauf or a kaneria till very recently? To say tht indian attack is better than pak attack is very fair and correct . You cant base your opinion just by seeing a debutant bowl in just 1 innings.

Sohail did wonders in limited format so he had to be tried, Rauf was poor, but you can't expect every debutant to do wonders, as for Kaneria, he has served Pakistan well for a long time, its stupid in the first place to criticize his selection.

A team is composed of 6 batters, 1 keeper and only 4 bowlers, if 7 players in batters and keeper can't do the job then a team is likely to loose its matches.However the fact remains that Pakistan bowling is superb, Indian bowling is pathetic, its funny how you keep comparing it with Pakistan

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by SG As for Rauf, has he even made his test debut yet? Kaneria, well there aren't too many promising spinners coming out from Pak. Probably thats why they kept on picking experienced Kaneria in hope that one day he'll come good. Plus, Ajmal never shown promise prior to last test. Besides, their bowling attack is mostly about their fast bowlers. Even a die hard critic won't deny the potency of their pace attack.

yes, for ur 1st question.

when i say indian attack better, it includes pacers and spinner both .

Dont call Asif a pace bowl , he is a medium pacer as per their evaluation too. And I dont understand how a gul is better than a sharma or sreesanth in test matches?

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi pace,movement and bounce are the weapons of a fast bowler . Every fast bowler uses them. when SA toured india, steyn morkel demonstrated that pretty well on flat tracks

Considering none of the Indian bowlers have pace, how come they are being labelled as the second best bowling attack in the world?

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by ali2220 Sohail did wonders in limited format so he had to be tried, Rauf was poor, but you can't expect every debutant to do wonders, as for Kaneria, he has served Pakistan well for a long time, its stupid in the first place to criticize his selection.

after so many failures u keep persisting with him, tht tells a thing or two abt ur reserves.
and tanvir was also given a chance to play in a couple of tests

[Poison]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi after so many failures u keep persisting with him, tht tells a thing or two abt ur reserves. and tanvir was also given a chance to play in a couple of tests

Kaneria has 250 wickets. TEST WICKETS.

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi after so many failures u keep persisting with him, tht tells a thing or two abt ur reserves. and tanvir was also given a chance to play in a couple of tests

Unless you are an idiot, you would give chance in atleast 2 matches to a player before discarding him.

kaneria had few bad series and so did Harbhajan, the thing is that these two are big names and have served the country for long time, you just can't drop such big players from team so easily.Atleast Pakistan have good reserves in Ajmal and Raza, ofcourse even if they do well it will be coz of "favorable conditions" in ur eye.

[cricketpassion]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi bro indian bowling attack is better than pak attack. We thrashed eng 2-0 in england , and you are getting a thrashing. asif is mediocre on flat tracks in my opinion

When did you thrash Eng 2-0 ??? It was 1-0 .two tests were drawn if you are talking about 2007 series .Typical Indian fan

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by cricketpassion When did you thrash Eng 2-0 ??? It was 1-0 .two tests were drawn if you are talking about 2007 series .

yes it was 1-0 at home and 1-0 away. corrected the original post

[vaibhav_delhi]

any half decent non-spinner bowls faster than asif

[Poison]

Thread has descended into a farce.

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi bro indian bowling attack is better than pak attack. We thrashed eng 1-0 in england , and you are getting a thrashing. asif is mediocre on flat tracks in my opinion

Going by that, Pakistan batting lineup of 90's with Ijaz,Malik,Rameez,Inzi were better than Sachin,Azhar,Sidhu,Srikanth etc as Pakistan were thrashing England those days.

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi any half decent non-spinner bowls faster than asif

This comming from an Indian, a person whose country has never ever produced a fast bowler. Listen mate, any major cricket nation has better fast bowler than India.

[Pakprideuk]

He's one bowler whos always unlucky that's why stats won't back him as much as they should, the way he bamboozled KP and the rest yesterday he deserved more wickets, ball after ball he was getting it to move, a fine bowler.

He doesn't need to bowl quicker in tests, he finds his rhythm, starts off from around 76mph and works his way up to 84mph to see what pace is the best for maximum swing and then settles at that pace and works the batsmen over so idk why people complain about his pace, he doesn't need too much pace as he's a line and length bowler with the best control in test cricket atm.

[Saurav]

nobody says about that wen he was in 2006,then he could bowl 140k n dare I say,had some undue advantage.since his comeback,he has only played in helpful conditions,n hes lethal if there is something in the wicket

we cannot say he cant bowl on flat decks until we see it.now he doesnt have pace,doesnt have reverse swing.these r two vital ingredients to succeed on flat decks.accuracy can only take u so far.

the SA series in Abu-Dhabi will be his true test.if he does well there,such debates will be put to rest

[Xohaib]

This guy is naive stop arguing with him,Steyn also had the bad series against SA,where he Sehwag scored triple century,everyone struggles on Flat pitches.

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi and havent seen the ability to ball bouncers, yorkers, slow balls, reverse swing etc variety needed on flat decks.

and to compare him with steyn is plain blasphemy

[ace4rmspace]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi any half decent non-spinner bowls faster than asif

Tell me you're doing this on purpose, surely?

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by Saurav the SA series in Abu-Dhabi will be his true test.if he does well there,such debates will be put to rest

the chances of him playing in UAE are minimal due to some personal problems he has had with the law enforcement in the area.

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by ace4rmspace Tell me you're doing this on purpose, surely?

only reasonable explanation....lol

[Saurav]

Originally Posted by Fawad2010 the chances of him playing in UAE are minimal due to some personal problems he has had with the law enforcement in the area.

oh yeah I forgot that.

so he wont play on flat pancakes anytime soon.wen are u touring WI?

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Xohaib Steyn also had the bad series against SA,where he Sehwag scored triple century,everyone struggles on Flat pitches.

THat was on 45degree humid chennai once. Conditions not for cricket but maybe for making an omelette on the pitch

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi and to compare him with steyn is plain blasphemy

u indians pride yourselves on ICC ranking on being #1...
same rankings have Asif at #2, right behind Steyn. While your best bowler is at 7, a good 100 points behind Asif.

He is comparable to Steyn easily.

[masterblaster10]

Lads let him have his glory or whatever he wants.

Yes we agree Ishant 'the demon' Sharma is the king of all bowlers. He is much better than Asif and McGrath, Akram, Waqar and Ambrose, Holding etc. No one can touch the mighty Sharma.

Now lets end this pointless argument.

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by Saurav the SA series in Abu-Dhabi will be his true test.if he does well there,such debates will be put to rest

He won't play there and even if he somehow do ply there or in a place like Indian and still do well, some Indians will still find a way to discount his effort

[ali2220]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi THat was on 45degree humid chennai once. Conditions not for cricket but maybe for making an omelette on the pitch

Then shame on India for making them play on such a pitch

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by Saurav wen are u touring WI?

I think we will play 2 Test matches with the Windies in June 2011.

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Fawad2010 u indians pride yourselves on ICC ranking on being #1... same rankings have Asif at #2, right behind Steyn. While your best bowler is at 7, a good 100 points behind Asif. He is comparable to Steyn easily.

I dont want to hurt ur sentiments anymore tht u start writing things like 'u indians' when u r debating with just 1 person. Let him play more on flat tracks and prove his credentials. I wud be pleasantly surprised if he does well on them.

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi I dont want to hurt ur sentiments.

give it your best shot!

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi Let him play more on flat tracks and prove his credentials. I wud be pleasently surprised if he does well on them.

I hope u get used to having him above your bowlers..

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi I dont want to hurt ur sentiments anymore tht u start writing things like 'u indians' when u r debating with just 1 person.

Arent all indians proud of the # 1 rankings??

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Fawad2010 Arent all indians proud of the # 1 rankings??

yes, they are. But I am representing myself and my views here, so u shud refer to me only

[mastermind_quad]

Originally Posted by Fawad2010 u indians pride yourselves on ICC ranking on being #1... same rankings have Asif at #2, right behind Steyn. While your best bowler is at 7, a good 100 points behind Asif. He is comparable to Steyn easily.

u Pakistanis ....

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi yes, they are. But I am representing myself and my views here, so u shud refer to me only

I apologize for anything that i said that could have been interpreted out of context.

now, what i meant was that how you take pride on being #1, we are proud of having him in our team and do actually believe that he is better than what his stats show

[SOSami]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi yes, they are. But I am representing myself and my views here, so u shud refer to me only

Anyone who represents themselves and only themselves don't tend to put their location in their username. I am assuming 'Delhi' isn't your surname.

Can't have your cake and eat it. Its obvious what you are doing dude - any pretences of objectivity and fairness are counteracted by some of the posts you have made in this thread. There are fair Indian posters, you don't necessarily come across as one.

[Fawad2010]

Originally Posted by mastermind_quad u Pakistanis ....

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by Fawad2010 I apologize for anything that i said that could have been interpreted out of context.

no problems bro.

[vaibhav_delhi]

Originally Posted by SOSami Anyone who represents themselves and only themselves don't tend to put their location in their username. I am assuming 'Delhi' isn't your surname.

now thts BS. I am a proud indian as you r a proud pakistani and stating my point of views on this fair forum with fair moderators. I am not here to reprsnt my country. I am not anti-pak, maybe 1% pro-india but endeavoring to be neutral all the time. btw i am a big aamer fan and a fan of younis khan

[SOSami]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi now thts BS. I am a proud indian as you r a proud pakistani and stating my point of views on this fair forum with fair moderators. I am not here to reprsnt my country.

Of course and thats fair enough but if you make comments like....

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi any half decent non-spinner bowls faster than asif

...then people will react accordingly at usually the point of least effort, which will be the Indian bowling attack.

Unfair? Maybe, but always likely to happen. Playing devil's advocate is one thing, but making silly comments just riles people.

[Saqs]

Stats prove he's always there or thereabouts in tormenting opposition batsmen.

[SG]

As an Indian I'd say having Asif in our ranks will greatly enhance our chances to win more tests.

[FreePalestine]

SG is right, if India had Asif, they would win a lot more test matches. It is always their bowling that has been dicey. They are a better batting side than Pakistan, perhaps even the best in the world right now (Sehwag, Tendulkar, Gambhir backed up by Dhoni, Laxman and old man Dravid), and their fielding is not as bad as everyone makes it out to be, although they do sometimes drop some honkers.

[LegendsXI]

Originally Posted by vaibhav_delhi any half decent non-spinner bowls faster than asif

Good lord. Why is an Indian talking about pace.

[LegendsXI]

^You know the last indian guy talking about pace( something about 100 miles per hour) didn't do so well.