Your Boys Took One helluva a Beating!

[Amoeba]

Maggie Fatcher, George Bush, George Bush's Poodle - Tony Blair, George Bush's other Poodle - General Not So Shareef, Norman "The Failed" Tebbit Test, Willie Whitelaw, Billy Whitelaw, Billie, Chris Evans, Christopher Biggins, Little & Large, Cannon & Ball, Johnny Ball, Zoe Ball, FatBoy Slim, Fats Wallah, Rik Wallah, David Walliams, Matt Lucas, George Lucas, George @ Asda, ASBO's, Yacubu, Harry Rednapp, Harry Shaw, Sandy Shaw, Sandy Lyle, Lyle & Scott, Terry Scott, June Whitfield, June Brown, Alastair Brown, Alastair Cook, Nick Cook, Sue Cook, Nick Ross, Ross Kemp, Martin Kemp, Gary Kemp, Will Kemp, Will Self, David Aaronovitch, Rod Liddle, Rod Hull, Emu, Orville, Keith Harris, Keith Fletcher, Duncan Fletcher, Michael Vaughan, Paul "3 nil" Collingwood, Bob Willis, Bob Willis's hepatitis, Ian Botham, Ian Botham's Mother in Law, Are You Listening Ian Botham's Mother in Law? Your Boys Took One helluva a Beating!


I haven’t been able to post since the end of the Test due to work commitments. On a more serious note it was a fantastic performance built on the great foundations of discipline, teamwork and unity. Much of the credit is due to Woolmer and Inzy, Both, though, are too modest to accept it and have already attempted to deflect much of it away. One measure of the improvement seen is that most of the team that played at Lahore were the same who lost to India under the previous coach. In England it is often said that the coach gets too much of the praise and too much criticism for a team’s performance. In Pakistan where there seems to be a greater “superstar” culture the coach tends to get too much criticism and too little praise for the team’s performance. If the team loses he will get heavily slated by all and sundry who have emerged from the woodwork with their personal agendas to pursue. If on the other hand the team wins, many may chose to remain silent, whilst those who do comment will merely praise selected players. Oh hum Woolmer must wonder, at least I have the results under my belt.

Of course one of the most stunning transformations has been Shoaib. The proverbial Show Pony if ever there was one has, via an enormous kick up the backside, turned himself into a thoroughbred in this series. Never before has he played a full 3 Test match series. Until now that is. Furthermore his improved fitness was evident in that he was on the pitch on the fifth day in Multan and Lahore when he was able to bowl his key spells. This wasn’t simply Shoaib back to his best. No this was a new, improved Shoaib. A fully fit and fully committed cricketer – one we hadn’t seen before. This was highlighted further by the fact that his batting had improved enormously. He batted sensibly for his team and even won promotion to NightWatchman. In addition there was a miracle of miracles as he actually took a catch!

I, seems famously for some, predicted at the beginning of this year that there was a very real possibility that Shoaib, finding himself without a county contract and slot in the National Team, could retire from cricket by the end of 2005. Faced with this prospect it seems that thankfully Shoaib finally woke up from his slumber of 7 years, dusted himself down, and decided to show the world that he was a cricketer to be scared of rather than lampooned. Again his fans will say that it shows that the criticism was unjustified and Shoaib should never have been doubted. However what this fails to recognise is the need to get Shoaib out of his comfort zone to make him strive to improve himself. The so-called Second Season Syndrome, which some have dismissed as merely made up by ***** in county cricket (only problem is that the Coach and most of the cricketing World do believe in it). For Shoaib the so-called SSS went on for too long. No Captain or Coach was strong enough in the intervening period, or the team united enough, to tackle the problem before. It may seem absurd to many, like Imran and Rameez, that the naturally easy going laid back Inzaman should succeed where the more outwardly assertive Wasim, Waqar or Moin could not. However they should know better than most the steel that runs through Inzy – if for no other reason than they were witness to that magnificent innings against NZ in the semi-final of WC92. As Ian Duncan Smith might say "Beware of the Quiet Man!"

Also Kaneria deserves a special mention. He has the touch of greatness and we are very lucky to have him. Twice he bowled the key defining over on the last day to change the course of the game. At both Multan and Lahore he took two wickets in an over to wily open the door through which Shoaib steamrollered Pakistan to victory. He has been unlucky with Umpiring decisions in this series but he needs to watch his appealing as ultimately he could be his own worst enemy. By going up for ridiculous appeals Umpires are naturally less likely to give some of the more marginal ones. In addition the bowling has benefited from the emergence of Rana as a clever thinking opening bowler. This has pushed Sami into his more natural holding position of third seamer. His economy has improved and appears only a matter of time before his perennial bad luck must change. His batting, though, has gone backwards.

At the beginning of the year I said that we were a decent opener in a batting and bowling away from challenging the top test teams. With Rana now providing additional firepower it seems that the bowling problems are at least resolved. The top of the batting order still remains an issue though and we have 6 months to find a solid dependable player to partner Salman Butt before the series in England. However this team has unity and someone stands up with either bat or bowl when required to do so. Butt’s century & Shabbir’s 4 wickets at Multan, Afridi’s 4 wickets at Faisalabad, Malik’s 3 wkts in the first innings and Kamran’s century at Lahore are just some examples of some of the more unlikely useful contributions throughout the series.

I made another prediction many months ago – one which seems to have been forgotten more readily. This was that England would win the Ashes, but that that we would beat them at home. Hence by this scenario we would be challenging for second place, maybe even first place by the time we play them in England. That now is a very real possibility. I have always felt that Pakistan lacks for nothing other than discipline and team unity. Those very qualities, which were destroyed by Captains like Wasim with greater talented resources at their disposal, have been restored by Inzy and Bob. The seeds that were sown by this laudable combination many months ago have now become green shoots. Inshallah by the end of the summer we may know whether they have blossomed into the best team in the World.

[Hash]

Good post!

Of everything I expected before the series.....to THRASH and HUMILIATE England the way we have done is amazing! I SALUTE the Pakistan team for what they did! Ofcoarse, the fact that it is England who have been destroyed makes it all the more special.

[Team Slayer]

Good post, especially this part:

Also Kaneria deserves a special mention. He has the touch of greatness and we are very lucky to have him. Twice he bowled the key defining over on the last day to change the course of the game. At both Multan and Lahore he took two wickets in an over to wily open the door through which Shoaib steamrollered Pakistan to victory. He has been unlucky with Umpiring decisions in this series but he needs to watch his appealing as ultimately he could be his own worst enemy. By going up for ridiculous appeals Umpires are naturally less likely to give some of the more marginal ones.

Kaneria critics should read this over and over again till they finally understand it.

Also, good point about Sami. I feel he is not really a 1st or 2nd pacer material, but in the third test he did do a decent job as a 3rd seamer (in fact, outbowled Ranadinho). If he can develop his batting into something similar to Shane Warne's, I think he'll be a very useful player to have.

[fair_play]

Originally Posted by Amoeba Maggie Fatcher, George Bush, George Bush's Poodle - Tony Blair, George Bush's other Poodle - General Not So Shareef, Norman "The Failed" Tebbit Test, Willie Whitelaw, Billy Whitelaw, Billie, Chris Evans, Christopher Biggins, Little & Large, Cannon & Ball, Johnny Ball, Zoe Ball, FatBoy Slim, Fats Wallah, Rik Wallah, David Walliams, Matt Lucas, George Lucas, George @ Asda, ASBO's, Yacubu, Harry Rednapp, Harry Shaw, Sandy Shaw, Sandy Lyle, Lyle & Scott, Terry Scott, June Whitfield, June Brown, Alastair Brown, Alastair Cook, Nick Cook, Sue Cook, Nick Ross, Ross Kemp, Martin Kemp, Gary Kemp, Will Kemp, Will Self, David Aaronovitch, Rod Liddle, Rod Hull, Emu, Orville, Keith Harris, Keith Fletcher, Duncan Fletcher, Michael Vaughan, Paul "3 nil" Collingwood, Bob Willis, Bob Willis's hepatitis, Ian Botham, Ian Botham's Mother in Law, Are You Listening Ian Botham's Mother in Law? Your Boys Took One helluva a Beating! I haven’t been able to post since the end of the Test due to work commitments. On a more serious note it was a fantastic performance built on the great foundations of discipline, teamwork and unity. Much of the credit is due to Woolmer and Inzy, Both, though, are too modest to accept it and have already attempted to deflect much of it away. One measure of the improvement seen is that most of the team that played at Lahore were the same who lost to India under the previous coach. In England it is often said that the coach gets too much of the praise and too much criticism for a team’s performance. In Pakistan where there seems to be a greater “superstar” culture the coach tends to get too much criticism and too little praise for the team’s performance. If the team loses he will get heavily slated by all and sundry who have emerged from the woodwork with their personal agendas to pursue. If on the other hand the team wins, many may chose to remain silent, whilst those who do comment will merely praise selected players. Oh hum Woolmer must wonder, at least I have the results under my belt. Of course one of the most stunning transformations has been Shoaib. The proverbial Show Pony if ever there was one has, via an enormous kick up the backside, turned himself into a thoroughbred in this series. Never before has he played a full 3 Test match series. Until now that is. Furthermore his improved fitness was evident in that he was on the pitch on the fifth day in Multan and Lahore when he was able to bowl his key spells. This wasn’t simply Shoaib back to his best. No this was a new, improved Shoaib. A fully fit and fully committed cricketer – one we hadn’t seen before. This was highlighted further by the fact that his batting had improved enormously. He batted sensibly for his team and even won promotion to NightWatchman. In addition there was a miracle of miracles as he actually took a catch! I, seems famously for some, predicted at the beginning of this year that there was a very real possibility that Shoaib, finding himself without a county contract and slot in the National Team, could retire from cricket by the end of 2005. Faced with this prospect it seems that thankfully Shoaib finally woke up from his slumber of 7 years, dusted himself down, and decided to show the world that he was a cricketer to be scared of rather than lampooned. Again his fans will say that it shows that the criticism was unjustified and Shoaib should never have been doubted. However what this fails to recognise is the need to get Shoaib out of his comfort zone to make him strive to improve himself. The so-called Second Season Syndrome, which some have dismissed as merely made up by ***** in county cricket (only problem is that the Coach and most of the cricketing World do believe in it). For Shoaib the so-called SSS went on for too long. No Captain or Coach was strong enough in the intervening period, or the team united enough, to tackle the problem before. It may seem absurd to many, like Imran and Rameez, that the naturally easy going laid back Inzaman should succeed where the more outwardly assertive Wasim, Waqar or Moin could not. However they should know better than most the steel that runs through Inzy – if for no other reason than they were witness to that magnificent innings against NZ in the semi-final of WC99. Beware of the Quiet Man! Also Kaneria deserves a special mention. He has the touch of greatness and we are very lucky to have him. Twice he bowled the key defining over on the last day to change the course of the game. At both Multan and Lahore he took two wickets in an over to wily open the door through which Shoaib steamrollered Pakistan to victory. He has been unlucky with Umpiring decisions in this series but he needs to watch his appealing as ultimately he could be his own worst enemy. By going up for ridiculous appeals Umpires are naturally less likely to give some of the more marginal ones. In addition the bowling has benefited from the emergence of Rana as a clever thinking opening bowler. This has pushed Sami into his more natural holding position of third seamer. His economy has improved and appears only a matter of time before his perennial bad luck must change. His batting, though, has gone backwards. At the beginning of the year I said that we were a decent opener in a batting and bowling away from challenging the top test teams. With Rana now providing additional firepower it seems that the bowling problems are at least resolved. The top of the batting order still remains an issue though and we have 6 months to find a solid dependable player to partner Salman Butt before the series in England. However this team has unity and someone stands up with either bat or bowl when required to do so. Butt’s century & Shabbir’s 4 wickets at Multan, Afridi’s 4 wickets at Faisalabad, Malik’s 3 wkts in the first innings and Kamran’s century at Lahore are just some examples of some of the more unlikely useful contributions throughout the series. I made another prediction many months ago – one which seems to have been forgotten more readily. This was that England would win the Ashes, but that that we would beat them at home. Hence by this scenario we would be challenging for second place, maybe even first place by the time we play them in England. That now is a very real possibility. I have always felt that Pakistan lacks for nothing other than discipline and team unity. Those very qualities, which were destroyed by Captains like Wasim with greater talented resources at their disposal, have been restored by Inzy and Bob. The seeds that were sown by this laudable combination many months ago have now become green shoots. Inshallah by the end of the summer we may know whether they have blossomed into the best team in the World.

Ameoba,

Your team may have won, but you dont have to criticise all us Englishmen!

[nedian21]

Originally Posted by Amoeba Maggie Fatcher, George Bush, George Bush's Poodle - Tony Blair, George Bush's other Poodle - General Not So Shareef, Norman "The Failed" Tebbit Test, Willie Whitelaw, Billy Whitelaw, Billie, Chris Evans, Christopher Biggins, Little & Large, Cannon & Ball, Johnny Ball, Zoe Ball, FatBoy Slim, Fats Wallah, Rik Wallah, David Walliams, Matt Lucas, George Lucas, George @ Asda, ASBO's, Yacubu, Harry Rednapp, Harry Shaw, Sandy Shaw, Sandy Lyle, Lyle & Scott, Terry Scott, June Whitfield, June Brown, Alastair Brown, Alastair Cook, Nick Cook, Sue Cook, Nick Ross, Ross Kemp, Martin Kemp, Gary Kemp, Will Kemp, Will Self, David Aaronovitch, Rod Liddle, Rod Hull, Emu, Orville, Keith Harris, Keith Fletcher, Duncan Fletcher, Michael Vaughan, Paul "3 nil" Collingwood, Bob Willis, Bob Willis's hepatitis, Ian Botham, Ian Botham's Mother in Law, Are You Listening Ian Botham's Mother in Law? Your Boys Took One helluva a Beating! I haven’t been able to post since the end of the Test due to work commitments. On a more serious note it was a fantastic performance built on the great foundations of discipline, teamwork and unity. Much of the credit is due to Woolmer and Inzy, Both, though, are too modest to accept it and have already attempted to deflect much of it away. One measure of the improvement seen is that most of the team that played at Lahore were the same who lost to India under the previous coach. In England it is often said that the coach gets too much of the praise and too much criticism for a team’s performance. In Pakistan where there seems to be a greater “superstar” culture the coach tends to get too much criticism and too little praise for the team’s performance. If the team loses he will get heavily slated by all and sundry who have emerged from the woodwork with their personal agendas to pursue. If on the other hand the team wins, many may chose to remain silent, whilst those who do comment will merely praise selected players. Oh hum Woolmer must wonder, at least I have the results under my belt. Of course one of the most stunning transformations has been Shoaib. The proverbial Show Pony if ever there was one has, via an enormous kick up the backside, turned himself into a thoroughbred in this series. Never before has he played a full 3 Test match series. Until now that is. Furthermore his improved fitness was evident in that he was on the pitch on the fifth day in Multan and Lahore when he was able to bowl his key spells. This wasn’t simply Shoaib back to his best. No this was a new, improved Shoaib. A fully fit and fully committed cricketer – one we hadn’t seen before. This was highlighted further by the fact that his batting had improved enormously. He batted sensibly for his team and even won promotion to NightWatchman. In addition there was a miracle of miracles as he actually took a catch! I, seems famously for some, predicted at the beginning of this year that there was a very real possibility that Shoaib, finding himself without a county contract and slot in the National Team, could retire from cricket by the end of 2005. Faced with this prospect it seems that thankfully Shoaib finally woke up from his slumber of 7 years, dusted himself down, and decided to show the world that he was a cricketer to be scared of rather than lampooned. Again his fans will say that it shows that the criticism was unjustified and Shoaib should never have been doubted. However what this fails to recognise is the need to get Shoaib out of his comfort zone to make him strive to improve himself. The so-called Second Season Syndrome, which some have dismissed as merely made up by ***** in county cricket (only problem is that the Coach and most of the cricketing World do believe in it). For Shoaib the so-called SSS went on for too long. No Captain or Coach was strong enough in the intervening period, or the team united enough, to tackle the problem before. It may seem absurd to many, like Imran and Rameez, that the naturally easy going laid back Inzaman should succeed where the more outwardly assertive Wasim, Waqar or Moin could not. However they should know better than most the steel that runs through Inzy – if for no other reason than they were witness to that magnificent innings against NZ in the semi-final of WC99. Beware of the Quiet Man! Also Kaneria deserves a special mention. He has the touch of greatness and we are very lucky to have him. Twice he bowled the key defining over on the last day to change the course of the game. At both Multan and Lahore he took two wickets in an over to wily open the door through which Shoaib steamrollered Pakistan to victory. He has been unlucky with Umpiring decisions in this series but he needs to watch his appealing as ultimately he could be his own worst enemy. By going up for ridiculous appeals Umpires are naturally less likely to give some of the more marginal ones. In addition the bowling has benefited from the emergence of Rana as a clever thinking opening bowler. This has pushed Sami into his more natural holding position of third seamer. His economy has improved and appears only a matter of time before his perennial bad luck must change. His batting, though, has gone backwards. At the beginning of the year I said that we were a decent opener in a batting and bowling away from challenging the top test teams. With Rana now providing additional firepower it seems that the bowling problems are at least resolved. The top of the batting order still remains an issue though and we have 6 months to find a solid dependable player to partner Salman Butt before the series in England. However this team has unity and someone stands up with either bat or bowl when required to do so. Butt’s century & Shabbir’s 4 wickets at Multan, Afridi’s 4 wickets at Faisalabad, Malik’s 3 wkts in the first innings and Kamran’s century at Lahore are just some examples of some of the more unlikely useful contributions throughout the series. I made another prediction many months ago – one which seems to have been forgotten more readily. This was that England would win the Ashes, but that that we would beat them at home. Hence by this scenario we would be challenging for second place, maybe even first place by the time we play them in England. That now is a very real possibility. I have always felt that Pakistan lacks for nothing other than discipline and team unity. Those very qualities, which were destroyed by Captains like Wasim with greater talented resources at their disposal, have been restored by Inzy and Bob. The seeds that were sown by this laudable combination many months ago have now become green shoots. Inshallah by the end of the summer we may know whether they have blossomed into the best team in the World.

MASHALLAH great post. MODs should add this into the articles.

[Amoeba]

Originally Posted by fair_play Ameoba, Your team may have won, but you dont have to criticise all us Englishmen!

Ok I didn't know you batted for the other side now, as it were.

[Saeed Anwar-194]

good article

[princeali]

Great article !!