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Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net ; Wasim who represented Pakistan on 43 occasions between 1996 and 2000 and scored 109 on debut against New Zealand expressed his surprise that Irfan had been selected for the one day squad prior to his inclusion in the test squad.
by Saj Sadiq
13 September 2010
Giant left arm pace bowler Mohammad Irfan may not have made the fantastic impression that Pakistani cricket fans around the world would have wanted so far, but his skipper at Khan Research Laboratories, Mohammad Wasim feels that everyone needs to show a degree of patience with Irfan.
Irfan's meteoric rise to international cricket is well documented and expectations were very high, but Irfan has so far been wicketless and injured in both one day internationals after being called up as a replacement player for the five match one day series.
Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net ; Wasim who represented Pakistan on 43 occasions between 1996 and 2000 and scored 109 on debut against New Zealand expressed his surprise that Irfan had been selected for the one day squad prior to his inclusion in the test squad.
"If I was a selector or the captain of the Pakistan team, I would have had him in the test team first before thinking about getting him in the one day squad, as I feel he is more effective in the longer version of the game."
Irfan enjoyed a dream debut season under the watchful eye of Wasim at KRL and was called up to the Pakistan squad after some consistence performances for the Pakistan "A" team currently touring Sri Lanka. Wasim though urged caution and patience and spoke about the possible reasons as to why Irfan did not make an immediate impact for Pakistan.
"To make a debut in such circumstances, given all that has gone on in the current tour is not easy for anybody. There's been so much going on in this tour. It doesn't matter how experienced you are, or where you have played your cricket, there must be so much going through his mind at the moment. There are a lot of things going on behind the scenes in Pakistan cricket and it has to be affecting all of the players, and it's wrong to expect miracles from Irfan straight away."
Irfan has struggled with fitness issues during both one day internationals at Durham and Leeds respectively, but Wasim feels that the fitness concerns could largely be down to nerves, rather than any long term issues surrounding the left armer.
"Irfan had a few minor niggles during the course of the Quaid E Azam Trophy, but nothing serious. He played a lot of cricket in his first season for KRL and bowled a lot of overs without any serious injuries. Some days he was the only decent and fit bowler I had at my service and he would bowl 25 overs plus in a day for the team, without any problems. I think his fitness issues were down to pressure, the circumstances and nerves combined. It seemed to me that he was trying too hard and trying to do something special."
After only 2 matches for Pakistan, some pundits and fans are questioning whether Irfan should have made his international debut after only one season of first class cricket, rather than a longer introduction to domestic cricket. However Wasim stated that Irfan could make his mark on international cricket, but it is more likely that it could be in test cricket.
In addition to the fitness problems for Irfan, Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi criticised Irfan's fielding display after the last over defeat at Lords, but Wasim stated that Irfan is not the weak fielder that he was made out to be at Headingley.
"Again I'll say that he (Irfan) would be more effective in test cricket than one day cricket. Regarding his fielding, he's not great but he's actually a decent fielder. He's got a good arm on him, but he was exposed fielding close in and in the shorter versions of the game fielders can get exposed if they have any sort of weakness. There are a lot of bowlers out there, for example Mohammad Asif who aren't great fielders, but Irfan's fielding display was highlighted because he didn't have much success with the ball in either match. If he'd taken a couple of wickets and the team had won, then Irfan's fielding would not have had the same amount of publicity."
Irfan's introduction to the Pakistan side was based on a haul of 43 wickets in 10 first class matches and Wasim refuted any suggestions that Irfan's statistics were distorted due to the bowling friendly conditions in Rawalpindi.
"No I don't agree with that assessment at all. Irfan took wickets away from the KRL ground at Rawalpindi. He did not just perform well during our home fixtures. An example of that would be in Karachi where Irfan took 8 or so wickets on a batting friendly pitch that offered very little help to the pace bowlers."
Irfan's strength according to a number of first class cricketers PakPassion has spoken to is the bounce that he achieves. Wasim feels that Irfan can make things difficult for a batsman on any surface.
"Irfan can extract awkward bounce on any surface, it does not have to be just on bowler friendly pitches. If the pitch is doing a bit, it will help him, but he is someone who has performed well in conditions that suit the batting side."
Irfan began his first class career at the age of 27 after playing club cricket in the Multan region, under the tutorship of former fast bowler Nadeem Iqbal. At 27 Irfan is of course a latecomer to top level cricket and keen observers of the game have mentioned a couple of technical areas that they feel Irfan needs to work on. However Wasim feels that no technical alterations should be made to Irfan's bowling.
"I would not make any technical adjustments to his bowling. He is 28 now and not 18. As a youngster, yes you can make some adjustments, but at this age it would be wrong to alter his bowling from a technical viewpoint. I think he has a decent action, I don't think there are any major technical issues with his bowling. His performance or lack of it was in my opinion down to nerves."
Off the field Irfan is what could be termed a gentle giant. A quiet, shy and humble individual who according to Wasim regularly needs reassurance and guidance from the captain and management.
"I'm not sure how much encouragement Irfan has had from the team management during the two matches. The way I got the best out of him was to give him a vote of confidence, guide him and encourage him. Even when things weren't going well, I felt Irfan just needed a pep talk, some words of encouragement and he would deliver. He's a very good listener, he takes on board the feedback that he receives and bowls according to the team plan. I would make sure that I would give him plenty of guidance, I would provide him with regular information on each opposition batsmen's strengths and weaknesses, and Irfan would listen to my advice and ensure that he bowled where I wanted him to. To get the best out of him as a skipper, you have to work very closely with him. Irfan also has his own strengths and weaknesses and it's imperative that the captain, coaches and team management realise this to get the best out of him. He needs the backing of the skipper, not his public criticism."
With such a late introduction to top level cricket Irfan's enthusiasm, freshness, hunger and desire is clearly evident. At the Marriott Hotel on Sunday morning prior to the start of the second one day international, Irfan was the first of the Pakistan squad to have his kit bag prepared and ready, and he was the first to the breakfast table, obviously keen to impress the team management with his discipline and timekeeping. Mohammad Wasim feels that Irfan's enthusiasm and desire to succeed will have a positive effect on him and that although Irfan has come into cricket at a later stage than most, his will to succeed is like that of a teenager just coming into the game.
"We've worked hard with Irfan on getting his fitness levels up. For him it's the beginning and it's all new to him. He's very keen as he knows that he is playing catchup because of his age. I've seen bowlers who are 25 or 26 and you can tell that they are already past their best, but Irfan is certainly not in that category. He's got the passion and excitement of a teenager and I don't see any reason for him to worry about whether he is already over the hill. I think his best days are ahead of him. Even if he gets dropped or doesn't do that well in the upcoming matches, I think he will take it on the chin and realise that he needs to work even harder. I feel that he will benefit from the experience of playing for Pakistan and when he comes back after his international stint to KRL, he will come back as an even better bowler, especially having experienced the additional pressure of taking part in international cricket.
Irfan's availability for the next one day international at the Oval on 17th September depends on whether he can shake off the fitness concerns. If selected, Irfan will undoubtedly be looking for an improved performance and no doubt his first wicket in the colours of Pakistan.
Irfan's meteoric rise to international cricket is well documented and expectations were very high, but Irfan has so far been wicketless and injured in both one day internationals after being called up as a replacement player for the five match one day series.
Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net ; Wasim who represented Pakistan on 43 occasions between 1996 and 2000 and scored 109 on debut against New Zealand expressed his surprise that Irfan had been selected for the one day squad prior to his inclusion in the test squad.
"If I was a selector or the captain of the Pakistan team, I would have had him in the test team first before thinking about getting him in the one day squad, as I feel he is more effective in the longer version of the game."
Irfan enjoyed a dream debut season under the watchful eye of Wasim at KRL and was called up to the Pakistan squad after some consistence performances for the Pakistan "A" team currently touring Sri Lanka. Wasim though urged caution and patience and spoke about the possible reasons as to why Irfan did not make an immediate impact for Pakistan.
"To make a debut in such circumstances, given all that has gone on in the current tour is not easy for anybody. There's been so much going on in this tour. It doesn't matter how experienced you are, or where you have played your cricket, there must be so much going through his mind at the moment. There are a lot of things going on behind the scenes in Pakistan cricket and it has to be affecting all of the players, and it's wrong to expect miracles from Irfan straight away."
Irfan has struggled with fitness issues during both one day internationals at Durham and Leeds respectively, but Wasim feels that the fitness concerns could largely be down to nerves, rather than any long term issues surrounding the left armer.
"Irfan had a few minor niggles during the course of the Quaid E Azam Trophy, but nothing serious. He played a lot of cricket in his first season for KRL and bowled a lot of overs without any serious injuries. Some days he was the only decent and fit bowler I had at my service and he would bowl 25 overs plus in a day for the team, without any problems. I think his fitness issues were down to pressure, the circumstances and nerves combined. It seemed to me that he was trying too hard and trying to do something special."
After only 2 matches for Pakistan, some pundits and fans are questioning whether Irfan should have made his international debut after only one season of first class cricket, rather than a longer introduction to domestic cricket. However Wasim stated that Irfan could make his mark on international cricket, but it is more likely that it could be in test cricket.
In addition to the fitness problems for Irfan, Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi criticised Irfan's fielding display after the last over defeat at Lords, but Wasim stated that Irfan is not the weak fielder that he was made out to be at Headingley.
"Again I'll say that he (Irfan) would be more effective in test cricket than one day cricket. Regarding his fielding, he's not great but he's actually a decent fielder. He's got a good arm on him, but he was exposed fielding close in and in the shorter versions of the game fielders can get exposed if they have any sort of weakness. There are a lot of bowlers out there, for example Mohammad Asif who aren't great fielders, but Irfan's fielding display was highlighted because he didn't have much success with the ball in either match. If he'd taken a couple of wickets and the team had won, then Irfan's fielding would not have had the same amount of publicity."
Irfan's introduction to the Pakistan side was based on a haul of 43 wickets in 10 first class matches and Wasim refuted any suggestions that Irfan's statistics were distorted due to the bowling friendly conditions in Rawalpindi.
"No I don't agree with that assessment at all. Irfan took wickets away from the KRL ground at Rawalpindi. He did not just perform well during our home fixtures. An example of that would be in Karachi where Irfan took 8 or so wickets on a batting friendly pitch that offered very little help to the pace bowlers."
Irfan's strength according to a number of first class cricketers PakPassion has spoken to is the bounce that he achieves. Wasim feels that Irfan can make things difficult for a batsman on any surface.
"Irfan can extract awkward bounce on any surface, it does not have to be just on bowler friendly pitches. If the pitch is doing a bit, it will help him, but he is someone who has performed well in conditions that suit the batting side."
Irfan began his first class career at the age of 27 after playing club cricket in the Multan region, under the tutorship of former fast bowler Nadeem Iqbal. At 27 Irfan is of course a latecomer to top level cricket and keen observers of the game have mentioned a couple of technical areas that they feel Irfan needs to work on. However Wasim feels that no technical alterations should be made to Irfan's bowling.
"I would not make any technical adjustments to his bowling. He is 28 now and not 18. As a youngster, yes you can make some adjustments, but at this age it would be wrong to alter his bowling from a technical viewpoint. I think he has a decent action, I don't think there are any major technical issues with his bowling. His performance or lack of it was in my opinion down to nerves."
Off the field Irfan is what could be termed a gentle giant. A quiet, shy and humble individual who according to Wasim regularly needs reassurance and guidance from the captain and management.
"I'm not sure how much encouragement Irfan has had from the team management during the two matches. The way I got the best out of him was to give him a vote of confidence, guide him and encourage him. Even when things weren't going well, I felt Irfan just needed a pep talk, some words of encouragement and he would deliver. He's a very good listener, he takes on board the feedback that he receives and bowls according to the team plan. I would make sure that I would give him plenty of guidance, I would provide him with regular information on each opposition batsmen's strengths and weaknesses, and Irfan would listen to my advice and ensure that he bowled where I wanted him to. To get the best out of him as a skipper, you have to work very closely with him. Irfan also has his own strengths and weaknesses and it's imperative that the captain, coaches and team management realise this to get the best out of him. He needs the backing of the skipper, not his public criticism."
With such a late introduction to top level cricket Irfan's enthusiasm, freshness, hunger and desire is clearly evident. At the Marriott Hotel on Sunday morning prior to the start of the second one day international, Irfan was the first of the Pakistan squad to have his kit bag prepared and ready, and he was the first to the breakfast table, obviously keen to impress the team management with his discipline and timekeeping. Mohammad Wasim feels that Irfan's enthusiasm and desire to succeed will have a positive effect on him and that although Irfan has come into cricket at a later stage than most, his will to succeed is like that of a teenager just coming into the game.
"We've worked hard with Irfan on getting his fitness levels up. For him it's the beginning and it's all new to him. He's very keen as he knows that he is playing catchup because of his age. I've seen bowlers who are 25 or 26 and you can tell that they are already past their best, but Irfan is certainly not in that category. He's got the passion and excitement of a teenager and I don't see any reason for him to worry about whether he is already over the hill. I think his best days are ahead of him. Even if he gets dropped or doesn't do that well in the upcoming matches, I think he will take it on the chin and realise that he needs to work even harder. I feel that he will benefit from the experience of playing for Pakistan and when he comes back after his international stint to KRL, he will come back as an even better bowler, especially having experienced the additional pressure of taking part in international cricket.
Irfan's availability for the next one day international at the Oval on 17th September depends on whether he can shake off the fitness concerns. If selected, Irfan will undoubtedly be looking for an improved performance and no doubt his first wicket in the colours of Pakistan.
Disclaimer - The views and opinions expressed above are those of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of PakPassion.net.
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