Pakistan Need To Improve Their Batting
Pakistan seem to have been revitalized after their win over Australia at Headingley after 15 years, and are all set to take on England. However, it would be wise of Pakistan to realize that it was just their fast bowlers who won them the match, and that their batting was not up to the mark. The inexperienced batting line-up is said to be more accustomed to the shorter formats of One Day and Twenty20 and despite intense training, cannot seem to perform as well in the longer traditional format. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755’s young team needs a lesson in mental and physical resilience, or they will suffer against England if their bowlers don’t perform as well as they did against Australia.
The MCC Spirit of Cricket series, where Pakistan took on http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 was a somewhat surprising series; there was not a single century, though the overhead conditions could be partially responsible for that. Pakistan’s batsmen scored four half centuries compared to the six Australia scored and there were only two 100+ partnerships. Compared to the good form of the bowlers, the batsmen were very poor, with the bowlers putting in a performance that won them the match. This should not come as a surprise though; Pakistan’s batting lineup has been facing problems for some time now, in relation to other sides Pakistan have considerably low number of hundreds in the last five years.
Australia boast 80 hundreds in 45 Tests, followed by England who have managed 76 hundreds in almost the same number of Tests. Pakistan have only managed 39 centuries, which is a very poor record for a nation that prides itself on being one of the greatest cricketing nations of the world. What Pakistan need to do to improve their batting is to have two or three established players in the lineup, this would stabilize the innings and would ensure consistent performances. An anchor presence would help build up a partnership which would help the Pakistan bowlers in uncertain conditions. Despite changes being made, Pakistan’s batsmen have failed to adapt.
Pakistan have a very talented team, just not a very experienced one. And with the exclusion of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mohammad-Yusuf-c77475 and Younis Khan and with the retirement of Inzama-ul-Haq, the situation has just spiraled downwards. One player on the current team, who holds the potential to being one of the greatest batsmen for Pakistan, is recently appointed captain, Salman Butt. With his new position comes great responsibility, and he has delivered so far, being Pakistan’s highest run maker in Tests over this year. Butt started off as a promising opener, but his performance took a downward turn, he has recovered his good form and is back to starting for Pakistan.
If Salman Butt expects to perform well as captain and act as a role model for the younger players, he has to worry less about his own game and personal gain. England will go into the match confident as they take on an inexperienced Pakistan side, England Captain Andrew Strauss told reporters ahead of the match, “It's http://www.senore.com/Cricket/S-Young-c87719 team to get the best results out of them. Azhar Ali, Umar Amin and Umar Akmal have shown maturity beyond their years, and this exposure to international cricket will only give them more experience and improve their performance.
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