Pakistan survive ODI Series white wash scare!
The http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 tour of England has proved to be a very painful and prolonged tour for the Pakistan cricket team. It not only sparked with the spot-fixing controversy which emerged during the last test match of Pakistan and England
at Lord’s, but also because of the losing streak that the Pakistan team seems to be facing at the moment.
The Pakistan team is touring England, at a time when the team selectors have experimented with the team line-up by taking in a flurry of new-comers and debutants. Some of the new-comers include Umar Amin, Wahab Riaz, Azhar Ali,
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Raza-Hasan-c84407, and Asad Shafiq to name just a few. These are challenging times for the team as it is going through an adjustment period.
There has been an immense pressure on the new batsmen as they are replacing brilliant players like http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Inzamam-ul-Haq-c64383, Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan, now these are some big shoes to fill.
However, when looking at the bowlers of the side, the situation is quite the opposite. After the provisional ban of the two ace opening bowlers of the team, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, there has been a huge void in the bowling
attack of Pakistan. The ageing Shoaib Akhtar and Abdur Razzaq have replaced them. The one-down bowler used is Umar Gul. The spinning options are Saeed Ajmal, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shahid-Afridi-c2482, and Mohammad Hafeez. In contrast to the inexperienced and green batting order, the
bowling attack is full of experienced and seasoned bowlers, the only problem is that Shoaib Akhtar and Umar Gul were struggling with their form, however, in the third one day international both of them have bowled exceptionally.
The absence of both Amir and Asif is greatly being felt in all the matches that have been played without them. They both formed a brilliant combination in the starting overs of the match. Amir would attack from one side while Mohammad
Asif used to play the supporting role, making sure that he bowled a good length and did not give away too many runs. Both the bowlers had an exceptionally good economy rate and were great wicket-taking bowlers.
On the other hand, things are different when Shoaib Akhtar and Abdur Razzaq come out to bowl; they are not the way as they used to be 10 years ago. But even then it has been a great comeback for both the bowlers in the third one-day
international between England and Pakistan, where both bowled a good line and length and also managed to take wickets. Umar Gul bowls one down and has finally found his form in this 3rd ODI match.
Another baffling fact in the tour so far is the field placing by the both the captains, first Salman Butt and now Shahid Afridi. Cricket experts criticized Salman Butt for giving off easy singles during the tests, as he did not
place slips when required, had a defensive field setting when an attacking one was required, also he was making his part-time bowlers bowl at a time when his in-form bowlers like Amir and Asif were taking wickets. Similarly, Shahid Afridi has made mistakes
as well, in the third one-day in particular, his field placing did not make sense at all as easy singles and doubles were being given easily in a match where the batsmen just need four runs per over to win.
Also, how can one forget the innumerable dropped catches and sloppy fielding by the Pakistan side.
The performance of both the captains has also been less than ordinary. Salman Butt failed to do anything productive with the bat during the test matches and was also surpisingly sloppy in the field, even though he is known to be
a decent fielder. Likewise, Shahid Afridi struggled with the bat, however, in the third ODI, he was playing a promising innings but got run out in the most absurd way possible. That has been the trend with Shahid Afridi, unfortunately, just when he seems comfortable
at the crease and is ready to hit his huge shots, he just gets out.
To make matters worse, there have been several poor decisions given in favour of England on this tour.
It seems that the luck has not been on Pakistan’s side on this tour, and their worst nightmares would have just come true, had Umar Gul not exhibited a match winning performance today.
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