Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
so farhat is not playing :-|
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
We are hoping and counting on that :D
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
PAKISTAN MUST RETHINK
Pakistan expect to have to send out their third opening pair of the npower series this week, with Imran Farhat almost certainly out of the Headingley Test.
Left-hander Farhat has so far shared first-wicket alliances with Salman Butt and Kamran Akmal, but a fractured ring finger in his right hand means a rethink.
Butt, dropped for the innings defeat at Old Trafford which provided England with a 1-0 lead, could earn a recall - while Shahid Afridi will also be considered at the top of the order alongside wicketkeeper Akmal.
“Imran Farhat is struggling to field, so he’s unlikely to come into contention for selection,” confirmed Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer.
"We will consider the opening partnership in general as well.
“Kamran has done it before, and it allowed us to play an extra bowler down the order last week because we felt, quite rightly, that the ball would turn on the fifth day. Unfortunately we didn’t get to the fifth day.”
Pakistan were dismissed twice in a combined 105.5 overs on a Manchester surface of exaggerated bounce - leaving them needing to win at least one of the final two matches to avoid a first Test series defeat in six.
However, recent history has been full of Pakistani fight when behind.
“We have had many situations - specifically in Bangalore against India and Jamaica in the West Indies,” recalled Woolmer, of previous campaigns in which Pakistan have trailed 1-0.
"But at the moment we have a lot of hard work to do. The team has accepted that and buckled down.
"We had a very good team meeting two days after the Test match, and the boys are very determined to bring it back.
"You have to accept at this level that you can lose - and the good thing was, funnily enough, that we lost in three days because it gave us time to recover. There is a good energy to the team now.
“If we want to win this series we have to win this match, so we need to come out positively and put Old Trafford behind us.”
Pace spearhead Shoaib Akhtar has been pencilled in to return for the finale at The Oval, providing he comes through a club match for Berkswell in the third tier of the Birmingham League this Saturday.
“It’s only a second division game. But we just want him to bowl eight overs at pretty much full speed - so good luck to the poor blokes,” said Woolmer.
Mohammad Asif (elbow) may also be in the mix for that Oval contest.
But for now Pakistan are contemplating fielding a four-pronged pace unit on Friday - which could mean a call-up for either Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Shahid Nazir or left-armer Samiullah Khan.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
four pronged 
… Is Sami two-pronged? I think he will still be bowling for our displeasure.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Don't tell me that they are not used to it by now :D since this has been a norm rather than an exception.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Sami’s prongs are uncountable when it comes to bowling 
if you know what i mean!
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Shahid Nazir should be in for Sami.the conditions there might also suit his style of bowling.His First Class bowling average is whole 10 runs per wicket better than SAMI.Atleast he can,t be worse than him in test matches as well.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Wish this get into out think tank’s head somehow. This bloke deserved a chance in the very first test match of the series and for some unknown reason, we persisted with the same mediocre pair of seamers. I wish and hope that Nazir gets a well deserved chance now since this is when we need it the most, yes I’m talking about the CHANGE!
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
lol, don’t you agree though?
honestly, deep down inside, i really want sami to go back to his old ways. it used to be so exciting just to see him run up to the pitch and bowl… now his run-up is awkward, he doesn’t look comfortable, and most of all, he doesn’t have that ‘aggressive’ look he once sported.
it’s sad really. but i guess we need to move on and find the ‘next big thing’…
as for the openers, i wouldn’t mind woolmer and co experimenting with afridi rather than akmal. i can see him and taufeeq umar doing relatively well together… and akmal plays so much more composed and comfortably down the order.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Akmal for the opening slot again? A four pronged pace attack inlcuding Sami? The only reason Farhat isn't playing is because of the injury. Looks like we haven't learnt much.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
The same aggressive look after which he would get thwacked for a boundary? That "aggressive" look was taken as "flirting" look by opponent hence the return of favor.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
aur kis ko ghisayn ge Woolmer mian? unless Younis raises his hand when openers are counted.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
The way i see it Pakistan have a few options..
1) open with Butt and loose an early wicket
2)send afridi in to bat calmy
3)give afridi permission to hit from the go. I think this just might work.
I know Afridi has been out of form. But the thing is , your team needs him to be playing well if ur going to be competitive against Australia and South Africa. Say Afridi is dropped for Salman Butt. If Salman Butt plays well against the world best it wont effect the outcome of the game. Afridi will, hes a genuine matchwinner. Don't play him at your own cost. Can't see any harm in him opening.
Send Afridi in to open. His spin bowling has been better than Kaneria''s. I'd play afridi as the spinner.
Hes practically been batting in Kaneria's position for the last few tests. Number 8 or something.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Pakistan versus England, 3rd Test, Headingley
Pressure on Read as England hunt series
Preview
Three days is all it took for England’s summer to take on an entirely new complexion. Their performance at Old Trafford displayed all the qualities of ruthlessness and aggression that had been lacking in previous performances. Now they aim to carry that momentum to Headingley and wrap up a moral-boosting series win that would avenge their 2-0 defeat in the winter.
The question that had been raised in the opening encounter at Lord’s - Andrew Strauss’s captaincy, Steve Harmison’s hunger and Monty Panesar’s effectivness - were given very efficient answers. Then, two days after their win, England answered another question - what to do with Geraint Jones. The answer was to drop him, because of form not his finger injury, and hand Chris Read a recall. Read’s every move over the next two Tests will be scrutinised in minute detail starting with his performance at Leeds.
The likelihood is that Read will be the only change from the XI that stormed home at Old Trafford. Although only two England bowlers - Harmison and Panesar - took wickets in the last Test the attack was well balanced and showed how, in the worst case scenario, England can go about winning Tests with four bowlers.
Sajid Mahmood is man under pressure for his place, but there where glimpses of his potential and he as the raw qualities of pace and bounce that Fletcher so admires. A return to Jon Lewis, for what would surely be another one-off game, would be harking back to the bad old days of horses for courses at Headingley which have rarely proved success.
The batting is ticking along nicely, even without contributions from two of senior players on Marcus Trescothick and Kevin Pietersen. They have yet to register a half-century between them in the series and at some point the youngsters are not going rock up and score a century. “Of course I want to get runs every time I go out to bat so it is not an ideal situation,” said Trescothick. "I have not seen it as I would have liked to over the last couple of games or played as well as I can do - hopefully it will kick back in this week.
Trescothick hit a century at Headingley during the one-day series against Sri Lanka and averages 45 from four Tests at the ground. “Some grounds you pick the ball up better, whether this is one of those grounds I don’t know but it always seems to work for me here. It’s always nice when you turn up at a ground knowing the last time you were here you did well.”
He is also conscious of England not giving Pakistan a chance to fight their way back into the series. “We have to be clinical and tough this week and get straight back into them. We’ve played really well against them twice now and we have got to do the same again. You have to be careful when people are wounded because they can bounce back quickly, so we will concentrate on what we have done well in the last two games and replicate it in this one.”
Pakistan can’t really sink much lower than Manchester; it was a display that showcased the worst side of their cricket. Bob Woolmer has a huge task to turn their form around for the final two games, but the mercurial nature of Pakistan cricket means they are capable fighting back.
They are set to field a new opening partnership after the double failure of Kamran Akmal at the top of the order and Imran Farhat’s broken finger. Woolmer has also hinted that they will consider altering the balance of their attack in favour of four season instead of the playing both Danish Kaneria and Shahid Afridi.
In their current frame of mind, England won’t mind who they face. After a performance of such dominance as they produced at Old Trafford, and the ingredients of their success being pace and spin, thoughts are again heading towards the winter. However, England are well aware of the danger of losing their focus. Pakistan have gained a steely edge under Woolmer and will be determined to keep the series alive.
England (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick, 2 Andrew Strauss (capt), 3 Alastair Cook, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Paul Collingwood, 6 Ian Bell, 7 Geraint Jones (wk), 8 Sajid Mahmood, 9 Matthew Hoggard, 10 Steve Harmison, 11 Monty Panesar
Pakistan (probable) 1 Salman Butt, 2 Taufeeq Umar, 3 Younis Khan, 4
Mohammad Yousuf, 5 Inzamam-ul-Haq, 6 Abdul Razzaq 7 Kamran Akmal, 8 Mohammad Sami, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Shahid Nazir 11 Danish Kaneria
SOURCE: http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/ci/content/current/story/255494.html
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
^idiots at cricinfo still have geraint jones in playing 11.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
Is someone supposed to read beyond these two points?
2. Afridi in to bat calmy
and next point is “persmission to hit from the go” :k:
Do you know the next game is Test match, not a Twenty20? Just FYI.
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
aussiecricketer get with the times
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
The weather condition during the match is negative: Cloudy & Showery...
The above condition may favor the seamers than the batsmen...
My result: Draw... :)
Re: 3rd Test - Eng vs Pak - Leeds, 4th-8th Aug.
weather in Leeds during the test match: