wasted 2nd (batting) power play: With wickets in hand, Pakistan should have done better than scoring just 77 runs off the last 11.3 overs but then it is not easy to take on Murali
wasted both reviews
missed a few really good runout chances
conceded 29 extras (incl. 16 wides and 2 no balls) v SLA’s 9
need an extra wicket-taking bowler - I would drop Hafeez and play Wahab or Junaid
dropped a couple of catches - an easy (Abdul Rehman dropped Silva off Gul’s bowling) and a difficult (Younis dropped Perera off Akhtar’s bowling) one
Akmal’s keeping was poor: missed stumping Sangakkara on two occasions off spinner Abdur Rehman
Among the positives
with today’s win Pakistan maintained their 100% record against Sri Lanka in World Cups - 7 games & 7 wins
Afridi led the side very well + bowled beautifully today :k: but was let down by some poor cricket in the outfield
Misbah and Younus batted well :k: Their 108-run 4th wicket partnership helped set up a challenging total
Akhtar bowled really well :k:
There is room for improvement after every performance, but I thought that other than the fielding lapses the Pakistani performance was pretty good today. However, they may not be lucky every time and these fielding lapses could prove costly.
I'd drop Razzaq and bring in a fast bowler. We really need a bowling all-rounder in place of Razzaq but we dont have one. Hafeez can not be dropped because he provides nice spin option on these sub-continent wickets.
There is no other keeper in the WC squad so we have to live with and pray that Akmal improves.
As for reviews, I think Manager/Coach need to tell Afridi that he need to check (at least) with his keeper before going for review. He took less than a second to review what was clearly not out at least Akmal was not interested.
I agree we need Wahab Riaz in the team, but not at the expense of Hafeez. If anything, replace him with Ahmed Shehzad if you're going to remove a batsman. Although to be honest I think Riaz could come in place of Abdur Rehman. Ten overs each from Shoaib, Gul, Riaz and Afridi, and five overs from Razzaq+Hafeez.
I'd drop Razzaq and bring in a fast bowler. We really need a bowling all-rounder in place of Razzaq but we dont have one. Hafeez can not be dropped because he provides nice spin option on these sub-continent wickets.
I agree we need Wahab Riaz in the team, but not at the expense of Hafeez. If anything, replace him with Ahmed Shehzad if you're going to remove a batsman. Although to be honest I think Riaz could come in place of Abdur Rehman. Ten overs each from Shoaib, Gul, Riaz and Afridi, and five overs from Razzaq+Hafeez.
razzaq should be dropped and Junaid brought in. We need another strike bowler.
I agree with ehsan bhai, if Razzaq is not going to be utilized properly for bowling and Afridi will bat ahead of him then there is no point of him being in the team in these conditions but I disagree with replacement, I think it should be Wahab Riaz as he is known wicket taker as well as able to hit lusty blows when needed.
What do you guys think of dropping Abdur Rehman for Riaz. Hes in my bad books after today, and also Hafeez isnt a bad bowler. Lets us have our Riaz and keep Razzaq too.
What do you guys think of dropping Abdur Rehman for Riaz. Hes in my bad books after today, and also Hafeez isnt a bad bowler. Lets us have our Riaz and keep Razzaq too.
AbdurRehman is fine, it just our keeper that needs to stay awake behind wicket.
I have a feeling that Pakistan is holding back Riaz (and may be Junaid too) for the later part of the tournament. Just like NZ made Oram and Mills sit out against Aus.
Underutilization of Razzaq seems to be the big question.
At younis's dismissal we were at 42nd over, I would have liked to see Razzaq instead of Umar
For future matches, I think Saeed Ajmal is very important. The wicket today was gripping and as Murali showed a quality spinner could really do some damage.
Abdur Rehman is usually pretty good at stopping the flow of runs..we should persist with him.
Shoaib's delivery to Mahela is one for the ages...today’s match winning delivery in my opinion.
He seem to have a knee issue which is a concern...I wouldn't play him against the weaker teams.
Great victory for Pakistan..much credit goes to the seniors.
Agreed Akhtar should be rested against Canada and Zimbabwe. Must play both Junaid and Wahab in both games to gauge them esp. the latter
On second thoughts agree with Decent and others who say that Hafeez should be persisted with. He does provide a decent spin option plus he is a good fielder. But he needs to start converting those 30s into 60 and 70s atleast. Today he was runout though. And someone needs to have a word with Ahmed Shehzad (I won't drop him because he is a good fielder and esp. a safe catcher) about staying at the wicket. He is just too impatient and that was his undoing today. Maybe nerves got the better of him today. There is no need to try and hit every ball to the boundary
Dropping Razzaq is not as straightforward as it looks. You need depth in batting too. Misbah and Younis won't click or put together a big partnership in every game and in the event of a mini collapse upfront, it would fall to the late middle order, the likes of Afridi, Umar Akmal and Razzaq to rescue us
And but for a dropped dolly, Abdul Rehman bowled pretty well today keeping it tight. He should have had atleast 2 wickets today but was denied by Kamran Akmal
So perhaps they should persist with the same winning XI except against weaker teams
