Re: Imran Khan responsible for Pakistan cricket team’s performance - Aamir sohail
If you can swing the new ball on those slow and low dry pitches then good luck to you!
So are Hanif & Miandad also responsible for the current pathetic state of Pakistani batting?
Those who understand cricket know that the new ball does n’t swing in the air or seam off the pitch on sub-continental dust bowls as much as say in english conditions. However those who had special talent & ability could swing the new ball as well as the old ball - bowlers such as Sarfraz, Imran, Wasim, Waqar & Akhtar and more recently Asif and Aamir. Our problem is none of our present bowlers are quite in the same league or have quite the same ability as the aforementioned bowlers
Hence over the years Pakistani bowlers learned and mastered the art of reverse swing; making the ball move in the air with the older ball; (it was actually discovered by Sarfraz not IK). And reverse swing can be achieved through natural means by taking good care of one side of the ball, maintaining shine on it. You don’t really have to physically tamper with the ball. The ball gets scuffed up over time in those dry conditions.
Besides Aamir Sohail is missing the point. Even though the present bowling attack is not the same quality as before, we are not losing matches because of our bowling. The bowlers by and large, within their limited capabilities, did their job even in this CT. It is the batting (our long-term nemesis) which is the main cause of our decline in cricket esp. defensive batting approach. Pakistan are simply not producing good attacking batsmen, esp. batsmen with good technique and temperament.We lack batsmen who have the ability to win matches, perform in a crisis, dominate great bowling on any type of wicket and so on. Miandad for instance had nerves of steel and what he lacked in style or pure technique he compensated with superb improvisation and adaptation. Inzi was another great performer in pressure situations.
We need to prepare better pitches, green pitches with pace and bounce. Then we will automatically produce better openers