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Cricket Videos Sub Forum/Current Series highlights
http://www.paklinks.com/gs/showthread.php?t=212160
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Don’t bank on an Akhtar return just yet…
Express more a Puffing Billy
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2006/08/07/scjohn07.xml
Shoaib’s first spell of four overs was rapid enough, but his second burst of three overs was closer to milk float than express train, and he still looks short of optimum fitness.
He did clinch Berkswell’s victory by taking the last two wickets, but he was still blowing hard after what was, let’s be honest, a gentle afternoon on the village green. If he does return for the final Test at the Oval, England’s batsmen probably won’t require any extra portable loos.
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Asif in squad for the final Test
August 7, 2006
Mohammad Asif, the Pakistan fast bowler, and Mohammad Hafeez, the allrounder, will reinforce the squad in England before the fourth Test starting on August 17 at The Oval in London.
“They [Asif and Hafeez] will be joining the team in next few days and will be considered for the fourth Test and the one-day series,” said Abbas Zaidi, the Pakistan board director. “Both of them will hopefully strengthen the side and give more options to the team management.”
Asif, who has taken 25 wickets in five Tests, returned home before the first Test of the series (at Lord’s) with an elbow injury. He has since recovered and passed a fitness test on August 4.
Hafeez, an opener and offbreak bowler, has been called up after a string of good performances recently for the A side against England, New Zealand and India. He last played for the senior team against India in April 2005 while the last of his last three Test appearances was against Bangladesh in 2003.
Pakistan have not only had to struggle with injuries to their key bowlers, Shoaib Akhtar, Asif and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan but also with their opening pair. Pakistan have tried three different opening combinations in the three Tests in England so far with regular opener Imran Farhat being overlooked for the ongoing third Test at Headingley because of a finger injury.
Link: http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/engvpak/content/current/story/255810.html
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That will be interesting, is Hafeez coming in for a free ride? Are they considering discarding Taufeeq only after his first inning dismal performance? I wanted Hafeez instead of Taufeeq, but now that Taufeeq has played this test he should continue in next Test, unless Butt is butted again.... meaning Hafeez and Taufeeq open the inning.
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Hopefully Taufiq and Butt will score at least half century each and Hafeez won't be necessary...but the odds of that happening r slim to none, and what about Farhat?
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Taufeeq, Butt, Farhat, Hafeez now which other nation can boast such a talented array of failed opening batsmen. :)
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Classic sledging by Kaneria … that got him the wicket 
Someone tell aussies, sledging does not always meant to include moms and wives!
======================================================
Kaneria flaps his wings at last
Osman Samiuddin
August 7, 2006
Not much has gone Danish Kaneria’s way this series. At times, it has looked easier to extract blood from stone than it has for him to get an appeal to go his way. The only way out then is to hit the stumps, which he did today, with a ball legspinners live for, a delivery that makes all the shredded fingers and rickety shoulder worthwhile.
Before the afternoon drinks break, Kaneria was laboured, ineffective, broody. His drink must have been spiked during it, for he came out a different man. His colleague at Essex, Alastair Cook, had so far in the series benefited from the familiarity, but he was bamboozled for an over before being sent back. Enter Kevin Pietersen.
He knows how to make an entrance too, and twice in his next over from Kaneria he swept him for boundaries. Words and macho glares were exchanged, Pietersen keen as ever to assert himself, Kaneria equally keen to hand it back. In his next over, Kaneria cut his pace significantly, in exchange for greater loop; Pietersen strutted out a cut through covers for four but the next ball was slower, loopier and dropped on a good length. It drew Pietersen forward to either drive or flick, spun in through a gap as wide as the Grand Canyon and bowled him; the googly as it was originally conceived. Cue a re-run of Shoaib Akhtar’s famous but cryptic chicken-run celebration from the Faisalabad Test last year.
“It was a disguised googly for him. He played very well in first innings but this one landed on with the right spot and it just hit the stumps,” Kaneria explained later. He also spoke of the running exchanges that marked the brief confrontation. “I wanted to show aggression to him as a spinner because he wants to kill the bowler’s line and length, get runs on the board and make the team go faster.”
And much to the relief of all who viewed it, he also sought to explain the chicken-run celebration, drawing inspiration clearly from Marty McFly and the popular ‘Back to the Future’ trilogy. **“He walks in, opens his feathers. I called him chicken and he got angry. I said okay, chicken is the word to scare him out, and that worked out for me. It was just a joke because Pietersen likes to play strokes to the bowlers. When the spinner’s bowling he just wants to slog him everywhere. It was a good wicket for me but what was said is between me and him.”
**
Handbags aside, Kaneria was relieved to finally get some wickets and importantly, put in a biting spell. “It’s always nice to get wickets and I should have more wickets but the luck has been up and down and things haven’t gone my way. I’m still trying my best.” Try he certainly has and he won’t, you suspect, ever die wondering. He even confessed to being tired from appealing so much.
What his spell contributed to today was a potentially tantalizing final day and Kaneria argued that his side was happy to chase a target of 323. “It’s a good score to chase. It’s been a fascinating day and we came a long way to play positive cricket and show the world we are the better side. It’s a slow wicket and Monty Panesar is a finger spinner but our batsmen are positive and looking forward to getting the runs.”
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Danni's chicken dance was pretty kool, Chietersen deserved something like that. Couldn't even score 20 runs without getting a second life.
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the chicken dance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3CKQxG1qYs
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-------------cvabn----------
Thanks for sharing fkhan , enjoyed it ! I missed it live, 
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Stewart defends Akmal’s keeping
*By Mirza Iqbal Baig
*LEEDS: Former England captain Alec Stewart has defended sloppy wicket-keeping of Pakistan’s Kamran Akmal in the ongoing Test series saying that it is not unusual for the keepers to face problems on their first tour of England. Akmal, usually a safe pair of hands and a pugnacious batsman, dropped two sitters on the fourth day during England’s second innings.
Talking exclusively to Daily Times here at Headingley on Monday, Stewart, who represented England in 133 Tests and 170 ODI’s, said that keeping wickets in England was quite difficult as the ball wobbles a lot and many an international wicket-keepers found it hard to keep on the English wickets on their first tour of England. So miserable has been Akmal’s keeping that he failed to gather even straightforward deliveries. Stewart, whose father Mickey Stewart also played Test cricket for England, said: “Akmal is collecting the ball with the hard hands that’s why he is unable to take it cleanly. He should use soft hands to collect the ball.” Stewart, England’s most capped Test cricketer, praised Akmal as a praiseworthy talent. “Akmal is a talented cricketer as he has got a lot of potential in him both as a keeper and as a batsman. He is too valuable for the Pakistan team,” he added. Stewart gave examples of Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower, South Africa’s Mark Boucher and Australia’s Adam Gilchrist who also faced difficulties in keeping wickets on their first tours of England. England’s former captain disagreed with the idea of sending Akmal as an opener in the Test matches. “He should bat at number six or seven in Test matches but in one-dayers you can take a chance by opening the innings with him,” he concluded.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006\08\08\story_8-8-2006_pg2_4
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Younis Khan proves to be a wonderful captain
It was a terrific comeback by Pakistan on the fourth day of the third Test at Headingley. The credit goes to vice captain Younis Khan who handled the team in a wonderful manner in absence of Inzamamul Haq. His bowling changes and filed-placing were up to the mark. Younis motivated the players. Under his captaincy, the body language of the players changed to positive and that brought Pakistan back in contention. He took all the right decisions which a captain should take. I think he is a kind of player who knows the psyche of the opponents. Younis’ decision of taking new ball was wise, though the old ball was seaming and moving, because it helped the Pakistan bowlers sent the remaining England batsmen back to the pavilion.
Through a brilliant partnership of 158 runs for the first wicket, England openers Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss gave a wonderful opening to their team. Had Kamran Akmal not dropped the catches of Trescothick and Strauss the things would have been different, giving a clear-cut edge to the tourists. It seemed that Akmal was lacking confidence. I am really pleased with seamer Shahid Nazir. He was the most economical bowler. He has proved his worth to be a permanent member of the Pakistan team. England should be reasonably happy with the score they have to defend. The pitch, so far, has played well for the batsmen and that can be gauged from the runs being scored by both the teams.
Pakistan have never chased 324 runs in Test cricket and it will be big challenge for Inzamam and his men to square the series when they resume their innings today. Though many sides have not won the matches chasing more than 300 runs at this Headingley pitch. The Pakistan openers, so far in the series, have failed to click. But I do hope that on the final day they will come up with a lot of courage and will to give Pakistan a solid start. While chasing the formidable total, the openers should be conscious and play their natural game. They should not come under pressure. I personally feel that if Pakistan get a good start then they have enough batting firepower in the middle order which can help them reach home.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006\08\08\story_8-8-2006_pg2_3
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A brilliant yet heart breaking article for any die hard Pakistan fan:
http://wwwc4.cricinfo.com/engvpak/content/current/story/255998.html
Painful and sadly predictable
Osman Samiuddin
August 8, 2006
Lurking nastily beneath all the hopes Pakistani fans must have harboured last night at the prospect of a spectacular heist lay the fear of a day like this. Callers to a TV show analysing the day’s play with Javed Miandad instinctively predicted a famous win or a humiliating defeat. No one backed the draw and from at least the time Pakistan became a successful Test nation and particularly the 1990s, it has mostly been like this.
Someone some day will write a thesis on why such debilitating collapses happen to Pakistan (they might also include other sides from the subcontinent in any such study). Perhaps the thesis might conclude that the collapses represent the complete failure of the human spirit, as the celebrated war correspondent Robert Fisk, says of war? Dramatic certainly, but possibly some truth is hidden there.
Anyway, it is beyond most people - one bemused fan messaged just after Mohammad Yousuf was run out asking, ‘Errr. Why?’ The thesis won’t come from here certainly. ** I was among the group of people who believed, nervously, that precisely this sort of surrender - comical, abject but wholly devoted - was perhaps a thing of the past. That an Old Trafford or Barbados was a blip, able to be eventually overcome and that Pakistan’s infamous unpredictability had been partially shed.
Results such as Mohali, Multan and even the recent draw in Colombo over the last two years, we argued, was evidence that Pakistan have added some resilience to their more traditional flakiness. That the fighting draw has become a player in Pakistan results, behind ‘Spectacular wins,’ just nudging ‘Humiliating defeats’ out of the way. **
As recently as the second day of this Test, I suggested Pakistan might come out of this with a draw. Sure there were problems, but they had shown a willingness to overcome most of them recently and backing them to do so here wasn’t such a great risk. ** Many battle-hardened cricket aficionados remained suspicious, insistent that home results and fighting draws against equally unsettled opposition counted for little when a tough away series reared its head. This result is a victory for them. For the rest of us, it is a reality check. **
On paper, the causes for their first series loss since January 2005 are clear and prosaic. Pakistan’s batting consists essentially of three men; above them is a shambles on any ground and against any attack in the world and below them are men, we now see, who can cope at home. Only one man outside the middle three has scored a fifty in this series and wonderful as the trio of Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf and Inzamam-ul-Haq are, they are not unfortunately supermen.
Without exaggeration they are the poorest fielding side of all the Test nations and Zimbabwe; they dropped catches as if it was in fashion at Lord’s, Old Trafford and Headingley. This side can’t be singled out for it’s been done generation after generation, era after era, team after team. Their bowling, though it was stand-in, had all the bite of a butterfly. Through the series, Pakistan have been a dim shadow of their recent selves. In fact, with a little tweaking, the infamous description that haunted England’s ultimately victorious 1986-87 Ashes team can be applied to this touring side; can’t bat, can’t bowl, can’t field.
**Is it harsh, in light of Pakistan’s injury-list? Not really. England have outplayed Pakistan in nearly every session of this series and conceivably could have been 3-0 up now. Further they have done it without their most influential player of the last year, one very influential captain and with only two members of their first-choice bowling attack. Pakistan may bemoan injuries, poor umpiring and dropped catches but they cannot deny the reality that they have been comprehensively outclassed.
One series loss shouldn’t undo two years but the nature of the two defeats ensures that some very old and basic questions about Pakistan cricket remain. Are their batsmen equipped to cope with foreign environments and the pressures they exert? Will their fielding ever improve? Above all, does Pakistan exist in a realm of extremes only, capable one day of the sublime and the next day of the ridiculous? **
Osman Samiuddin is Pakistan editor of Cricinfo
© Cricinfo
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Mahmood rises above the banter
Sajid Mahmood enjoyed his best day as an England cricketer on the final day at Headingley, taking 4 for 22 in eight hostile overs to secure a series victory over the land of his forefathers, Pakistan. But his day was marred slightly by the barracking he received down on the boundary’s edge, as a posse of Pakistani fans accused him of being a “traitor” and a “reject”.
Mahmood, whose father was born in Peshawar and his mother in Rawalpindi, was a Pakistani supporter as a child because that remained his parents’ allegiance. But, he as explained, from the age of eight or nine he began watching England on the television and playing the game himself, and from then on it was England all the way.
“It started off a bit light-hearted but then it got a bit personal,” he said of the banter during his spell, as local Pakistanis, buoyed by the match situation and the cheap final-day prices, flocked to the ground in numbers that had not been seen on the previous four days. "I didn’t really take any of it in, I just concentrated on bowling good areas and pitching the ball up.
“I heard the word ‘traitor’ in my second spell, and a couple of things like that, but I didn’t let it affect me,” he added. “I just put it to one side and I thought I bowled pretty well.” At one stage, after taking the wicket of Faisal Iqbal, he was seen cupping his hand to his ear, and explained: “They’d been giving me such a lot of chat that I did it to see what they’ve got to say now.”
It was an unfortunate incident in a match that was otherwise a triumph for Headingley, who could only look on in envy last summer when their Roses rivals, Old Trafford, had 10,000 people queuing round the block for the final morning of the corresponding Ashes Test. The ground has had its problems with racial issues in the past, not least in 1992 when a pig’s head was thrown into a Pakistani enclosure, but this was a new twist on an old theme, and Mahmood rightly laughed it off.
“It was probably my dad down there instigating it!” he laughed. Ahead of last week’s second Test at his home ground of Old Trafford, Mahmood had joked that his father would have to support England or else he wouldn’t be getting a ticket. He added: “It was a little bit weird, because in that specific corner there were a couple clapping, and a couple hurling abuse, so I didn’t know what to do! I thought they would shut up when I got four wickets but they carried on. I just ignored them.”
For Mahmood, the mild controversy could not detract from a very important day in his development, after the difficulties he endured in the one-day series against Sri Lanka last month. “I felt a little bit shy about leading the side off afterwards, but felt I bowled pretty well and I enjoyed it,” he said. “It was fantastic to get four and I’m full of confidence now. I’ve put the one-day series behind me and I’ll just keep working on my game.”
Mahmood singled out Kevin Shine, England’s new bowling coach, for particular praise. “Shiny’s been brilliant,” he said. “He’s very similar to Troy Cooley, all the boys think so, and he’s shown that here and at Old Trafford. We’ve been working quite a bit on my seam position, and I can bowl away swing now and reverse it a little. I’ve just seen footage of my seam position today, and I’m very pleased.”
“We’ve always known his potential,” said Andrew Strauss, England’s captain. “If he can bowl at 90mph and reverse-swing it then there’s always a chance of him being a threatening Test bowler. Today he was spot on. He got his lines right and his lengths right. Possibly he’s bowled without luck before this innings, so maybe things turned a little for him today”
SOURCE:
Why can’t our fans digest a defeat gracefully:hoonh: Good for Mahmood that his performace shut the mouth of some jerks
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Anyone knows when Pak vs WI-A game starts?
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England debacle: where does Inzy the skipper go from here?
By Kamran Abbasi
GREAT leadership, you might say, requires values. Mohammad Ali Jinnah or Nelson Mandela for example represent values that we admire. Even leaders like Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin had values, although we consider their values to be evil.
And in the current crisis in Lebanon the leadership shown by leaders like George Bush and Tony Blair leaves us in despair because we struggle to identify in them any values that attract us. Bowing to Israel, and the Zionist and Neoconservative lobbies are not values that most people, let alone American and British people find attractive.
Sport may be trivial in comparison with these terrible events but the concept of leadership is no different. The best cricket captains have all had some personal values that made them great leaders.
Clive Lloyd’s strength of personality and cool brought together the fractious islands of the West Indies. Steve Waugh’s willingness to stand firm under the Southern Cross made Australia a truly great team. Pakistan’s own apogee came under the fearlessness of Imran Khan.
Mike Brearley was an exemplar of mind over matter, and even his predecessor Douglas Jardine had a determination and cunning that rallied his charges and defeated Donald Bradman by fair means and foul.
Where Pakistan have gone wrong since Imran is that the main criterion to attain captaincy is hierarchy. If you survive long enough to get to the top of the hierarchy you get the job — it is a mark of institutional decay. Promotion thanks to hierarchy alone is poisonous for any organisation or nation.
Sometimes, of course, you may have little choice but to opt for hierarchy as your selection criterion. Pakistan were in such a crisis at the end of the last World Cup. The Age of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, and Saeed Anwar was at an end. There was no clear successor and the team needed to be forged anew.
Into the void stepped Inzamam-ul-Haq. Many observers had serious doubts about Inzamam as captain. How could a man who existed in a parallel universe become an effective leader? What were his values?
The PCB maintained that it had no other choice.
And Inzamam proved his doubters wrong — including me. He pulled the team together with extraordinary personal performances and very occasional passion in the field. His magnetic value turned out to be his faith and, paradoxically, his desire to end hierarchy.
Pakistan, then, has much to be grateful to Inzamam for. But the question that the volcanic destruction of this series has thrown up is whether or not Inzamam’s Pakistan have reached a plateau, a glass ceiling? Can Inzamam take this team any higher?
At net practice at Shenley, the Pakistan team is relaxed if a little reserved. The series defeat weighs on them but has not destroyed their spirit. There is no rift evident between the players, and discord is something Bob Woolmer would not accommodate.
Shoaib Akhtar steams in to test his fitness, almost reaching full speed and troubling, you guessed it, Pakistan’s openers. His charge is a welcome sight. But by the end of the two-hour session he is clearly feeling tired. The match against West Indies ‘A’ will be a stern examination.
Inzamam doesn’t practice, he just watches and offers advice when he feels one of his squad requires it. His is a gentle style but it carries the air of authority. He has gone from strength to strength in his position as father figure of this team – his team.
Unfortunately, Inzamam’s weaknesses have also been all too obvious.
There is a cancerous lethargy in the field when he leads. Pakistan look rudderless and when they might attack they choose to defend. At times of desperation Inzamam is roused to respond but the neglect that takes us to the precipice of despair is bewildering.
The first day of the Lord’s and Headingley Tests were particularly low points in leadership. At Lord’s, the occasion that any cricketer longs for, Pakistan allowed the game to drift by them. It was the job of the captain to inject some passion, some energy, some sense of history?
At Headingley, Inzamam began a crucial evening session with the untested spin of Taufiq Umar and Salman Butt. Chris Read was returning to Test cricket and it was a no-brainer that he had to be pressurised.
Instead, he was emboldened. The final straw was perhaps Inzamam’s reluctance to protect his team’s long tail on the final day at Lord’s. Where another captain, certainly Waugh or Imran, would have tried to take every delivery Inzamam was happy to let his bowlers fend for themselves until the very last man emerged.
This absent-mindedness contrasted sharply with Younis Khan’s urgent and focused performances in the field and in the run chase.
Pakistan, of course, will be unwilling to dislodge their leader – hierarchy still reigns supreme and now clearly is not the right time. But if this were an Australian selection panel making the decision you can imagine what they might be considering.
Inzamam has been a genuine champion for Pakistan and he can stay one for some time to come. But if Pakistan are to move up to the next level in international cricket the time for a fresh leadership approach is fast approaching.
The PCB could soften the blow to Inzamam by initially appointing Younis as the captain of the one-day team. Although the prestige of a World Cup campaign — a measure of success that is fast approaching — might be hard to wrench away from Inzamam.Whoever leads, without energy and aggression Pakistan are bound to lack the verve to win the title. With energy and aggression they might still lose but at least we will all be left with the impression that Pakistan gave it everything.
Second to winning, it is the passion for the fight that matters. The players may well carry it in their hearts but they also need to wear it on their sleeves. This fighting spirit needs to return urgently as a brand value of Team Pakistan.
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**Rashid Latif column **
By Rashid Latif
Former Pakistan captain
Pakistan**'s series in England has been an eye-opener for the tourists and I think in some ways they have shown their true colours.**
They have played very good cricket in the last couple of years and had risen to second in the Test rankings.
But all the matches they have won have been in the subcontinent in conditions they are used to.
But when they have played in alien conditions, in Australia, the ICC Champions Trophy here in England or the current Test series, they have struggled.
This is a crucial time for the Pakistan team and they will be desperate to win the final Test match at The Oval. Inzamam-ul-Haq has come in for criticism after his side lost the series.
He has done a great job for Pakistan in the last 15 years and has also been a very good captain.
Here, however, he has looked shaky against the fast bowlers.
He should have led from the front in the last Test match. He should bat at number three or four because he is the captain. I think he bats too far down the order. He is such a great player, I’m sure he will bounce back in the final Test or the one-day series. I hope his form does improve because we don’t want to lose him before the World Cup.
**I went to see Pakistan play West Indies A at Shenley last weekend and noticed a number of the Pakistan Cricket Board hierarchy are part of the touring party. I don’t think they should be here. **The players can’t relax because the chairman is here with them and I think that is having a detrimental effect.
All the chopping and changing has not helped Pakistan’s cause either. Some of it has been enforced because of injuries but the coach Bob Woolmer has also tinkered with the side, especially the opening batsmen.
At The Oval he should leave Salman Butt and Taufeeq Umar to open for a second successive match. Pakistan need stability. I don’t think Pakistan should risk Shoaib Akhtar either. After six months out, a five-day game will be too much for him.
He should play in the one-day series but not at The Oval. I do wish they had called up Mushtaq Ahmed because the spinner knows English conditions well and has been great for Sussex.
He would have boosted fellow spinner Danish Kaneria’s confidence too. On his day, Danish is a better turner of the ball than Monty Panesar but he has been well below par in this series.
I have been really impressed with England because, despite injuries, they have played well together as a team - they are united.
They bounced back after losing the one-day series 5-0 to Sri Lanka.
They don’t have their big star names but they are playing well together and Andrew Strauss has been great as captain.
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/4792015.stm
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England v Pakistan, 4th Test, The Oval
Hafeez to open as Shoaib is ruled out
Andrew Miller at The Oval
August 15, 2006
Already 2-0 down in the series, Pakistan’s squad has resembled an airport departure lounge (minus the delays) in the last few days, with comings and goings in all directions. But when all the heads have been counted, the team is set to unveil its fourth opening partnership in as many matches on Thursday , as they seek to salvage some pride in the final Test at The Oval.
Salman Butt and Taufeeq Umar, who opened in last week’s third Test at Headingley, have flown home along with the left-armer Samiullah Niazi, which means that Mohammad Hafeez, who made a good impression on a recent A tour to Australia, will win his fourth Test cap. He will be partnering Imran Farhat, who opened with Butt at Lord’s and Kamran Akmal at Old Trafford, and was a relative success with 85 runs in four innings until he broke a finger while taking a catch in the second innings at Manchester.
Meanwhile the new-ball pairing of Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Mohammad Asif have returned to the fold, and on the evidence of today’s net session, either one or both could yet push into the starting line-up, maybe at the expense of the underperforming Mohammad Sami, and certainly ahead of Shoaib Akhtar, whose rehabilitation from injury is not being rushed with the challenge of the World Cup just around the corner.
“The way they bowled today was very encouraging, so they have to be in contention,” Bob Woolmer, Pakistan’s coach, told reporters. “As a selection committee we will assess the situation, but Shoaib will not play.” Such a rapid return to the ranks would be a gamble from the Pakistan selectors, seeing as the two men only arrived back in England yesterday and haven’t played for a month, but given the toothlessness of Pakistan’s other seamers - the admirable Umar Gul aside - there is little point in persisting with what they’ve got for the sake of continuity.
“There is no chaos here, it is controlled chaos if anything,” insisted Woolmer. “We brought Asif and Rana back to get them going again, Shoaib is here training and will be fit for the one-dayers, and so there are a lot of positives. We are in keeping with the Pakistan tradition of large touring parties.”
Woolmer did admit, however, that the loss of their most established opener, Shoaib Malik, before the series had even begun, was a big blow. Malik, recently underwent surgery on his elbow, and Woolmer rated him as “touch-and-go” for the one-dayers.
“A right hand-left hand combination is what we would like and Mohammad Hafeez played extremely well in Australia,” added Woolmer. “He was going to fit into our one-day squad so it made sense to try to get him going.”
Andrew Miller is UK editor of Cricinfo
© Cricinfo
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/engvpak/content/current/story/256548.html
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Very, very, very good article. Thorough, objectively-written and overall deserved two-thumbs up. Points made were on the dot and to the point.
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Pakistan cricket chief Shahriyar Khan is hoping one of England’s greatest glovemen can help faltering wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal regain his form behind the stumps.
Akmal, widely regarded as one of the world’s leading wicket-keeper batsmen, has missed several chances during the ongoing series against England, including two routine efforts off Marcus Trescothick in the third Test at Headingley when the opener was in single figures before making a second innings 58.
Pakistan lost that match by 167 runs and with it the series as England went 2-0 up with one to play.
But Shahriyar, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman is hoping team coach Bob Woolmer, the former England all-rounder, can persuade one or other of Bob Taylor (174 dismissals in 57 Tests) or Jack Russell (165 in 54), two of England’s best keepers of modern times, to work with Akmal.
"Kamran Akmal is one of our finest players and Rodney Marsh - one of Australia’s greatest glovemen - said he was the best wicketkeeper in the world last year,"Shahriyar told bigstarcricket.com. "He’s had a bad tour but he will be back.
“I’m going to ask Bob if he ask Bob Taylor or Jack Russell to work with him. I always thought that both of those guys were superb keepers. Kamran just needs a good match and a return to confidence.”
But it remains to be seen how the intensely patriotic Russell, who was working on a consultancy basis with axed England keeper Geraint Jones, recently replaced by Chris Read, would feel about working with a touring side while they were still in Britain.
Meanwhile, Shahriyar has also backed Woolmer and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq despite Pakistan’s first Test series loss in 18 months.
Pakistan cricket politics usually demand major changes after a series reverse but Shahriyar said he would resist calls for vice-captain Younis Khan to replace Inzamam as skipper.
“We aim to remain steady and calm,” he said. "Last time we lost a series, the manager was sacked, the captain (Mohammad Yousuf in Australia) was sacked. We don’t believe in that.
"There are just a couple of things that have prevented us from moving forward. We have struggled to find opening batsmen, and have been unlucky with Shoaib Malik’s injury.
"Hopefully he will return for the one-day series, while Mohammed Hafeez is also looking good having scored runs for the A team in Australia.
Source: http://www.pcboard.com.pk/Pakistan/Articles/4/4732.html
Seems it is becoming a trend to hire short term coaches for the Pakistan team /players. Whats could be next - batting coach? religious coach?