At the end of Day 1
Pakistan all out for 360.
Umar Akmal: 153 :k:
Guess who was the next best scorer Abdul Rehman and Gul - 30 a piece. :rolleyes:
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
Is this collective batting performance a sign of things to come?
Well done Ijaz Butt for omitting the likes of Younus Khan who should have been an automatic selection for this gruelling tour of England
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
This Umar Amin guy has failed to impress - I was hoping that a non-series match would do him good to calm his nerves but something tells me he might not be ready for the national team just yet.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
If you read the 1st Bulletin on Cricinfo, it tells the story.
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Looking ill at ease against a seaming ball, the tourists lost their first three batsmen all to leg-before decisions. Umar Amin (2) played horribly across the line of a Coles off-cutter then Fawad Alam (20) went in the same manner despite the hint of an inside edge against Nel, who was bowling his first over for the county first team since April.
Then, in the next over Mahmood snared Salman Butt (26) to one that darted back in to the left-hander hitting him flush in front and leaden footed at the crease. In the last over before lunch Shoaib Malik (27) was enticed into a rash, wide drive against Lawson to meekly give up his wicket to a comfortable catch at backward point.
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This is actually not a first choice Kent team, as they are resting bunch of the first choice players so top order cannot even handle the second string team. Wait till they face the likes of Tait, Mitchel Johnson, Sidebottom, Anderson & Broad. Ohhh man!!
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I dont know if anyone else noticed this. I cant understand one thing. Fawwad Alam was only selected for T20 squad, not the test squad so why is he first choice for this 3-day match? I think they brought Yasir Hameed into the squad to fill-in for Younus Khan's # 3 spot so why are they playing Fawwad Alam?
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Umar Amin as opener doesnt make sense. They have Azhar Ali, Yasir Hameed, (good they didnt play Imran Farhat) but they already had 4 openers and now Umar Amin as 5th opener. In Seaming English conditions with the new ball, they are having someone open who doesnt open regularly. That's another huge mistake.
This Umar Amin guy has failed to impress - I was hoping that a non-series match would do him good to calm his nerves but something tells me he might not be ready for the national team just yet.
All that matters is that he has impressed Ijaz Butt (The real Chief Selector), Afridi and Waqar.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
Kent 219/8
Aamir 5/54
:k:
Anyone showing the games in US/Canada?
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
Interesting to note that Shahid Afridi didn't bowl in this match. Is he resting himself or trying to make himself a non-test bowler. I am not quite sure. Since he got out on 0, I am sure he would like to get a feel of the pitch if he wants to bowl regularly in test matches. Not sure what he is thinking giving 10 overs to Shoaib Malik and not bowling himself.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
^ he can not survive as a batsman in Test team so he has to keep bowling and bowl well.
but then again, its PCB where impossible is nothing :)
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
Here we go, start of Pak 2nd innings and all eyes and focus on Umar Amin's opening abilities in seaming conditions.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
...and while all eyes were on umer amin, salman butt managed to get out and walk back to pavilion quietly
...and while all eyes were on umer amin, salman butt managed to get out and walk back to pavilion quietly
Well, VC LBW again. They cant figure out the swinging new ball.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
^ Please read my previous posts about Salman Butt and swinging deliveries.
Fawad in my opinion needs to do better if he wants to be taken seriously. He can't/doesn't bowl and scoring 40-50 runs in a test match is not enough from him.
Pakistan doing a bit better this time. 86/1 at the end of Day 2
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
86/1
Umar Amin 42 not out
Afridi in minor injury scare
Pakistan have had an injury scare involving their captain Shahid Afridi on the second day of the tour game against Kent. Afridi, clutching his back on the way to the dressing room at lunch, has what he said is a side strain and will visit a clinic tomorrow morning to ascertain the full extent of the injury.
“I just had a minor side strain,” Afridi confirmed to Cricinfo, adding that there was no cause for serious concern. Earlier in the morning he had appeared comfortable during fielding drills and played touch football with his team-mates. However, Afridi did not return after lunch and only took the field towards the end of the Kent innings for a couple of overs. He hasn’t had much of an impact on the tour game, batting only six balls for a duck in the first innings.
In the absence of any senior and experienced batsmen, Shoaib Malik apart, Pakistan need Afridi in healthy form in order to pose a challenge in the upcoming Test series against Australia and England.
Afridi, who has scored 1683 runs in 26 Tests, played his last Test during Pakistan’s tour of England in 2006 but failed to impress in two Tests at Manchester and Lord’s. He had announced a surprise temporary retirement from Tests in early 2006, saying he wanted to concentrate on the game’s shorter formats, but changed his mind less than a fortnight later after the then PCB chairman, Shaharyar Khan, and coach Bob Woolmer persuaded him to reverse his decision.
Afridi was recently appointed Pakistan’s captain in all three formats following Pakistan’s winless tour to Australia in 2009-10.
I'm surprised Yasir Hameed didn't get a chance in the side match. Yet another cricketer whose career is ruined by PCB. He is a great talent to play up the order. From what I recall his weakness is spin bowling.
Umar Amin has a sound footwork...they need to persist with this guy.
We will do fine without Younis and Yousaf. Rebuild!
Blessing in disguise.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
Pakistan top-order find form in drawn game..
Pakistanis 360 and 264 for 3 (Amin 73, Alam 68*) drew with Kent 259 and 150 for 3 (Denly 69, Shoaib Malik 1-17)
Scorecard
Crease occupation was the order of the day for Pakistan's top-order players as the tourists took time for essential batting practice on an excellent Canterbury pitch prepared for a three-day game that was always destined to end in a draw.
Though their talismanic skipper Shahid Afridi was unable to take advantage of ideal batting conditions - he failed to arrive at the St Lawrence Ground after travelling to London for scans on a niggling rib injury - the majority of his side filled their boots in posting 264 for 3 declared for an overall lead of 365. In Afridi's absence, acting captain Salman Butt called time on the visitor's innings just after 2.15pm, leaving his bowlers 43 overs either side of tea for a gentle work-out.
Butt allowed the pacemen to stretch their limbs and his spinners some time to exercise their spinning fingers, but the sublime playing surface offered them little or no assistance. The overall result was an inevitable stalemate, but at least Kent's makeshift openers Chris Piesley and Joe Denly posted the county's maiden century first-wicket stand this season to lead their side to parity at 150 for 3 when the teams shook hands on a draw.
Both home openers fell in the final throws, Denly for 69 to an ill advised sweep against a quicker delivery from Abdul Rehman then Piesley, seven short of a maiden first-class 50, to a fumbled catch at wicket from another sweep shot. At least the excellent weather throughout the game coupled with young, combative opposition allowed Pakistan to garner almost everything they would have wanted to from this tour warm-up fixture; their only concern of course; Afridi's side strain.
Coach Waqar Younis was quick to play down the injury, saying: "Our physiotherapist has just arrived back from London with Shahid Afridi and the scan showed a small muscle rupture in his side. He has been asked to rest for two days and have some treatment, then we will reassess things, but we're hopeful he will be fine."
The final day started with a near faultless batting performance from Fawad Alam, who cantered through the opening session to reach an unbeaten 68 with Umar Amin as the second-wicket partners added 141 in 36.4 overs.After posting an attractive 72-ball half-century, Amin finally went after 170 minutes for 73. Leaning back to pull a top-spinner from Mark Lawson, the left-handed top-edged gently to deep mid-wicket.
Alam's 50 came in a shade over two hours from 101 balls and with seven fours as Lawson, bowling in tandem with off-spinner James Hockley, started to restrict scoring opportunities and cause a few problems. Alam retired out during the lunch interval and Kamran Akmal (2) went soon after the resumption when edging an attempted push-drive off Lawson to Azhar Mahmood stationed at slip.
It was plain-sailing for the visitors thereafter as Shoaib Malik enjoyed 'centre practice' to score 48 from 58 balls without breaking sweat, while Mohammad Aamer showed his potential as an all-rounder by hitting 44 from 49. The teenager finished the innings in style, hitting Hockley for two successive sixes before striding off for the declaration.
The reason Fawad played is because the test team is NOT in England yet, only the t20 team is. That's why the likes of Farhat, Hameed, Azhar Ali or Tanvir Ahmed are not playing in this match.
Re: Pakistan v Kent - 3-day Match
If that's true, than that is just so ridiculous. The first test starts Jul 13th and this was the only 3-day game before that test. So the guys who are playing T20I, like Fawad Alam, play in a 3 day game which should be used as a prep for the test matches. They are playing T20s with the counties too so why not send both squads together? It’s only a matter of 4-5 extra guys. So senseless, but I guess trying to make sense out of PCB’s actions is being optimistic and naive.