Re: Salman WonderBoy Butt
He's good - but he seems to flourish only when his partner doesn't. He did well with all the khota openers we had paired up with him, in fact even with Shoaib. But ever since Afridi opened with him last year in India and momentarily eclipsed him, he seems to be stumbling. But don't forget his achievements against England not too long ago.
Do remember, openers are the ones who face the new shiny ball when Inzi and Youhana wouldn't. So give them a break, and so long as they provide us 50/60+ starts, be happy with them.
Opening should only be considered a problem if one of them consistently keep getting out in the first 10/15 overs -- as was the case with Yasir Hameed offering catch practice in slips and Taufeeq Umer flaunting his dance skills at the crease.
I'd venture that we should make Akmal our opener in both forms of cricket, and bring Shoaib back to batting at number 6 or 7. That will protect his career without sacrificing Pakistan's lower order hitting ability in the Afridi-Razzaq-(Akmal/Shoaib)'s combination.