Considering his talent and the fact that he seems to have the potential to become a big asset for Pakistan in future, there is a critical need for someone to focus on him. May be PCB decides on a batting coach for the team who can do the\is job.
The reason I say this is because I have noticed that he seems to throw his wicket in 40’s and 50’s. It happened twice during the current tour and couple of times in New Zealand.
I know he hasn’t been dismissed many times playing reckless strokes but then again he hasn’t played alot of games as well.
Another important reason is his history. Mudassar nazar gave an interview several months ago where he acknowledged this great find and talent and said that he actually threw Akmal out of the NCA because Akmal was getting out playing reckless strokes. When Akmal came back to NCA he was a changed man.
PCB needs to take extra care of this talented player otherwise he would easily become an underachiever.
I am just wondering if early success has made him believe he is indispensable. He really need a reality check and slap on the wrist for today's wicket throwing that too on the edge of the lunch break
Umar Akmal needs mentoring for sure but he needs to mature up as a batsman too. The reason he has been successful so far is because of his talent and most of the bowlers haven't figured out his weak point.
As I said else-where, Umar Akmal is a prime example of someone who has talent but lacks test temperament and patience. Hence he won't be the next Miandad or Inzi
Saeed Anwar wasnt a great player at age 20.....Inzamam wasnt the next Miandad either at age 20. Nor was Miandad himself the next Hanif at age 20.
People need to relax. Just because we have a poor batting line up, people are putting to much preassure on Umar. He just made his debut and has barely been with the team for a year. He's just 20 and he's learning about his game.
Give him time. He has talent and he has the ability to become a great player. But he needs time.
Also, while his so-called illustrious Captain on the NZ and Aus tour M Yousef was looking pathetic against the moving ball and against top bowling attacks, Umar was one of the successes of that series. He is easily the best batsman in the team. But dont forget hes just 20 and has only played 6 test matches.
He doesent have the benefit of making his debut while the team was in good shape...Saeed Anwar made his debut while Imran Khan, Miandad, Salim Malik, Wasim Akram etc were all part of the team....same goes for Inzamam.
You cant expect a 20 year old in his 6th test match to carry a test batting line up.
Saeed Anwar wasnt a great player at age 20.....Inzamam wasnt the next Miandad either at age 20. Nor was Miandad himself the next Hanif at age 20.
People need to relax. Just because we have a poor batting line up, people are putting to much preassure on Umar. He just made his debut and has barely been with the team for a year. He's just 20 and he's learning about his game.
Give him time. He has talent and he has the ability to become a great player. But he needs time.
Also, while his so-called illustrious Captain on the NZ and Aus tour M Yousef was looking pathetic against the moving ball and against top bowling attacks, Umar was one of the successes of that series. He is easily the best batsman in the team. But dont forget hes just 20 and has only played 6 test matches.
He doesent have the benefit of making his debut while the team was in good shape...Saeed Anwar made his debut while Imran Khan, Miandad, Salim Malik, Wasim Akram etc were all part of the team....same goes for Inzamam.
You cant expect a 20 year old in his 6th test match to carry a test batting line up.
Quite true except for Miandad who by the age of 20 was a phenomenon and probably ahead of Hanif. His debut was against NZ at the age of 18 years and he scored 163 runs in his first innings. The rest is history.
Saeed Anwar wasnt a great player at age 20.....Inzamam wasnt the next Miandad either at age 20. Nor was Miandad himself the next Hanif at age 20.
People need to relax. Just because we have a poor batting line up, people are putting to much preassure on Umar. He just made his debut and has barely been with the team for a year. He's just 20 and he's learning about his game.
Give him time. He has talent and he has the ability to become a great player. But he needs time.
Also, while his so-called illustrious Captain on the NZ and Aus tour M Yousef was looking pathetic against the moving ball and against top bowling attacks, Umar was one of the successes of that series. He is easily the best batsman in the team. But dont forget hes just 20 and has only played 6 test matches.
He doesent have the benefit of making his debut while the team was in good shape...Saeed Anwar made his debut while Imran Khan, Miandad, Salim Malik, Wasim Akram etc were all part of the team....same goes for Inzamam.
You cant expect a 20 year old in his 6th test match to carry a test batting line up.
True but Umar Akmal just seems very impatient at the crease. There was a calmness about Miandad and Inzi's batting even at 20. They were never this impatient or reckless
^ Please do NOT compare him to Miandad and Inzi. He has a LONG way to go. It is not his fault that his team is short of other batters. I am sure he will come around and curb his instincts just a tad bit to make his short stays longer. but to call him inzi and miandad is very unfair.
Inzamam made his debut at 22 and that too with a batting line up consisting of Raja,Sohail,Malik,Miandad,Moin,Akram etc. Inzy was also dropped from the last test during that series because he was all at sea.
Umar got a 100 on debut against NZ in NZ - as impressive as Miandad's debut in many ways....but you cant really compare.
He's barely played 6 games yet everyone expects him to bail our so-called illustrious seniors out each time he goes to the crease...sometimes he will succeed sometimes he will fail.
Thats a lot of preassure to put on a young player.
I think we all should be patient and let him prosper...there is no magic fix to Pakistans batting problems -- the young players need time.
At least we can be assured that unlike the seniors these boys will try hard and not get into petty infighting or any of that nonsense.
I am comparing Umar Akmal at 20 to Miandad and Inzi at 20. I think that is a fair comparison
Its not a fair comparison. Umar Akmal is already one of very few world class batsmenn in the team whereas Miandad and Inzi were NOT that. They had other people to carry the burden.
I guess no one is arguing here about his immense talent. No one is asking him to carry the burden of the entire team on his shoulders. He has emerged as one of most naturally gifted batsmen we have seen in recent Pakistan history and it is not his fault that a lot of players around him are not competent enough.
The problem is throwing away his wickets at crucial moments in the test match by playing way too many risky and needless shots. He may not see this flamboyance as a problem but just look back at some of his irresponsible dismissals from the last 7-8 moths and it will definitely raise a red flag. Sharp captains and bowlers will pretty soon spot this weakness and will exploit it.
Go back to my first post and read what I included there about Mudassar Nazar and his initial review of Umar Akmal.
It will be a shame if this talented player will not be nurtured properly and professionally and will end up as a wasted talent.