Cricket Bloggers of Pakistan

(This article has originally been posted at www.pointcricket.com)

England vs India – Players to watch out for (Part 1) Expectations high off Indian batsmen as they take on England by Hassaan AY July 17, 2007 The summer of cricket just rolls on. It is India’s tour of England which begins with the first of three test matches this Thursday. Both the teams have star performers in their ranks and the tour will be a test of skill for many of them.Here’s a look at a few of the Indian players who can make a lasting impression with their performances in the test series: Rahul Dravid The Indian skipper has been their most consistent player on foreign tours over the last decade. With his outstanding temperament and strong technique, he makes the opposition toil hard for his wicket. India’s last tour of England in 2002 was a prolific one for him three consecutive centuries, the last of which was 217 at The Oval. Being the captain and having no coach in the dressing room would be an extra burden on his shoulders. However, the Rahul Dravid that we have seen over the years, he should come out of this challenge stronger than ever.

For a long time I’ve thought that batting averages don’t quite tell the full story of how good a batsman is. It is my suspicion that too much of a player’s success or failure is based on luck. Their batting average can of course be affected by the standard of bowling they face, the quality of the wicket, the speed of the outfield, the quality of the opposition captain (i.e. does he place his fielder’s in the right place), the quality of the ground fielding, the quality of catching and the quality of the umpiring. Most of these can’t be accounted for – or at least they could be, but it would take a lot of analysis and work. The last two, wrong decisions by umpires and dropped catches can be accounted for pretty easily.

As an example of “real” averages, Chanderpaul’s average in the recent West Indies v England series is severely affected – yes, he’s played well, but if England could catch he wouldn’t have ended up with an incredible official average of 148.7, but a decent average of 44.2.

Danish Kaneria, as eager as he is to don the greens of Pakistan, just isnt an ODI bowler. And for him to be in the 30-man squad for the Twenty20 World Championship is just surprising. More so because after being sent home before the ODIs against South Africa, he was picked to represent Pakistan at the World Cup (we should be used to the turnarounds that our selectors are so notorious for). He was then omitted for the Abu Dhabi tour (perhaps due to his county commitment?). And although Kaneria picked up a brace against Zim at the WC, he was smashed for 48 off 4.

He’s taken 15 ODI wickets at over 42 each and although his Test performance (ave 32) isnt amazing, he still remains our top spinner in the longer version. However, question remains: why choose him for Twenty20 when he’s not deemed worthy of a place in the 50-over format? And I know the team will be trimmed to 15 by mid-Aug, but why have someone in the squad at all when he will not (and should not) be selected.

The Pakistan team management is in disarray. We have a new-ish captain with a command of English as good as a fourth-grader. We have a new vice-captain who is yet to establish himself as a regular. Our manager-cum-coach (for the previous 2 tours at least) keeps his distance from the press while enforcing gagging orders on the younger lot (including the vice-captain). We have, give or take a couple, the same team that performed abysmally in the world cup. And we don’t even have a coach yet.

In times like these, we need a strong leader. Time for Nasim Ashraf to take a lead, perhaps? While the coach-hunt was on, it was announced time and again that Pakistan will have a coach before the team leaves for Scotland. Didn’t happen. Then came the news that Pakistan will have a coach by July 1. Didn’t happen. And while the deadline was in the air, our very own chairman was spotted on the sodden fields of Edinburgh where, as we all know by now, no action on the field was witnessed. The chairman was back amongst the players two days later in Glasgow where, again, no play was possible.

Considering all the hoopla surrounding the doping scandal surrounding Shoaib Akhtar and Mohd Asif in the past few months here here here here here & here

Cricinfo reports: The Court of Arbitration for Sports has been forced to dismiss an appeal by the World Anti Doping Agency over the reprieves for the Pakistan fast bowlers, Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, saying it had no jurisdiction to overturn the decision.

The CAS panel said in a statement that the conclusion had been reached “with some considerable regret”. Shoaib and Asif tested positive for the banned steroid nandrolone in internal tests conducted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) last year, and were banned for two years and one year respectively in November 2006.

However, a month later, both were controversially reinstated by a Pakistani appellate committee, prompting WADA to appeal to CAS in Lausanne. Dick Pound, the chairman of WADA, had told the BBC last December that the ICC – the game’s governing body – was “a signatory to the anti-doping code” and that Pakistan, as a full member of the ICC, was bound by its rules.