The highs and lows of Pakistan’s series win
Misbah-ul-Haq was the national team’s biggest success story in the Caribbean
By Khurram Mahmood

Skipper Misbah-ul-Haq’s yet another half-century in the fifth One-day International (ODI) against West Indies guided Pakistan to a 3-1 series triumph — their third successive away ODI series win.

Undoubtedly, it was Misbah, who anchored the innings throughout and without such solid performance it would be difficult for Pakistan to clinch the series.

Despite their win, Pakistan’s batting once again faltered and highlighted the need of a batting coach for future assignments.

Shahid Afridi, who was included in the squad after missing the Champions Trophy, marked his comeback with a match-winning all-round performance in the first ODI, smashing 76 off 55 balls and later taking seven wickets for just 12 runs. But in the remaining four matches he failed to repeat this performance and could only manage 26 runs.

Although Afridi’s commitment is never in question, critics believe he does not play up to his potential and inconsistency was the main reason behind Afridi’s omission from the squad, especially for last month’s ICC Champions Trophy.

Opener Ahmed Shehzad’s disappointing run with the bat continued in the series apart from the final game in St Lucia. The selectors gave him a chance but he once again failed to impress and apart from an inning of 64 runs in the last ODI, managed only 55 runs in his first four outings.

Umar Akmal, who was brought back with an added responsibility to keep the wickets, justified his selection and finished as the second highest run-getter for Pakistan, scoring 175 runs with an average of 58.33.

His performance behind the stumps was also quite satisfactory — except for the crucial run out he missed in the third ODI which allowed West Indies to tie the match from a seemingly losing position. The management can afford the luxury of playing an additional batsman or bowler if Umar Akmal can take the role of a wicket-keeper batsman.

Pakistan’s T20 captain Mohammad Hafeez, failed both with the bat and ball in the series and scored only 105 runs at an average of just 21 with one fifty and despite being economical with the ball he could not take a single wicket.

Asad Shafiq, the youngster who many believe is the future of Pakistan cricket, failed to live up to his potential and against an average bowling attack, scored only 10 runs. However, the one fact that seems to be have contributed towards Shafiq’s failure is the team management’s decision to axe the batsman from the playing eleven every now and then.

In the bowlers’ section, Shahid Afridi remained the highest wicket-taker for Pakistan with 10 wickets at an average of just 13.50 followed by Mohammad Irfan (9), Saeed Ajmal (8) and Junaid Khan (7) wickets. Fast bowlers Wahab Riaz and Asad Ali were unimpressive and claimed only two wickets for 150 runs and one wicket for 93 runs respectively.

khurrams87@yahoo.com

Highest run-getters for Pakistan in ODIs since Jan 2011

Batsman        Innings          Runs   Average        Strike rate     100s/ 50s

Misbah-ul-Haq 62      2265   50.33  69.13  0/ 20

Mohammad Hafeez   68      2051   32.04  75.21  5/ 10

Umar Akmal   43      1392   39.77  87.32  0/ 11

Younis Khan   42      1101   28.97  76.19  0/ 9

Nasir Jamshed         24      906     39.39  73.12  3/ 4

Shahid Afridi  44      872     21.26  125.64 0/ 5

Asad Shafiq   32      847     29.20  69.94  0/ 7

Imran Farhat  21      605     30.25  67.37  0/ 6

Kamran Akmal         27      591     22.73  76.95  0/ 3

Phil Mickelson: aUS Open away from all-time greatness
The legendary American has now won five majors, has nine European Tour triumphs, and 42 PGA Tour victories — ninth on the all-time list
By Khuldune Shahid

Despite being 43 years young, Phil Mickelson is in the form of his life without a shadow of a doubt. His astounding comeback at Muirfield — quite possibly the greatest achievement of his golfing career — meant that he has done what he was never expected to do: master links golf. The British Open triumph meant that Mickelson has now won three of the four golfing majors, with only the US-Open remaining for the American to become only the sixth golfer in the history of the sport to win a career Grand Slam (winning each of the four majors at least once in their career). And the intriguing twist in the tale is that, at the only major he is yet to win, Mickelson has had a record six runners-up finishes.

Five weeks ago, Mickelson went into the final round of the US Open at Merion with a one-shot lead and then went on to shoot a lacklustre 74, which meant that he ended two shots behind Justin Rose. He was visibly distraught after that but has come back resoundingly in a golfing realm that was for long his Achilles’ heel. Back to back triumphs in the Scottish Open and the British Open have rubber stamped the fact that as things stand Mickelson is as fit as he’s ever been, as hungry as he’s ever been and without a doubt as good a golfer as he has ever been.

Mickelson has now won five majors, has nine European Tour triumphs, and 42 PGA Tour victories — ninth on the all-time list. He is currently a part of 15 golfers in the history who have won three of the four golf majors. He is also third in all-time runners up finishes at majors with eight — only Arnold Palmer (10) and Jack Nicklaus (19) have more.

Mickelson’s win on Sunday solidifies his case of being one of the top 10 golfers of all time if you consider the overall majors and PGA tour wins. However, if he were to vanquish a US-Open title, not only would he penetrate the list of top 10 golfers of all time he’d be pretty high up that list as well as one of only six players to have won a career Grand Slam, (at least) six majors and over 40 PGA tour wins.

He’s already well within the mix for all-time greatness, and he’s far from being done yet. He might be in his 40s, but the way Mickelson’s mind functions, he would consider himself as a veritable challenger for the major trophies well in his 60s as well. 

Following his triumph in the British Open Mickelson while discussing the potential career Grand Slam said, “I’m a leg away. And it’s been a tough leg for me! Those five players are the greats of the game. You look at them in a different light. If I were able to ever win a US Open, and I’m very hopeful that I will...”

Mickelson never completed that sentence. But maybe at Pinehurst — where he got his first runners up spot at the US Open — his golf will complete the aforementioned sentence.

khulduneshahid@gmail.com

Blind date for the cricket board
We celebrate the 60th anniversary of our full membership to ICC today with no country willing to come and play on our soil. Come to think of it, PCB is celebrating it the way it deserves to, with its neck in the sand  
By Sohaib Alvi

How many of you know the significance of this date in Pakistan’s cricket history? Well, today — July 28 — is a day that is no less significant to Pakistan cricket than our Independence Day is to Pakistan as a whole or the day this country became a full member of the United Nations.

Like many landmark events that we don’t celebrate anymore or even write about, I suppose this is one of the most important that we ignore when it comes to our cricket history. Sad that even Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) ignores it. I don’t remember it ever being celebrated or even recognised.

Reason being that without reading this today they probably wouldn’t be aware of it. There could have been a morning rush by them to make something out of the day after reading this to show they were fully aware, but being a Sunday today, they won’t know anything about it till next week when clippings of all articles reach them for filing.

It is said that a society is known by the manner in which they bury their dead. I believe that when it comes to Pakistan cricket we should be known by how we remember the past. It will show what importance PCB, and for that matter all cricket associations affiliated with it, gives to our history.

Even a small town in America has parades for significant days of their town’s history. Perhaps when the focus is on materialistic things and power grab and how to get famous in 90 days who cares?

You see, on 28th July all cricket lovers should rejoice on the 60th anniversary of Pakistan being granted full membership of the ICC then called Imperial Cricket Council. This was in the year 1953. Interestingly, exactly on this date a year earlier Pakistan had been granted Test status by the ICC.

But as Martin Luther King Jr said “I have a dream”, and I’m sure that any passionate lover of Pakistan cricket like myself would have definitely come up with wonderfully exciting ways to celebrate this.

I had thought of writing to the PCB but knowing the commitment and the mood, it would have been useless. A country in which our leaders give a token consideration to our Independence Day, some standing like zombies waving small flags with the children, it would have actually belittled the occasion.

I remember when the late Gul Hameed Bhatti Sb, (former Group Sports Editor of The News) and Abid Ali Kazi had written much in advance to the Pakistan Cricket Board (then called BCCP) that the 1000th Test was to be played on Pakistani soil.

In a period where matches could be shifted on a few days notice because there was no satellite coverage that would have brought in logistical nightmares, the BCCP simply scheduled it in the city of Hyderabad, though Gaddafi Stadium would have been the right place. The match was between Pakistan and New Zealand, who had played an earlier Test at Lahore

Responding to the information the BCCP and the local administration did put up a ceremony. There were some wedding band in disheveled uniform with their trumpets and oversize drums, and some cultural dances which was as much organized and choreographed as your little girl’s birthday games in the drawing room.

At the time Pakistan was among the top respected cricket-playing nations of the world, with Imran Khan and Javed Miandad at their peak and administrators like Lt Gen (Retd) Ghulam Safdar Butt who was the chairman of BCCP had a profound voice in ICC.

We really should celebrate July 28 every year in a manner befitting the occasion. It would be great if the PCB arranges a parade of sorts inviting all our international cricketers to mark the occasion; maybe even play a game between the Veterans and the current lot that are in Pakistan.

Perhaps the actual time of the announcement in 1953 can be located and we can sing a cricket anthem put together for the occasion.

Local cricketers can gather on the main grounds of their respective cities; speeches made in honour of those who represented their city or district or country, cricket stories told by the former cricketers to the younger lot. There can be a focus on how proud we should be of our cricket past.

At a time when we are ostracized from holding home matches, and are crying out for recognition while messing up in ICC meetings, such patriotism in our cricket will show the world that we are proud of our cricket. It will revive the spirit among the younger Pakistanis.

What about the budget, the wily in PCB will ask. My answer? Reduce foreign travelling; fire the courtesans, get people to come on their own cars, lower TA/DA to US$50 from the US$400-800 for top management and top management travels economy. Oh and work with salary commensurate with the position rather than the name tag.

The vibes would travel to the world. International teams would still not be allowed to tour the country of course, but we could at least show the world we have a great past and we are proud of it, whether you come to play here or not. 

Sadly, we have painted ourselves in a corner with our own brush. Lack of accountability allows successive chairman with no credentials for the position, to rule at their whim making a mockery of the rules of conduct. We have had as chairman generals, Bureaucrats, doctors, ex-crickters, bankers and now a journalist, anyone except a professionally trained manager with a management background, proven experience and degree. Of course it is also because no professional manager would accept the job ob the current terms, where he can be chucked out by the stroke of a pen from the President/PM. Also accepting a job description that primarily implies that he should promptly follow the diktats of the bosses/outside influencers and “tell the buggers you’re the boss”. 

At least there were some checks and balances up to the sixties and some method to the madness until the end of the nineties. Since then it’s been nothing short of King Kong thumping his chest on top of Empire State Building. 

So we celebrate the 60th anniversary of our full membership to ICC today with no country willing to come and play on our soil, without a chairman who by operational definition effectively has CEO powers. If at all we have one who has no idea how to interpret his role according to the PCB constitution and has to be reined in from playing Acting Chairman and reminded he is just the caretaker to mark the attendance and pay the bills. We have no chief selector and as per rules cannot approve a Pakistani team to tour Zimbabwe. If we don’t we run the risk of being fined by ICC not to mention becoming the laughing stock of the cricket world if it has not already pulled a stomach muscle from the hilariousness of our situation over the last one year.

And we have a team where the batsmen play like they’re swatting flies or groping in the dark and all in responsible position admit openly that we have no talent left to pick from.

Come to think of it, PCB is celebrating its 60th anniversary of ICC membership the way it deserves to, with its neck in the sand.

Sohaib121&gmail.com

Pakistan’s last-chance saloon
The Green-shirts have to win the Asia Cup in Malaysia to make the cut for World Cup 2014. But are they good enough to do that?
By Bilal Hussain

Akhtar Rasool’s decision to kick former captain Shakeel Abbasi out of the Asia Cup training camp in Lahore last Wednesday shows the level of desperation in the Pakistani dugout. But the four-time world champions, who are in clear and present danger of missing out on a spot for World Cup 2014, need much more than desperation to bring themselves to a position from where they can take a realistic shot at winning the Asia Cup to be held in Ipoh, Malaysia.

As head coach of an under-achieving Pakistani team, Akhtar Rasool should be well aware of the fact that his charges lack the sort of consistency that is required by a team to win even a relatively smaller, continental event like the Asia Cup. The former Olympian together with fellow team officials that include newly-appointed coach Tahir Zaman should be focusing on a variety of things that include the team’s form and fitness as well as the various game plans for the different matches of the Asia Cup.

There is little doubt that Asia Cup is an all-important assignment for Pakistan just like it is for their old rivals India and Korea. The Asian trio is on the brink of what would be an embarrassing ouster from the World Cup. All three Asian giants failed to win World Cup berths after flopping in the two semi-finals of Hockey World League, which served as a qualifying event for World Cup 2014. Now only one of them can make the cut for next year’s World Cup in Holland.

There is even the possibility of all three of them missing out on the quadrennial spectacle because fast-improving teams like hosts Malaysia and Japan are also fancying their chances of winning the Asia Cup which begins from August 24. The Asia Cup champions would be the only team from the continent at World Cup 2014.

Meanwhile, Pakistan haven’t helped their cause by stirring up the Shakeel Abbasi controversy. The seasoned striker is one of the most accomplished players in this current Pakistani line-up. Akhtar and Tahir need players like Abbasi to help save Pakistan from the ignominy of missing the cut for World Cup an event which they once dominated in the seventies and also won in the eighties and nineties.

If a player wants to fast during a training camp then it is his individual decision. The team management should respect it. In the meantime, it is also the players’ responsibility to be at their best in an important training exercise like the ongoing preparatory camp for the Asia Cup. If the team management’s claim that Abbasi was unable to give his hundred percent in the training camp because he was fasting is right then the player is at fault. In that case, he should have followed the example of his teammates who have all agreed to fast once the Asia Cup is over.

The Abbasi issue should be resolved as soon as possible. Pakistan have more important problems to tackle ahead of their forthcoming trip to Malaysia.

It was on their last tour to Malaysia that they flopped miserably in Hockey World League semi-finals, finishing seventh in the eight-nation contest. It was quite clear that Pakistan were lagging behind most of the other teams in almost all areas of the game. Their defence conceded too many goals while their attack failed to capitalise on many a scoring opportunities. Pakistan have a big batch of team officials but they were unable to come out with winning strategies during the event.

When Pakistan returned home, the axe fell on Hanif Khan but the rest of the team management survived which was quite surprising. It wasn’t unexpected when Hanif struck back at Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF), stressing that he was made a scapegoat following the debacle.

With just a few weeks to go before the Asia Cup, maybe it’s not the right time to discuss whether misfiring officials like Akhtar Rasool deserve to remain a part of the team management. But one must say that Asia Cup should be Akhtar’s last chance to prove that his presence is beneficial for the team. And that can only happen if Pakistan go on to win the Asia Cup. Otherwise, Akhtar should be shown the door.

Pakistan need competent coaches and managers, who can put the team back on track. Otherwise there is little hope for Pakistan hockey.

bilalsports86@yahoo.com

Kathmandu disaster
Pakistan’s failure to defend their Asian Under-16 crown in Nepal underlines the fact that contrary to PFF claims, the standard of football in our country is going down
By Alam Zeb Safi

Looking to defend its crown, Pakistan’s Under-16 football team flopped in the second edition of the Under-16 SAFF Championship being held in Kathmandu, failing to even reach the semi-finals of the event.

Pakistan colts’ brief voyage ended on a disappointing note when they went 0-3 down against hosts Nepal in their do-or-die Group A game on Wednesday. Pakistan, who were held to a goalless draw by both Afghanistan and minnows Bhutan in their initial two matches, ended third in the group with just two points. The Green-shirts, who had lifted inaugural title in 2011 also in Kathmandu, did not score even a single goal in the entire event. They conceded three goals.

Nepal qualified from the pool for the semi-finals with seven points while Afghanistan did so as group runners-up with five points. It was expected that Pakistan would at least qualify for the last four but the way their voyage was cut short raised many eyebrows.

Their performance, particularly against Bhutan, is unpardonable as the underdogs had been thrashed by Nepal 7-0 in their opener. Some of the matches played in rain and Nepal, who were used to play in the wet conditions, got full benefit from it. Pakistan played their last game against Nepal under a heavy downpour that might affected their performance. But it was the responsibility of the management to prepare the lot for such conditions. The below-par performance of the future stars exposed the policies of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) to promote the game at the grassroots level.

In the Pakistani team that failed to live up to the expectations in Nepal, as many as 11 players had already got international exposure at the Under-13 and Under-14 level. After a research, I have concluded that the team was not properly prepared. Being defending champions there was a need to prepare a much better side but the authorities failed to work properly on the lot that faced premature exit from the seven-nation event.

Only a 17-day camp was held in Lahore to train for the Kathmandu assignment. There should have been at least a month-long training camp as it is not always easy to gel the raw youngsters for any international assignment in such a short time. Look at the non-serious attitude of the authorities that the team’s assistant coach Hasan Baloch joined the squad only four or five days before its departure for Kathmandu. Being secretary of the Sindh Football Association (SFA) Hasan was busy with the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) delegation which was in Karachi during those days to inspect the venues which would be hosting the AFC Under-16 Championship Qualifiers in September.

The PFF should have made Hasan available for national duty instead of keeping him away from the squad during the team’s testing training phase.

Soon after announcing probables for the camp after the National Under-16 Championship in Abbottabad a former PFF official Col Mujahid told me that proper selection for the Nepal’s assignment had not been made and the team would not be able to perform. And his prediction was right on the money.

Before going to Nepal, head coach Sajjad Mehmood had said that the preparation was good and the team would perform but his body language was not indicting any such thing and from his tone it sounded that the team needed much better preparation for the tough assignment.

The PFF should learn from a small country like Bhutan which is investing a lot on the grassroots level and even they have hired a Japanese coach for the purpose. Bhutan looked much better in Nepal and the way they held Pakistan and offered resistance against Afghanistan was remarkable. There is a lot of talent in Pakistan but there is a need of a positive approach to groom and polish it. There is a need to rope in a foreign coach, with solid credentials, for at least five years to work on the colts. Home grown coaches would not be able to bring the sort of improvement needed by Pakistani youngsters to excel internationally.

Unfortunately, the PFF also did not use Pakistan’s Serbian coach Zavisa Milosavljevic for preparing the youth sides in spite of investing a lot on him during the last couple of years. He has been hired for the senior team but during his off-time his services could have been taken for the age-group outfits.

The PFF needs a national academy in Lahore where top youngsters could be kept and given training on permanent basis.

The PFF should also keep a vigilant eye on the selection process for the junior lots. The AID-27 coaches usually ignore each other’s players for national duties because of personal grudges which is a serious violation of the ethics of selection.

The same Under-16 team would now appear in September’s AFC Under-16 Championship Qualifiers Group E at the Peoples Stadium in Karachi. Iran, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Sri Lanka are the other teams in the group. And if the Green-shirts were not properly prepared the result would be more agonising in their own backyard.

For preparing the colts for this continental assignment, the PFF may also take the services of the experienced Tariq Lutfi if he agrees to do so. Former international striker Ali Nawaz Baloch could also be brought in as a coaching consultant for the purpose. The question is whether the PFF would be able to see its team in the 2022 World Cup which they have already planned for? My straight reply is “not, maybe never”. The PFF should do justice with its job and should adopt a professional approach.

73.alam@gmail.com

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