Comparing the Akmal of 2009 with this..well, it doesn't speak well of Pakistan's managing of young talent. Could still be a serious player but I fear this innings will have big repercussions.
Absolutely. The reason I don't have hope about him turning it around is that he has already spent 7 years in international cricket. That's almost a career for some players. It's just too long and if he still hasn't found his confidence, or a style or approach that works for him, that helps him score runs, win games, it's unlikely from here onwards.
In the context of yesterday's game, yes he deserves all the criticism he is getting.
But if you look at his overall career, it has been a complete mismanagement and just lack of understand of how to develop this player. For example, U Akmal used to try to play those improvised 'dinky' shots behind the wicket about a few years back. He wasn't very successful, and whenever he would fail, he would get a severe reprimand from the coaching staff.
Yesterday New Zealand had 3 players on the on side for him, knowing his natural area of strength is through that deep mid wicket region, and cramped him up for room on the leg side. This is where a few years ago, he would have tried to improvise and make use of the gaps on the off side. Yesterday he tried no such thing. That's where you know that he has actually regressed as a player.
The freedom and naivety that a young batsman has to try out outrageous stuff has been killed inside him. This is where another coaching staff/management would have said to him "ok you are trying to play these shots but it's not working, that's fine..let us work with you and figure out where you are going wrong and how we can help you get it right through practice'. But here he is ridiculed, criticised and asked to play the way they want him to.
