***Official*** England in Pakistan

[Barney Rubble]

OK, I'll shut up. He's only a replacement anyway.

 

[aussie]

This should be Pakistan's test side if they wanna enter the field with the intention of winning the game(which they should).
Taufiq Umar
Shahid Afridi
Younis Khan/Hasan Raza
Inzamam-Ul-Haq
Mohammad Yousuf ( Youhana has recently changed his name after accepting Islam)
Asim Kamal
Kamran Akmal
Abdul Razzaq/Rana Naveed
Shoaib Akhtar
Umar Gul
Danish Kaneria

I dont see why Pakistan would go back to Umar after been so inconsistent & i'd be surprised if Afridi opened the batting in test i'd see him batting at 7. Cant see how Younis Khan place can be under any scrutiny & how Gul can be ahead of Sami???

 

[Barney Rubble]

I dont see why Pakistan would go back to Umar after been so inconsistent & i'd be surprised if Afridi opened the batting in test i'd see him batting at 7. Cant see how Younis Khan place can be under any scrutiny & how Gul can be ahead of Sami???

The thing about Afridi opening is that Pakistan don't really seem to have a lot of alternatives. Their opening pair have been a big weak spot recently, so they may as well stick him in there, as unorthodox as it may be.

Here's a thought - I wonder what Geoff Boycott's views on Afridi will be?

 

[tooextracool]

And the player with 283 ODI runs @ 21.76, rivalling Vikram Solanki for "worst ODI specialist batsman of the 21st century", isn't a backwards step?

relevance to test match cricket?
key and bell make equally poor ODI players, neither of whom deserved to play an ODI in their entire life, but that only means the selectors have to give those 2 their chances.

 

[tooextracool]

The relevance is that he's had his shot at international cricket and failed rather spectacularly - at least Key has a double ton (and nothing else, I'll readily admit).

umm a match winning unbeaten 93 against the WI?
and a very valuable 83 in SA?

 

[superkingdave]

what do people think the academy selections will be? they'll be touring WI in between the Pakistan and WI tours. Depends whether they opt for youth or just a second team, Rob Key was saying in his commentary stint the other day that he didn't really fancy the academy.

I think the following will def be there

Cook
Bopara
Hildreth
Joyce
Panesar
Louden
Plunkett
Anderson/Tremlett(whichever isn't on tour)

 

[marc71178]

Why do you keep making out that Key is a reliable quality batsman that could be the saviour of England's batting?

I'd back him at 3 ahead of Collingwood any day of the year.

 

[aussie]

what do people think the academy selections will be? they'll be touring WI in between the Pakistan and WI tours. Depends whether they opt for youth or just a second team, Rob Key was saying in his commentary stint the other day that he didn't really fancy the academy.

I think the following will def be there

Cook
Bopara
Hildreth
Joyce
Panesar
Louden
Plunkett
Anderson/Tremlett(whichever isn't on tour)

yea along with 2 keepers between Foster, read & Prior
Harrison might go again
Solanki

 

[twctopcat]

how Gul can be ahead of Sami???

Gul bowls line and length, see here

Sami on the other hand doesn't. I would much prefer the England batted against the likes of Sami come November. He's a worse version of Tait or Lee, which is saying something.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

what do people think the academy selections will be? they'll be touring WI in between the Pakistan and WI tours. Depends whether they opt for youth or just a second team, Rob Key was saying in his commentary stint the other day that he didn't really fancy the academy.

I think the following will def be there

Cook
Bopara
Hildreth
Joyce
Panesar
Louden
Plunkett
Anderson/Tremlett(whichever isn't on tour)

Newman and Blackwell should go too, possibly Yardy or Shafayat as well. Tim Bresnan as a bowler, Jon Lewis, Sajid Mahmood?

 

[aussie]

Gul bowls line and length, see here

Sami on the other hand doesn't. I would much prefer the England batted against the likes of Sami come November. He's a worse version of Tait or Lee, which is saying something.

all true but i dont think he's ahead of Sami in selector for the test side at this stage...

 

[Scaly piscine]

I'd back him at 3 ahead of Collingwood any day of the year.

I'd rather have Collingwood or several dozen others, A fat guy who's weak outside off stump *and* manages to be lbw fodder against anyone who can move the ball in an inch isn't much use for anything bar flat-track bullying.

 

[superkingdave]

Hmmm

Cook
Shafayat
Bopara
Joyce
Hildreth
Louden
Blackwell(cpt)
Read/Foster etc
Bresnan
Plunkett
Tremlett

with Panesar, Newman, Mahmood etc in the mix aswell

im more interested in that than the test squad actually, because barring injuries i think the XI that started the first 4 ashes tests will play the tests in Pak - it may change after crimbo if bell fails in Pakistan

 

[grecian]

is there really a point in having 2 swing bowlers, in conditions that in all likelyhood wont help swing bowling?

Umm, I'm hoping for the mythical reverse-swing, actually I'd like to take three spinners to the sub-continent, but I struggled to think of two

 

[Shoaib]

how Gul can be ahead of Sami???

Because Gul is a consistent performer who can be dangerous against any team in any conditions while Sami is still at the level of a club bowler who looks better than Wasim Akram in one match
but worst than Mohammad Zahid in 4 games to follow.Sami has been a regular part of the team for about 2 years only because of injuries of Gul & Shoaib & Shabbir's suspect action.Even bowlers like Mohammad Irshad & Riaz Afridi r far better than Sami who's capabilities r not more than those of Zaheer & Nehra as seamers.Riaz Afridi is a devastating genuine fast bowler but unlike Shoaib,he doesn't have any injury problems.
.

 

[nehrafan]

while Sami is still at the level of a club bowler who looks better than Wasim Akram in one match

So true!! Pak team's front line opening pacer is of a club level.

 

[nehrafan]

This should be Pakistan's test side if they wanna enter the field with the intention of winning the game(which they should).
Taufiq Umar
Shahid Afridi
Younis Khan/Hasan Raza
Inzamam-Ul-Haq
Mohammad Yousuf ( Youhana has recently changed his name after accepting Islam)
Asim Kamal
Kamran Akmal
Abdul Razzaq/Rana Naveed
Shoaib Akhtar
Umar Gul
Danish Kaneria

This opening pair is the weakest of all the test playing nations, don't thiink these openers have either the balls or the chalange to stand up against the great English pace attack.

Middle order batting looks fine.

Bowling is very weak, Razzak and Rana proven failures at test level, English batters in particular Freddie and Kevin will murder such half skilled cricketers.

Over all a very weak team that seems to be certain to lose the test series 3-0 to England.

 

[marc71178]

So true!! Pak team's front line opening pacer is of a club level.

Thanks "nehrafan"...

 

[Dasa]

I see that the England squad has been announced...


Test Squad Michael Vaughan (capt), James Anderson, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Steve Harmison, Matthew Hoggard, Geraint Jones, Simon Jones, Alex Loudon, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior, Andrew Strauss, Chris Tremlett, Marcus Trescothick, Shaun Udal.

ODI Squad Michael Vaughan (capt), James Anderson, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Steve Harmison, Geraint Jones, Simon Jones, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior, Liam Plunkett, Vikram Solanki, Andrew Strauss, Chris Tremlett, Marcus Trescothick

 

[Langeveldt]

Shaun Udal! Brilliant, what a surprise! Not the worst prospect either after a good season.. Would make an awesome vice captain