Pakistan Tour of South Africa 2018/19

[GRAB]

Arguably, the biggest hole has been made by the absence of van Zyl and Rossouw coming through. If only Stiaan had had opportunities down the order instead of opening, he might have eased in a whole lot easier...

 

[SeamUp]

Really hope Fakhar and Abbas make the tour. Be a crying shame if Pakistan aren't at their strongest.

Fakhar set to miss Boxing Day Test against SA with knee injury - ESPNcricinfo

 

[SeamUp]

Run distribution questionable. If times were a bit better I would say wait a year and look again.

Times are bad though. I'm happy to see the current lineup play the entire Pak series. If bavuma or DE Bruyn score nothing I think they should go.

Maybe Mulder afterwards. But they are both question marks and Amla won't be around for long.

He doesn't seem a bad bet (bearing the in mind I know nothing about him besides these stats). We have been having to choose between bats struggling to average 40 in 1st class often recently

This is what I will be interested in seeing. Can we afford to do that with Amla/Faf going soon ? If they here for more than just the home summer I would do it if there are alternatives.

Top of the order we have Moore, P.Malan as 4-day specialists doing well but I can't get myself to be fully behind them (just technique and their history of consistency) & then in the MSL J.Malan, Rickelton have shown talent for the bigger stage but are they technically sufficient for the new ball in SA ? Luckily we seem set for openers for a while yet.

We are very light in the middle order for experience with runs on domestic due to Kolpaks . I would say Klaasen & Second are probably the best for output by how much longevity? SA have always backed young players even before their time and stuck with them because they believed in them (ie Cronje, Rhodes, Gibbs, Kallis, Smith, Rudolph ,Amla, AB with mixed success I guess & you feel they would have done the same with Cullinan) so it just depends how desperate they are for the now or building a potential #1 test team. So in this category we are lucky that Hamza and Mulder have had quite a few opportunities and scored franchise 100s so you can see them backing these two next.

Breetzke, van Tonder, Qeshile are some of the most exciting young batsmen to come from SA u19/schoolboy cricket in some time. I can't see them not playing tests for SA. I'd be amazed if our middle order didn't come from those 5 but the only thing lacking is who guides them if Faf/Amla aren't there. We supposed to rely on Bavuma/de Bruyn to do that. 31 tests & 1 hundred & 6 tests with 1 score over 50 whose dismissals have been most worrying because of the technicque/hard hands and strong bottom hand.

de Bruyn showed gumption none of our batsmen showed against Sri Lanka and scored a 100 whilst Bavuma isn't going to average 40 and isn't going to win matches for SA with any regularity but has dug us out of a few holes with 50s. But in the big test series you need big contributions from everybody and believing that all of your top 6/7 can score 100s in any conditions at any time. That is what you need to strive for.

 

[trundler]

With Abbas set to miss at least the first test, this will now be an even mightier crushing. It will probably a series where ball will dominate bat by some margin and Pakistan all be heavily outbowled. Don't think Amir will be threatening at all if picked. Hassan Ali might do ok though.

 

[smash84]

Really hope Fakhar and Abbas make the tour. Be a crying shame if Pakistan aren't at their strongest.

Fakhar set to miss Boxing Day Test against SA with knee injury - ESPNcricinfo

Their presence won't make too much difference tbh

 

[trundler]

Fakhar won't. Can't play the short ball. Would've gotten rekt royally. All reason dictates Abbas would've done reasonably well but cricket doesn't always work like that.

 

[SeamUp]

Their presence won't make too much difference tbh

Fakhar won't. Can't play the short ball. Would've gotten rekt royally. All reason dictates Abbas would've done reasonably well but cricket doesn't always work like that.

Got to go in believing at least.

Both Imam & Hafeez won't be opening here. I sometimes think someone like Fakhar who is awkward hitter could make things difficult for us with his positive approach. Risky though it may be.

But definitely Abbas if he performs will get you guys competitive. He was the key to your attack I felt. X-Factor like Shaheen Shah Afridi and then Amir/Ali/Junaid probably the best attack.

 

[smash84]

I would like to see Junaid in play in RSA. But Mickey Arthur isn't a big fan of his. So he will probably be out.

I really hope they don't take Hafeez with them. He is completely useless in situations where the ball moves even a nanometer or if the ball rises above penis height.

Imam did ok in England and Ireland didn't he? So imam definitely should be in.

 

[smash84]

Hafeez has retired so thankfully he won't even be in the consideration set for this SA series

 

[Dendarii]

The South African squad has been announced, with Hamza as the backup batsman and Olivier the backup quick, which we pretty much expected.


Faf du Plessis (Titans, captain), Hashim Amla (Cape Cobras), Temba Bavuma (Highveld Lions), Theunis de Bruyn (Titans), Quinton de Kock (Titans), Dean Elgar (Titans), Zubayr Hamza (Cape Cobras), Keshav Maharaj (Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Titans), Duanne Olivier (Knights), Vernon Philander (Cape Cobras), Kagiso Rabada (Highveld Lions), Dale Steyn (Titans)


https://www.sport24.co.za/Cricket/Proteas/proteas-shock-with-hamza-call-up-for-pakistan-series-20181206 (I have no idea why Hamza's call up should be a shock, and the article actually makes a good case for his selection )

 

[Marius]

The South African squad has been announced, with Hamza as the backup batsman and Olivier the backup quick, which we pretty much expected.


Faf du Plessis (Titans, captain), Hashim Amla (Cape Cobras), Temba Bavuma (Highveld Lions), Theunis de Bruyn (Titans), Quinton de Kock (Titans), Dean Elgar (Titans), Zubayr Hamza (Cape Cobras), Keshav Maharaj (Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Titans), Duanne Olivier (Knights), Vernon Philander (Cape Cobras), Kagiso Rabada (Highveld Lions), Dale Steyn (Titans)


https://www.sport24.co.za/Cricket/Proteas/proteas-shock-with-hamza-call-up-for-pakistan-series-20181206 (I have no idea why Hamza's call up should be a shock, and the article actually makes a good case for his selection )

Also not sure how he's the 100th player to play for the Proteas, if he gets picked. He'll be the 100th since readmission and the 335th overall.

 

[SeamUp]

Always was going to happen. Might as well get these young players feeding off Amla/Faf while they still with us. The only other alternatives were Mulder (injured) & Second (29 & a keeper).

Also chuffed as I share alma mater with Zubayr and will be first test player since Jonathan Trott, first SA international since Andrew Puttick and first SA test player since Gary Kirsten, HD Ackerman and John Commins. They all learnt their game on this wonderful cricket field.

 

[StephenZA]

Can't wait to see a bowling line-up of Steyn, Rabada and Philander, this series. 2nd best in the world according to many Aussies and commentators.

 

[smash84]

Can't wait to see a bowling line-up of Steyn, Rabada and Philander, this series. 2nd best in the world according to many Aussies and commentators.

 

[GRAB]

Steyn, Rabada, Ngidi, Philander would be amazing, though not many pitches where we'd ditch Maharaj at the moment... Great to give Hamza a chance, and not wait too long to blood him!

 

[SeamUp]

Pretty much as expected.

Pakistan squad for South Africa Tests: Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Haris Sohail, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfaraz Ahmed (C, Wk), Md Rizwan, Yasir Shah, Shadab Khan, Md Abbas, Hassan Ali, Md Amir, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi

 

[Gomez656]

Imam with 110 in 10 innings vs better bowling should drops,

Relatives first for selectors

 

[Heboric]

Pretty much as expected.

Pakistan squad for South Africa Tests: Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Haris Sohail, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfaraz Ahmed (C, Wk), Md Rizwan, Yasir Shah, Shadab Khan, Md Abbas, Hassan Ali, Md Amir, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi

Philander trying to console Steyn after realizing no Hafeez in the squad

 

[trundler]

This will be an almighty thrashing. Expect multiple sub 100 scores.

 

[SeamUp]

SA Invitation XI squad:

Marques Ackerman (KZN Coastal, captain), Matthew Breezke (Warriors), Tshepang Dithole (Gauteng), Simon Khomari (WSB Cape Cobras), Thandolwethu Mnyaka (Free State), Rivaldo Moonsamy (Multiply Titans), Tshepo Ndwandwa (SWD), Onke Nyaku (EP), Joshua Richards (Gauteng), Kyle Simmonds (Boland), Rubin Trumpelman (Northerns), Lwandiswa Zuma (KZN Inland)

This game is 9 days away & likely order of XI

Khomari
Richards (opening bat with impressive start to his career for Central Gauteng)
Breetzke (CSA Academy & Warriors)
Ackerman (In Dolphins plans and would imagine a contract will happen very soon)
Moonsamy (Titans contract - wk batsman)
Dithole
Nyaku
Simmonds (sla spin all-rounder in academy squad & played a few games for Cobras)
Mnyaka
Trumpelmann (left-arm swing )
Zuma (right-arm sling fast-medium for Dolphins)

Arthur calls on Pakistan to toughen up ahead of SA tour

Disgruntled coach Mickey Arthur demanded his players toughen up and seize key moments in Test matches after sloppy batting handed New Zealand an away series win over Pakistan for the first time in 49 years.

New Zealand pulled off a come-from-behind 123-run victory in the third and final Test in Abu Dhabi on Friday to end their long wait for a 2-1 series win.

Pakistan had dismissed the Kiwis for 153 in the first innings of the first Test in Abu Dhabi only to lose by a narrow four-run margin.

Pakistan bounced back by winning the second Test in Dubai by an innings and four runs but again failed to build a sizeable lead in the first innings of the third Test, a fact Arthur believes cost them the series.

"We missed opportunities and despite winning most of the sessions in the two losses we could not grab the moments to force a win," Pakistan coach Arthur told AFP.

"It was our series to win but we ended up as the losing side and that's highly disappointing."

Arthur said Pakistan not gaining big leads in the first and third Tests was crucial.

"We have to have a look at our batting on the last day and that is tough in the UAE," said Arthur.

Pakistan lost all ten wickets on the final day in both the defeats. They have now lost all ten wickets on the final day six times since Arthur joined in May 2016.

Apart from the three occasions in Abu Dhabi - against Sri Lanka last year and twice against New Zealand in this series - they also collapsed at Birmingham, Hamilton and Melbourne - all in 2016.

Arthur said he backs his players, especially under-fire senior batsmen Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq.

"The quality is there as they are the best players in Pakistan who are working very very hard and I back them to the hilt," said Arthur.

"But we need to be tougher in the crucial moments and that comes to us grabbing moments and being tough and we could not do this in this series which is disappointing."

He added: "I will defend Asad and Azhar to the hilt. Asad is a wonderful player. I rate him very highly and I still feel his best days are ahead of him."

Arthur now hopes Pakistan can do well in South Africa, a country where they have won only two Tests and were thrashed 3-0 on their last tour in 2013.

"I reckon we can go to South Africa and do well," said Arthur.

"I believe and trust in these players, we have got some very talented cricketers and some good young players.

"We need to nail down our good positions which we are not doing and that's the problem area."

The first of three Tests starts in Centurion from December 26.