Unreserved Annoyance

I am totally, utterly and absolutely annoyed … this time however, it has nothing to do with Team Pakistan. It’s the two boards (ECB and PCB) who put together and agreed the scheduling for this series.

While I will be congratulating them both (when I preview the T20 series) for recognizing the need for a full series of T20s instead of the 1 or 2 offs that has been the part of any bilateral series in international cricket lately, I can’t condemn them enough for this joke they have done with the fans by scheduling 4 one-day games.

What the hell is wrong with these administrators everywhere? Do they not live in the same world as us? Do they not see the same game and follow it the same way as we do? Initially, they had announced a 5 ODI series alongside 3 Tests and 3 T20s … and I was of course very happy to be getting the full series that both teams (and their fans) deserve, and more so that this time the T20s will get a final decider instead of the 2 that have become the norm in recent times … but then someone somewhere chopped 1 ODI game in favour of two tour games to be played on the day the first ODI was originally scheduled (today). For the record, I’d have been happier with 3 ODIs if they couldn’t get 5 in, but 4 is simply ridiculous.

I am all for bringing Associates’ and Affiliates’ standards up by giving them opportunities to play top-tier teams but not at the cost of this … As I write, Pakistan is playing Afghanistan in Sharjah as preparation for the upcoming ODI series, while over in Abu Dhabi England XI beat the crap out of their own B Team (England Lions) earlier today … all in the name of preparation. I am not sure if Cricinfo’s headline for the report on that earlier game, that English batsmen have found form, is sarcasm or some form of idiocy? Because England Lions batting first got out for a mere 96; then the two captains and English coaches decided that the senior side needed a more thorough workout before facing Pakistan, so a fictitious target of 230 was agreed on, which too England passed easily with 25 balls to spare … all of this that deprived the fans of one important ODI game.

Why am I so disgusted by all of this? Well, how would you like this result at the end of the series … Pakistan won the Test series 3-0, won the T20 series … and ODI series drawn 2-2 (well, they could have won that too but there was no fifth ODI to play for). Not just Pakistani fans but turn the situation around, English fans would be as upset. They have an opportunity here after losing the Test series to come back and win the ODI series, but oh wait, to win a 4 game series, you have to win 3 games. So let me come straight to the ODI series preview, which is what I should have been writing about … here’s my series prediction: 2-2 … and it’s going to leave both sides of fans extremely disappointed after such a great Test series and wishing for that 1 more ODI. Do I need to remind anyone of the South Africa – Australia 2 Test series last year?

Now of course I am secretly wishing that Pakistan can perhaps win 3 or all 4 ODIs (but then English fans would be hoping for the same for their team). 4 is the no. of ODIs we’ll get this series, so that means the team wanting to win the series must win 3 games (as if playing a 5 game series) but can afford to lose just 1 (as if playing a 3 game series). On the other hand, the team wanting to get-out-of-jail will just have to win 2 to draw the series (the no. that won’t be enough in a 5 game series) … enough of me vetting my anger at administrators, let’s talk cricket:

If England thought they had seen enough of Pakistan’s spin, wait till Afridi and Malik enter the fray. Now Malik might be out of form a bit and his threat level not as high as our other spinners, but Afridi is in a league of his own. He just took another five-for a few hours ago against Afghanistan, which also saw him become the 8^th highest wicket taker in the ODIs, and second in the spinners list as he leap-frogged Anil Kumble. In this form of the game, Afridi is the spearhead of our spin attack and come Monday, Englishmen will actually wish they were facing Ajmal or Rehman instead.

Apart from Boom Boom, and the obvious confidence and high carried over from the Test series, there are a few other things going for Pakistan as we enter the ODI phase of the tour. Now England might be the no. 1 ranked Test team or the current World T20 champions, but when it comes to the 50 over format, we are actually better ranked than them (5 and 6 respectively). We also went further than them in the ICC World Cup, which was the most recent ODI event involving all top teams … and their recent whipping at the hands of India in their last ODI series in sub-continental conditions does put us ahead of them on paper as clear favourites.

But we all know too well that being favourites on paper is one thing and actually producing results on the field is another … just ask England ;) With them hurting and us a little over-confident and perhaps still basking in the glory of recent success, they might just catch us off-guard. So Team Pakistan should really guard against complacency and that’s the only thing they need to worry about right now.

Well, that and Imran Farhat. While I am bashing administrators, I might as well take a swipe at this issue. I don’t see him producing a 50 (or for that matter even a 30) in this series … like he did against Bangladesh or today against Afghanistan, and that should hopefully be enough to see the end of him. Although, when he married the daughter of one of our selectors (now chief-selector in Mohsin’s absence from the committee); even he couldn’t have imagined that he’d be supported this far.

Apart from that opening spot, I don’t see any weak links in our side. To field a playing XI will in fact be a tough task given the resources at hand. Rehman despite his brilliant form and Englishmen’s inability to play him might have to make way for someone else. Umer Akmal’s only way in this batting line-up will be by replacing his brother and keeping wickets. Wahab, given his hitting ability is likely to feature as support for Gul in the pace department but we might very well at some point decide to line up 4 spinners. Actually hypothetically, we can even make 5 spinners bowl out the full 50 overs. How? Quite simple actually … Hafeez and Rehman can bowl with the new ball very well, Afridi can spin them in the middle overs with support from Malik perhaps, and Ajmal at the death. If English batsmen aren’t having nightmares yet, pls. read this blog and this particular scenario is bound to give them a headache. However, this might not happen in real unless we lose Gul to some injury or something else as his reverse swing and pretty damn accurate yorkers are in a class of its own.

Finally another thing going in Pakistan’s favour is the fact that they have already played under the new ODI rules; starting with two new balls, the change in when powerplays can or must be taken and the 1 review per innings under UDRS. Although, to really benefit from these rule changes one needs to put on a ‘strategic’ hat, which I am not too sure if Misbah or our team management has mastered yet but still that’s one new thing that England will have on their minds.

As I come to close … Pakistan has just finished their practise by thrashing Afghanistan by 7 wickets (with 77 balls to spare). Here’s hoping we get to see four more such whippings over the next eleven days …

PS. I am scheduling a live discussion post (space for discussion), which will come on-line about an hour from the start of the first ODI on Monday (just like we did for the Test matches) but this time instead of each ODI, we will just have one post for the full series.