Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Marked for life by Javed Miandad


Posted by Q at Wednesday, July 30, 2014 Pitched (3)
28 years ago, a stroke from Javed Miandad's bat sailed over the mid wicket boundary and changed Pakistan cricket forever and scarred an entire generation of Indians.

Shahid Afridi repeated the same heroics last week when he clubbed two sixes in the final over to give Pakistan a 1 wicket win over India in the Asia Cup clash.

The similarities between the two matches are so many, and even quite unbelievable. From India's score to the number of 50s their batsmen scored, the number of run outs in Pakistan's innings, the number of sixes the Indian opener hit, the number of wickets taken by the bowler who got hit for the sixes, and the margin of victory are all the same. And these are still a few of them.

For 28 years, Pakistanis have probably thought about when they will be able to live through such a moment again. Or whether something like that resounding last ball six will happen again.

Forget the moment, we all got to relive the entire match again!

Despite all these similarities between the two Pakistan vs India clashes, one stark difference stands out.

The Pakistani man, only a 6 year old boy in 1986, who was marked for life by Javed Miandad's six.

Meet Kamran Haider.

Kamran was in the stands playing on the high stairs, doing what a 6 year old does at cricket stadiums on that fateful day in April 1986.

As Chetan Sharma's full toss was clubbed over midwicket and the entire Sharjah stadium erupted in joy, Kamran was surrounded in blood. The historic shot off Miandad's bat struck this 6 year old boy in the stands and just like Chetan Sharma, he did not know what hit him.

As Pakistanis in the stadium and the world over celebrated the biggest moment (at the time) in Pakistan's cricket history, Kamran's parents were rushing to find a medic.

Kamran was treated by the Pakistan team physio in the Pakistan dressing room, while the rest of the team celebrated the historic win. He even enjoyed a moment in Imran Khan's lap.

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Here's the story from Kamran.

1. How does it feel to be the only Pakistani to be "scarred" by Javed Miandad's six?

I feel being stamped in the head with an authentic Pakistani approved stamp. I love my scar! 

2. Did you feel history repeated itself when Shahid Afridi smashed Ashwin for two sixes to win the match for Pakistan?

Yes, after Miandad every Pakistani has this hope of waiting for the very last ball to wait and see if we can win. While others start leaving the stadiums, we sit back and hope someone pulls a Miandad on the last ball...

3. Did you attend more matches in Sharjah stadium after that?

Yes, many. Sharjah has always been lucky for Pakistan. I have experienced some amazing moments and frankly I miss it!

4. Did you ever meet Javed Miandad after that day?

I saw him a few times at airports, in restaurants but never had the opportunity to go up to him and tell him that I am a big fan or what had happened to me. But, I always felt I have the best autograph. I carry it everywhere and it never fades!

5. Do you remember anything that was said to you while you were in the dressing room?

All I remember is people standing up for the last ball, screams everywhere and a sudden thug, a little whistle and then a fade out.

I woke up in my father's arm with blood everywhere. I remember people screaming in Urdu "move, move, here, here" and then I remember being in a room where people were extremely excited. Dad says I was taken in to the Pakistani dressing room and the stitches were done by the Pakistani team physio. Not just that, at one point Imran Khan came to ask what was going on. I think he meant, while all Pakistanis are jumping, laughing and enjoying, why is this little Pakistani boy crying?

6. How does it feel today to think that you were with the Pakistan team in the dressing room after that historic win?

People who know me, know that I am very patriotic towards Pakistan and it isn't limited to cricket. Its about everything!

You assign anything positive to Pakistan and I will love it and make sure of spreading the word. I believe anything than can bring a positive change in the state of Pakistan and my people is worth cherishing it. This scar I hold is very dear to me, it is a trophy and I will take it to my grave as a proud Pakistani!



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Friday, July 25, 2014

Wasim Akram vs Waqar Younis - A Statistical Analysis


Posted by Q at Friday, July 25, 2014 Pitched (19)
A Guest Post by Imran Aslam

Ask any Pakistani cricket fan who our best 3 fast bowlers have been and the answer will almost certainly be unanimous – Wasim, Waqar and Imran. Probe a bit deeper and opinions will start to get divided – while a vast majority will pick Wasim as their favorite and as Pakistan’s best ever, there will be a group more inclined towards Waqar, whereas an earlier generation might lean towards the great Khan.

I am going to exclude Imran Khan from this article but before doing that I just want to say that Imran Khan is by far the most talented and best cricketer to have been produced not just by Pakistan but by the Asian continent!

Now let’s take a deeper look at Wasim vs. Waqar – from here-on my analysis and opinion is solely restricted to test cricket. First the simple statistics:


The simple numbers make for an interesting comparison. Their averages are very similar but Waqar has a much better strike rate than Wasim, needing almost 2 overs less to pick up a wicket. Their 5 wickets/innings stats are also pretty similar, with Waqar having a slightly better rate than Wasim and there is hardly anything to separate the two in terms of wickets per innings. So while Waqar needed 2 overs less than Wasim to pick up a wicket their wickets/innings numbers are very similar implying Wasim could bowl longer spells and pick up similar number of wickets as Waqar.

Now let’s dig a bit deeper and start bisecting their statistics.

First of all I will look at their stats in matches that both of them played in together:


Again they both have very similar numbers, picking up almost the same number of wickets at similar averages but with Waqar having a superior strike rate to Wasim.

An interesting observation here is that Wasim’s stats in matches where Waqar was involved are a significant improvement in comparison to his overall numbers; whereas the difference in Waqar’s performance is marginal. This could be due to Wasim’s skills improving in the later part of his career (post-1989 when Waqar was around) and it could also be due to having Waqar bowling at the other end and putting more pressure on the batsmen.

Test match cricket is all about picking up 20 wickets and it is bowlers who win matches for their teams in this format of the game. Therefore it only makes sense to see the impact of their performances in matches that Pakistan won: 


Now this is where it starts getting interesting and there appear some differences between the performances of the two.

Pakistan won 45% of the test matches Waqar played in whereas we won 38% of the games Wasim played in. When we look at their contributions in wins, Waqar has significantly better stats and performances than Wasim does:
  • 4 out of 5 10-wicket hauls for Waqar came in wins; whereas the corresponding figure for Wasim is 2 out of 5.
  • 14 out of 22 5-wicket hauls for Waqar were achieved in games Pakistan went on to win; whereas Wasim has 13 5-wicket hauls in wins from a total of 25.
  • Overall 60% of Waqar’s wickets were taken in matches Pakistan won; whereas 51% of Wasim’s wickets were in wins.
Again their averages are very similar but Waqar’s strike rate is once again phenomenal picking up a wicket every 35 balls compared to 42 for Wasim.

From the numbers above I think it is a logical conclusion that Waqar had a more significant contribution to wins for Pakistan over his career than Wasim did.

Taking the filter another level deeper, I’m now going to look at performance in matches Pakistan won in which both Wasim and Waqar played.


Once again, eerily similar stats with the only differentiator being the strike rate, as Waqar needed about an over less to strike than Wasim did.

The interesting thing here is again the improvement in Wasim’s stats, especially his wickets per innings in wins where Waqar was involved compared to all wins. This clearly shows that there was a significant positive impact on Wasim’s performance in matches involving Waqar (there could be other factors such as form, stage of Wasim’s career, etc. at play here) over matches not involving Waqar.

As yet another way of looking at their performances I’m going to filter their records by opposition. Few would argue that Australia, England, South Africa and West Indies were all very strong teams during the time Wasim and Waqar played their cricket. So I’m going to look at performance against these 4 opponents only (I have purposefully excluded India here since Waqar only played 4 matches against them, 2 in his debut series in 89 and another 2 in 99).


Though there is not much to set them apart yet again, it is interesting to note that Waqar’s stats take a bigger hit when looking at his performance against the 4 best sides of the time whereas Wasim’s numbers are relatively closer to his overall performance. However, again Waqar maintains a much better strike rate, which to me is one of the most important indicators for a good test match bowler.

Wasim has performed admirably well against the West Indies (average 21 / SR 45) but has strike rates of 60 or above against the other 3 opponents. Waqar struggled badly against Australia (average 34 / SR 63), performed well against the West Indies (average 23 / SR 39), whereas his stats against England and South Africa are better than Wasim (average 28 / SR 50).

One of the definitive measures of individual performances are the ICC player rankings, and looking at these it is again Waqar who supersedes Wasim. Waqar achieved a career best rating of 909 and achieved the number 1 ranking while Wasim’s best rating was 830 and his best ranking was number 2.

Waqar is actually part of a very select group of 21 bowlers in the history of the game who have crossed the 900 mark whereas there are only 9 bowlers who have achieved more than the 909 points that Waqar managed (Barnes, Lohman, Imran Khan, Murali, McGrath, Lock, Ambrose, Botham and Marshal).

Let me end by saying that in my view, both Wasim and Waqar were terrific bowlers and there is not much between them in their stats. However, in my book, Waqar’s better strike-rate and his significantly superior contribution in wins puts him marginally above Wasim as Pakistan’s premier test match fast bowler.

I long for the day when Pakistan has an opening pair even half as good as the 2 Ws!
























ADDENDUM by Q

Besides being pace spearheads and arguably the best fast bowling pair ever to hunt together, Wasim and Waqar were great rivals too. It is no secret that Waqar Younis led a revolt against Wasim Akram to remove the latter from the captaincy in 1993-94, and since then their relationship was never the same.

It is quite astonishing that both Wasim and Waqar formed the most lethal pace partnership during a time when they hated each other. Wasim has openly talked about his rivalry with Waqar in many interviews and his autobiography, and he also explained how Pakistan benefited from this rivalry.

Wasim has stated that both him and Waqar were always looking to go one up on the other. If one would take a wicket, the other would try extra hard to get one too. And both wanted to get more wickets than the other to show who is better.

This professional rivalry did wonders for Pakistan as both Wasim and Waqar took wickets in heaps and won many a game for Pakistan.

Imran Aslam has already shown that Waqar's presence in the team had a significant positive impact on Wasim Akram's performance. This can be further elaborated by comparing Wasim's stats in tests played before Waqar's debut and after:


There is a drastic improvement. Surely Wasim became a far better bowler in the 90s than in the earlier part of his career, but Waqar's presence had a lot to do with it. The professional rivalry had a lot to do with it. The jealousy of now being shared as Imran Khan's go to bowler had a lot to do with it. The ambition to be the best bowler in Pakistan, the best bowler in the world, had a lot to do with it. Undoubtedly, Waqar Younis brought out the best in Wasim Akram.

Wasim & Waqar will forever remain the best pace bowling duo ever in the history of Pakistan cricket, arguably the world as well.

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Tuesday, July 22, 2014

The 8 Best English Bowlers of the Last 30 Years


Posted by Q at Tuesday, July 22, 2014 No Comments
Jimmy Anderson’s amazing bowling at Lord’s saw him smash through previous records by taking four wickets. With this outstanding performance in mind, let’s take a minute to look back at eight of the best bowlers in English cricket over recent years:

Darren Gough

He may never have won the Ashes, but Gough was one of the best bowlers around. As a fast bowler he developed his own unique technique that was often described as ‘skiddy’, but it allowed him to have a late spin on the ball which gave him a huge bowling advantage. In the Ashes alone, Gough claimed 74 wickets and took a total of 229 wickets in his test match career.



 Steve Harmison

During the 2003-2004 West Indies tour, Harmy was the highest wicket-taker and continued this success to the 2005 Ashes where his fast bowling helped to secure the victory for England. Part of Harmy’s success was his ability to deliver a bounce from any pitch, largely thanks to his 6’4” stature, while throwing them out at speeds over 90mph.



Andrew Caddick

Despite being born in New Zealand, Caddy, was one of the best English bowlers that has ever been. He was renowned for taking 13 five-wicket hauls in test matches and taking over 230 wickets in his test match career. One of the things that set Caddy apart from the rest was his dedication to Somerset County Cricket Club, where he stayed for his entire career.



Robert Croft

Welsh and proud, Crofty hedged his bets and played for England in international matches and he made a massive impact in doing so. He regularly received the title of player of the year and was even awarded the Weatherall Award for being the leading all-rounder in English first-class games. However, it was his bowling that made him stand out from the rest when he took his 1,000 first-class wickets in 2007.



Ian Botham

Often claiming his centuries, Botham was instrumental in England’s Ashes wins, but it was his outstanding bowling that claimed five for one in 28 balls at Edgbaston that landed him a place in this list. Beefy took 148 Ashes wickets in total thanks to his fast and loose bowling that saw many a batman swing a tad late and go out on an LBW or wickets.



Devon Malcolm

During the 90s, Malcom was probably the only true fast bowler that England had in their arsenal. Despite being one of the fastest bowlers to have ever graced the pitch, Malcom’s short falls in poor catching and short-sighted plays meant that he was often chosen as number eleven. He may not have taken the most wickets or been the best batsman, but Malcom could bowl like no one’s business!

[Image: Cricket Country]

















Graeme Swann

Famed for his right-arm off break bowling style, Swanny was one of the best spinners to ever grace the field. In 2009, Swann made history by becoming the first English spinner to take 50 wickets in a single calendar year. A year later, he cemented himself in the list of best English bowlers firmly when he managed to take 10 wickets in a single match.



Stuart Broad

Still regularly playing test match cricket, The Enforcer has already got 238 wickets under his belt and plenty of life left in his arms to see this number grow. Broad has achieved an amazing number 3 in the ICC player rankings and has won Man of the Series awards in 2009 and 2011. In addition to this, he’s already claimed 11 five wicket hauls, two 10 wickets and even two test match hat-tricks.



What do you think? Are these all bowlers that you’d include in your fantasy cricket team or are some astounding players missing from this list? Let us know!

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