Monday, May 8, 2017

Younis & Misbah still at the top of their game

In two days time, Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq will take the field for the very last time for Pakistan. Many feel they are leaving too soon, while many think that they have timed it perfectly.

No one really knows when the best time is to hang up their boots, but one thing I am sure of...

Both Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq are still at the top of their game, still the best test batsmen Pakistan have, and still have some years left in them.

In my opinion, the best 5 batsmen to play test cricket for Pakistan are:

All five of them are Pakistani stalwarts; however some of them overstayed their welcome.

If you take a look at the last three years of their careers, it is apparent that Javed Miandad and Mohammad Yousuf had lost their touch.

Younis in fact has averaged more than his career average in his last three years; while Misbah has been quite consistent. Inzamam also performed in line with his career performance in his final few years.

Miandad and Yousuf though were below par.

Probably best for Younis and Misbah to call it time while they are still at the top of their game.

I found this quite interesting so I took a look at the final three years of the leading 5 run scorers of all time in test cricket. This is what I found:

While Kallis, Dravid, and Sangakkara were still at their peak; Sachin and Ponting went through a significant dip in form in their final few years.

Like Younis, Sangakkara too averaged more than his career average in his last three years.

It is also interesting to note that Younis, Ponting, and Kallis scored double centuries in their last three years; while Sangakkara managed a triple century!

Even more interesting is the fact that Kallis and Sangakkara managed their career highest score in their final three years.

So much for legends overstaying their welcome; besides a few all of them retired with grace and while they were at the top of their games.

Make your pitch on this post...



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