It is here again!

The time to - wear your greens, calculate your if and but scenarios, go through high level thrills and some heartbreaks, build your fantasy teams, place your bets, tune into your favorite sports channel, follow The Pavilion religiously, participate on numerous forums on whatsapp and all other social media, wave your flags, and support team Pakistan - is here again!

This time comes every 4 years and it is here again.

It is time for the ICC ODI Cricket World Cup!

It seems like yesterday that a few of us were gearing up to fly down to London to follow Pakistan at the World Cup. The 4 years since have flown by.

There have been two T20 World Cups between the last edition in 2019 and this ODI World Cup.

But this time that comes every 4 years is when the cricket frenzy reaches its peak.

Pakistan's cricketers landed in Hyderabad last night and received a very heartwarming welcome with fans out in big numbers cheering them from the airport all the way to the hotel.

Pakistan's campaign starts tomorrow with a warm up match against New Zealand, followed by another warm up game against Australia next week.

A week from now is when the actual World Cup starts with a repeat of the World Cup 2019 Final.

Whatever has happened over the past 4 years is now irrelevant. All teams have done their preparations and they all now start off with a clean slate.

It doesn't matter who is ranked #1, who was ranked #1, who won what when, nothing really matters.

All that matters is the performance on the day and Pakistan is ready for the challenge.

I reckon this is Pakistan's strongest World Cup team since 1999.

This century has not been too good for Pakistan in ODI World Cups with only one semi final appearance out of 5 World Cups. In 2019 they missed out narrowly due to Net Run Rate.

I know I said that all the past is irrelevant and nothing really matters now, but one thing that I and many other Pakistan fans continue to relate to is 1992 - the only time Pakistan won an ODI World Cup.

It has been over 30 years now, but those memories are still fresh in my mind.

Every World Cup campaign a number of similarities are floated around by Pakistan fans comparing the now to what happened in 1992.

Already there are a few regarding the 2023 World Cup!

So since no one has really dared to initiate this list, here goes ...

1. Babar Azam is the first unmarried captain to lead Pakistan at a World Cup, since Imran Khan in 1992.

2. 1992 was Imran Khan's third World Cup as captain, following 1983 and 1987. This is also Babar Azam's third World Cup as captain, following T20 World Cups in 2021 and 2022.

3. In 1992, Pakistan's premier right arm fast bowler - Waqar Younis - got injured and had to miss the entire tournament. In 2023, Pakistan's premier right arm fast bowler - Naseem Shah - is injured and has to miss the entire tournament.

4. Pakistan entered the 1992 World Cup as the #2 ranked ODI team. Pakistan are entering the 2023 World Cup as the #2 ranked ODI team.

5. In 1992, the host nation - Australia, was the #1 ranked ODI team and tournament favorites. In 2023, the host nation - India, is the #1 ranked ODI team and tournament favorites.

What else?

Feel free to add to the list ...

Because, 1992 me bhi ...

PAKISTAAAAAAAAAAN ZINDABAAAAAAD !!!

There is also no doubt that Babar is also the best batter in the world across formats. He is the only batter ranked in the top 4 of each format.

I have no doubt that Babar Azam will become the first batter in the world to be ranked 1 in each of the three formats at the same time!

Virat Kohli, Ricky Ponting, and Matthew Hayden are the only ones who have achieved the number 1 ranking in each format; however none of them have held that ranking at the same time.

Babar soon will. You wait and watch.

Besides being a great batsman, Babar is also an impeccable captain. He has grown in stature with every game over the past two years, and he is fast becoming one of the best captains in the game.

Under Babar, Pakistan currently have a win percentage of over 60% in each of the three formats. They have pulled off some amazing victories during this time in T20Is, in ODIs, and even in Tests. The team has a new found belief under him and one can only imagine the great heights this team can reach.

Among the current crop of Test captains, Babar has the second best W:L ratio, behind only Pat Cummins. And his win percentage of 66.7% is behind only that of Ben Stokes and Dean Elgar.

Babar is also one of the only two Test captains in the past 2 years who are averaging over 50 with the bat.

In ODIs, Babar sits second on the list of captains with the best W:L ratio and win percentage, behind Rohit Sharma.

As a batter, Babar has been phenomenal in ODIs. He has the most runs, highest average, highest strike rate, and most centuries as captain in ODIs since the start of 2020.

His average of 83.3 as captain is miles ahead of the next best.

That strike rate of 101.7 is a slap on so many faces, I can't even begin to count.

Even in T20Is, Babar sits second in the list behind Rohit Sharma in terms of W:L ratio.

As a captain in T20Is, Babar also dominates the T20I runs tally over the past 3 years with almost 300 more runs than the next best - Aaron Finch. He also has the second best average among captains, behind Kohli, and has the most number of 50s as captain - more than double of the next best.

A true white ball maestro, Babar's career is moving rapidly towards greatness. He is ruling in all three formats as a captain and as a batter. To think that he has at least another decade of cricket left in him, one can't even begin to imagine where he will end up if he keeps continuing in the same vein.

We have not had a Pakistan team in a while that has been in the running for all three ICC trophies - the WTC, T20 WC, and the ODI WC. 

At least one of those will be in Pakistan's hands before the end of 2023.

If anyone can make it happen, it is the current best cricketer in the world - the one Babar Azam!

In the past three years, from July 2019 to July 2022, Babar has been the best in the world when it comes to Test Cricket. While he has the 6th most runs in test cricket in this period, he has the highest average in this format. If Pakistan got to play as many Tests as England, India, or Australia, you know where he would be in this list.

Nevertheless, that average of 62 is right up there and unmatched at the moment, and whether there is a Fab 4 or a Fab 5 or a Fab anything, Babar is right at the top of that Fab list!

There is no doubt about Babar being the best ODI batsman in the world. He is the second highest run scorer in ODIs in this three year period, and his average of 82 shows how far above and beyond he is than the rest of the pack. No one has scored as many ODI tons as Babar has in this time, and the next best average is 27 runs away!

Is there a Fab list in ODIs or is he the only Fab ONE?

In T20Is, there is no one who has been as consistent as Babar has, barring Virat Kohli over the years and Mohammad Rizwan last year. In this 3 year period, Babar is the second highest run scorer, has the third best average, and the most number of 50s. 

He is by far the best white ball batsman at the moment. No wonder the ICC also ranks him at the top in both formats.

Whether it is number of runs, average, strike rate (that slaps a lot of faces), centuries, or fifties, Babar is at the top of every list across formats in international cricket over the past 3 years.

He is the only batsman in the world who is ranked in the top 5 for each format. He tops the list for two of those formats. 

These two batsman have been operating at another level. The number of runs, their averages, their contributions to victories, their centuries, have all been at unprecedented levels.

Babar's and Imam's batting averages are among the highest 5 averages in the history of ODI cricket (among all batsmen with a minimum of 1,000 runs).

Babar now is ahead of Kohli by more than a whole run, while Imam has gone past ODI legends like Bevan, ABD, and Root.

If one considers batsmen with more than 2,000 ODI runs, then Babar sits at the top of the list of highest averages, with Imam at number 3.

Babar's and Imam's contributions in ODI wins are unprecedented. Both these batsmen raise their averages by at least 20 runs in ODI victories, as compared to their career averages.

Among all batsmen with at least 1,000 runs in ODI wins, Babar has the highest average in the history of ODIs, and Imam has the third highest ever.

Imam Ul Haq is one of the most consistent openers Pakistan has ever had in ODIs. In fact, one of the most consistent in the world.

He currently has the third best average among openers in ODIs.

He also has the third best average among openers in ODI wins.

When Babar was appointed ODI captain, a large section of the public, including former players and experts, felt that it was a mistake.

They felt that Pakistan's best batsman should not be burdened with the captaincy. They felt the added responsibility will hamper his batting. They felt he would not be able to cope with the pressure.

But nothing of that sort has happened.

Captaincy, in fact, has resulted in Babar elevating his game by a few notches.

This is evident from his ODI batting average as captain, which is currently 90.2 after 12 matches in charge.

Yes it is still early days and there is a long road ahead for Babar as ODI captain, but the way he has started this stint is an indication of what the future holds.

Babar has shone brightly as Pakistan's all format captain.

His ODI batting average and strike rate as captain are both significantly higher than his career's.

He recently played the test innings of his life to save a test for Pakistan.

His exploits as T20 captain are well documented.

Babar has taken the opportunity to lead Pakistan head on and he has enhanced his batting form significantly since taking charge.

He is the only batsman in the world at the moment who ranks among the Top 5 in all three formats of the game; and he ranks NUMBER ONE in both white ball formats.

There is no batsman like him.

Arguably, he is the best batsman ever produced by not only Pakistan, but the World!

Pakistan isn't playing any cricket at the moment, but the past two days have been quite happening for Pakistan cricket.

It started with Chief Selector, Mohammad Wasim, announcing Pakistan's 15 man squad for the World T20. 

Which was followed by the resignations of Pakistan's head coach, Misbah Ul Haq, and bowling coach, Waqar Younis. 

These resignations have Rameez Raja written all over them.

Rameez does not assume the PCB Chairman role till September 13; however he has been involved with the PCB from the day his appointment was announced.

His input was taken for the WT20 squad, and he had made his intentions clear regarding the future of Misbah and Waqar.

More drama followed with media reports about Babar Azam not being happy with squad selection, and further reports that Mohammad Rizwan will replace Babar as Test captain.

And then, this morning, a statement was released by the PCB CEO, Wasim Khan, refuting all speculations being made in the media.

No dull day in Pakistan cricket!

Let us now get back to the most contentious subject - Pakistan's squad for the WT20.

At first glance, I was disappointed with some of the selections. The inclusion of Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah, and Azam Khan did not make sense to me. The exclusion of Fakhar Zaman disappointed me. Even the sacking of Sharjeel Khan and Haider Ali could be argued.

And why does Haris Rauf keep getting selected?

Here is Pakistan's 15-man squad: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Sohaib Maqsood, Mohammad Hafeez, Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Haris Rauf, Mohammad Nawaz

The more I look at it, the more it makes sense to me, barring a few selections.

Pakistan's opening combination of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in T20Is has done wonders for the team. In setting up totals and in chasing them down, including a recent record partnership and run chase, the two have been brilliant.

Babar and Rizwan are not only the best opening combination in Pakistan, but in the world. Their partnership is not only the best among all opening partnerships, but it is the best partnership in the world for any wicket in T20Is over the past two years!

The inclusion of both Fakhar and Sharjeel in recent T20I squads only caused confusion in my opinion. Both are openers and do not really fit any where else in the batting order. Whoever made the call, made the right call, and made the captain's and management's life easier. 

Barring Babar, Rizwan, and Hafeez, no other batsman was an automatic selection. 

Neither the ones selected, nor the ones dropped, made any case for themselves over the past two years.

Among all batsmen that have played T20Is for Pakistan in the past two years, all have similar mediocre records. 

Fakhar, Haider, Khushdil, Iftikhar, Maqsood, Sharjeel - none of them did any wonders to be selected. One can pick any three out of these and with Pakistan requiring middle / late order batsmen rather than openers, it probably made sense to pick Khushdil and Maqsood over the rest.

What doesn't make sense though is the inclusion of Asif Ali and exclusion of Shoaib Malik. For the latter, it seems that the selectors believe his time is up.  

I really do not understand why Asif keeps getting selected after failing over and over again at the international level.

Sure the PSL counts for something, but international performance should definitely be given more weight than PSL performance.

As for a reserve wicket keeper - Azam or Sarfraz - it really is a toss up. Go for the future, I guess; but is Azam Khan really the future?

All said and done, I feel that a batting order that reads Babar, Rizwan, Maqsood, Hafeez, Khushdil, Asif looks really strong on paper. 

I would have definitely liked Shoaib Malik in place of Asif (actually even a rabbit is better than Asif), but all one can do now is hope that Asif replicates his PSL form in international cricket.

Pakistan has gone for 3 spinners in Shadab, Imad, and Nawaz. All three are decent batsmen as well, giving Pakistan's lower order a good aggressive look.

However, the exclusion of Usman Qadir has raised some eyebrows, given that he has been Pakistan's best spinner in the past two years; that too by some distance.

Qadir's numbers are not easy to ignore. But I also understand that Shadab, when 100% and in full flow, is irreplaceable and playing two leg spinners is not really ideal. 

I'm sure it was a difficult decision to choose between the two, but there is no reason why both of them could not be in the squad. Qadir should have been in there in place of Nawaz in my opinion, as Imad is a sure starter.

We all love to hate Haris Rauf, but the fact is that he has been Pakistan's best bowler in T20Is for the past two years.

There is no difference in Rauf's and Shaheen's economy rate. And Wahab's is worse. Plus Rauf has a better average than both of them.

Not only has he been the best pacer for Pakistan in T20Is, he has also been the best pacer in the world in T20Is during this period.

Then why do we hate Haris Rauf? Maybe it is because of his ODI performance, which is quite poor. 

I think he deserves to play T20Is. He takes wickets and his economy rate is no different from some of the best pacers in the game.

So overall the squad is not all that bad.

The only change I would make is replacing Asif Ali with Shoaib Malik. However if the management believe his time is up, then replace Asif with Fakhar or Haider Ali. Either will be more effective.

Usman Qadir is a good to have, but if Shadab can regain his form then he will be just as potent as Qadir; not to mention the impact Shadab can make with the bat and in the field.

Pakistan plays 7 T20Is in the lead up to the WT20; 5 against New Zealand and 2 against England. That should give this squad enough time together in middle and should prepare them well for the big tournament.

20 Test Matches, 38 innings, 1189 runs, average of 31.28, three hundreds, six fifties.

This is Shan Masood's Test Career, which began 6 years and a few months ago. 6 years and only 20 test matches? Exactly!

These numbers don't provide a true picture of Shan Masood the test cricketer.

Having scored 75 on his debut, in October 2013, one would have expected to see Shan as a regular test opener for Pakistan, but after two tests in that series, he did not play for another year, till his return in October 2014 for two more tests.

Following that, he played 7 months later in July 2015 when he scored his first test century and became a part of Pakistan's test history with that record chase in Pallekele.

He played another two tests at the end of 2015, and then went to England with the Pakistan team in  the summer of 2016 but played only two of the four test matches.

After that tour he was sidelined again and returned a year later in May 2017 for one of the three tests in the West Indies. He played Pakistan's next two tests in October 2017, and then was sidelined once again till December 2018.

Since Shan Masood's test debut in October 2013 and his latest return to the test team in December 2018, Pakistan played 45 tests, out which Shan played only 12!

How can any player perform consistently if he plays only 2 to 3 tests every year? How can anyone expect a player to perform if he plays only 12 tests in the first 5 years of his career?

In these 12 tests, Shan scored 565 runs in 24 innings at an average of 23.54 with 1 hundred and 3 fifties.

Shan returned to Pakistan's test side in December 2018 for the tour to South Africa. Since then he has played all of Pakistan's 8 test matches.

In South Africa he stood out for his temperament and the way he countered the new ball against Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander, and Kagiso Rabada. Shan was Pakistan's top run scorer in that series and the second highest run scorer between both sides, behind only Quinton de Kock.

He went to Australia and continued to demonstrate immense skill countering the new ball. He gave a good account of himself against the best pace attack in the world comprising Starc, Hazlewood, and Cummins.

When Test cricket returned to Pakistan in December 2019, Shan Masood was there as Pakistan's first choice test opener. In that series, he marked his presence with a solid 135 in Karachi, in another record breaking test match.

Yesterday, Shan walked out to open against Bangladesh, in his 8th consecutive test match for Pakistan. When he walked back to the pavilion he had scored his third test century, and a second consecutive one!

Finally, he has had an interrupted run for over a year in Pakistan's test side and he is completely repaying the faith placed in him by the selectors and the team management.

In these 8 tests, Shan has scored 624 runs at an average of 44.57 with two centuries and three fifties.

In these 8 tests, he is Pakistan's second highest run scorer in Tests, behind only Babar Azam.

Now these numbers are more representative of a test opener, a regular Pakistan test opener. These numbers are also representative of a talented batsman who has been given a consistent run in the team.

Shan is Pakistan's first choice test opener now. Ahead of Imam Ul Haq, ahead of Fakhar Zaman, ahead of Abid Ali. He is a test regular and notably the one that Pakistan rely on the most after Babar Azam.

Shan had shown glimpses of this promise in his debut test innings (7 years ago), and again in that record partnership with Younis Khan in Pallekele (5 years ago). Perhaps he should have never been sidelined and maybe then he would have delivered on this promise much earlier.


But he has a lot to look forward to.

He is still only 30.

Pakistan will play plenty of test cricket going forward...

... and Shan Masood will be the first name on that team sheet for a long time to come.

As this year 2019 comes to an end, this decade is also drawing to a close.

This year belonged to Babar Azam. He played that one match winning ODI innings that will define him as a batsman for many years to come; he came into his own as a Test batsman ending the year with 3 centuries in 4 tests; and he ended 2019 as the only batsman in the top 6 of ICC's Batsman Rankings across formats.


This decade, however, was about the many accolades that Pakistan won across formats; the many memorable moments the team gave us despite all the turmoil that surrounds them.

We started the decade with Pakistan as the World T20 Champions; we are ending it with Pakistan as the number one ranked T20 team in the world.


We started the decade with Pakistan an average ODI team; we are ending it the same way. However in the middle of the decade, Pakistan toppled over the best in the business and won the ICC Champions Trophy.

We started the decade with Pakistan mesmerized by a new teen pace sensation; we are ending the decade with Pakistan mesmerized by a new teen pace sensation.


We started the decade with Misbah taking over as captain of the test team; we are ending the decade with Misbah taking over as Head Coach and Chief Selector of Pakistan's cricket team.

We started the decade with a season in Pakistan that had no tests played in the country; we are ending the decade with the country hosting its first test series in 10 years.

Following Pakistan cricket is no less than a roller coaster ride. The bumps, twists, and turns are aplenty, but it is the highs amidst all the lows that we all live for as there is no other feeling in this world that compares with that of the highs.

Here is my list of 10 of the greatest moments in Pakistan cricket that we witnessed over this past decade ... in chronological order ...

July 2010, Leeds
Pakistan vs Australia
Pakistan registered its first test victory over Australia in 15 years in a match they had no business winning! 1-0 down, a captain retired, a new captain in place, a young and inexperienced team, and Pakistan managed a test win as the world witnessed the emergence of a new left arm teen fast bowler from Pakistan who could have been the next big star ...


January 2012, UAE
Pakistan vs England
Up against the number one test team in the world and what does Pakistan do? Push them aside, clean sweeping them 3-0 winning each of the three tests in remarkable fashion on the back of Saeed Ajmal's and Abdur Rehman's heroics.


March 2012, Dhaka
Pakistan vs Bangladesh
Bangladesh were on course to win their first ever Asia Cup but the unlikeliest of heroes for Pakistan, Aizaz Cheema, delivered a near perfect last over of the Asia Cup Final to take Pakistan home by a margin of 2 runs!


November 2013, Port Elizabeth
Pakistan vs South Africa
Chasing 260 odd, South Africa required 20 off 18 deliveries with 6 wickets in hand. Hashim Amla, batting in the 90s, and JP Duminy were at the crease. Pakistan's magic was in the works as South Africa failed to chase handing Pakistan a 1 run win, which made them the first Asian side to win an ODI series in South Africa.


March 2014, Dhaka
Pakistan vs India
A close Pakistan vs India game is a thing of the past century and pretty much a myth for anyone born in the new millennium. But this game was closer than any in the past and it ended with not one but two sixes of the bat of Shahid Afridi when Pakistan required 10 runs to win off 5 deliveries with only their last wicket standing.


October 2014, UAE
Pakistan vs Australia
Pakistan's first test series win against Australia in 20 years! And it was quite an epic win with Australia outplayed in all departments in both the tests to give Pakistan a 2-0 series victory. I will always remember the series for Misbah Ul Haq's fastest test ton equaling Sir Viv Richard's 30-year old record (it has since been broken by Brendon McCullum).



July 2016, Lord's
Pakistan vs England
Another Misbah century, another test victory, but this one was special because of the push ups! What a celebration it was as the team paid tribute to the army jawaans who had helped train the boys in green for the tour.


May 2017, Dominica
Pakistan vs West Indies
Pakistan had never won a test series in the West Indies. This series was tied 1-1 and the third and final test was in its last few minutes with the West Indies having fought it out till the end! It was also the last test of Misbah's and Younis Khan's careers. The way it ended was simply fantastic with Yasir Shah picking up the final wicket of his final delivery of the match.


June 2017, The Oval
Pakistan vs India
After getting hammered by India in their opening game of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, Pakistan were down and out. However remarkable wins over South Africa and Sri Lanka, followed by an unlikely win over England in the semi final, resulted in Pakistan reaching the final. Up against India, whom they had barely beaten in recent times, Pakistan had a herculean task in front of them. But they lived beyond everyone's expectations on the back of Fakhar Zaman's hundred and Mohammed Aamir's wickets of India's top three.


June 2019, Edgbaston
Pakistan vs New Zealand
This was just epic. Not because Pakistan won and gave themselves an outside chance of qualifying for the semi finals of the ICC World Cup 2019. Not because Babar Azam scored a career defining and match winning hundred. Not because Aamir started proceedings by clean bowling Guptill. This was epic because of the Birmingham crowd, a 25,000 strong Pakistani crowd. This was by far the best crowd experience I have ever had at any sort of event. There is truly no sight better than an in-sync passionate and energized group of Pakistanis cheering on the boys in green.


By winning the Champions Trophy and the Test Mace in this past decade, Pakistan achieved a rare of feat of winning every single ICC trophy (U19, WC, WT20, CT) and the Test Mace. Nothing short of EPIC!


You can reminisce about this past decade with all these magical moments and think that it was fabulous, or you can think of all the disastrous ones and feel that it was a terrible decade.

That is Pakistan cricket for you, best defined by Nasser Hussain's quote of the decade "Pakistan cricket at its best. One minute down. Next minute up."

Sarfaraz Ahmed is gone.

His time as captain of Pakistan's national team across all three formats is over and for now his time as a player is over too!

While I was still trying to get my head around this decision, Pakistan's new and all powerful Chief Selector announced the Test and T20 teams for the tour to Australia, which left me even more perplexed.

My head is in a cross wire over all these changes and I am still trying to make sense of them.


CAPTAINCY CONFUSION

When the announcement came, the headline read "Sarfaraz Ahmed removed as Pakistan Captain from all 3 formats".

Azhar Ali was announced Test Captain, Babar Azam was announced T20 Captain, and a decision on the ODI captain was deferred till July 2020, which is when Pakistan plays its next ODI.

Within minutes, however, the article was updated:

So which one is it?

Has Sarfaraz been retained as ODI captain or has he been removed?

I still don't know.


WAS IT RIGHT TO REMOVE SARAFRAZ?

There is no easy answer.

Pakistan won the Champions Trophy under him two years ago.

They failed to qualify for the World Cup semifinals but only because of Net Run Rate. They ended the World Cup with 4 straight wins.

Pakistan have won their last 6 ODIs under Sarfraz.

Pakistan have been the number 1 ranked T20 team for two years under Sarfaraz. No Pakistan captain had a better record in T20s than him.

Considering all this, maybe he should have been retained.

But then you think about all those losses in ODIs against the top 8 teams. Besides the wins in CT2017, Pakistan barely registered any victory against the top 8 ODI teams under Sarfaraz.

You think about losing a first ever test series in the UAE, which had become Pakistan's fortress under Misbah Ul Haq.

You think about the clean sweep in the T20 series against a second string, albeit talented, Sri Lanka.

But even then was the captaincy strip warranted?

A closer look at Sarfaraz's captaincy record reveals this:

TESTS
13 matches | 4 wins | 8 losses | 1 draw
568 runs at 25.81 with 5 fifties

He looked out of depth as test captain.

His batting suffered.

While those numbers are not bad, they are not good enough for someone who wanted to bat in the top 6. For a number 7 WK they are also strictly okay. He was far better before he took on the captaincy and was averaging in the 40s.

ODIS
50 matches | 28 wins | 20 losses | 2 NR
804 runs at 32.2 and SR of 87.3 with 5 fifties

A W:L ratio of 1.4 is not bad.

However, a closer look at the wins shows that 17 out of 28 came against the top 8 ODI sides, out of which 8 wins were against Sri Lanka.

Out of the remaining 9 wins, 3 came on the trot leading to the Champions Trophy win.

Pakistan never looked like a world beating ODI team under Sarfaraz, except for that 1 week in 2017, however it wasn't all that bad either.

His own form too was alright. An average of 32 for a wicket keeper is fine in my opinion. He probably did not fit in the top 5 but at 6 or 7 he was fine.

He perhaps could have continued as ODI captain. Maybe he will. Who knows.

T20Is
37 matches | 29 Wins | 8 losses
521 runs at 27.4 and SR of 130.6

Someone who achieved these numbers did not deserve to be sacked.

Under Sarfraz, Pakistan won 11 consecutive T20 series, beating all teams in all sorts of conditions. They beat England, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, West Indies, Sri Lanka, and even a World XI.

Pakistan rose to the top of the International T20 Rankings and remained the number 1 T20 team for two years.

They still are the number 1 T20 team, despite the 3-0 loss to Sri Lanka.

Pakistan have won only 1 out of their last 6 T20 internationals, however after a string of wins across 11 successful series, the selectors should have been a bit more considerate.

While remaining as ODI captain is debatable, Sarfaraz surely did not deserve to be sacked as a T20 captain. Even his batting record was fine in T20s.

Sarfaraz was one of the most successful captains in the history of T20 cricket. The least the PCB could have done was give him a chance to lead the team in a World T20.




In my view, it was right to remove Sarfaraz as test captain and replace him with Azhar Ali. In fact, Azhar Ali should have always been test captain. It is quite unfortunate that Azhar was made ODI captain and did not get the test captaincy, after Misbah's retirement, because of his failure as an ODI captain.

Removing Sarfaraz as T20 captain is completely unjust. Sure Pakistan lost 3-0 to Sri Lanka but take a look at the 3 years before that. Does that count for nothing?

I wish Babar Azam all the success in the world - as a batsman and as Pakistan's T20 captain. But his time could have come later. Pakistan need his batting right now more than his captaincy.

Sarfaraz should have been the one to lead Pakistan in next year's World T20.

Pakistan are playing their first series since the World Cup, and while the results in ODIs were heartening, the team has been disastrous in the format in which they have been the top ranked side for some time now.

Before I talk about the series against Sri Lanka, I also want to take note of what happened during Pakistan's off season.

Pakistan got a new chief selector, they got a new head coach who is also the chief selector, got a new bowling coach too who is also the former head coach and former bowling coach, a new domestic structure was put in place, the newly designed Quaid-e-Azam Trophy kicked off, and as always there was an unlimited supply of drama, conjecture, and memes ... 

Misbah Ul Haq at the Helm ...Again!
For 7 years he ruled Pakistan cricket as captain. During that time, Pakistan's Test team reached unprecedented heights, but ODI and T20I cricket suffered like never before.

I feel the same may happen during his time as Head Coach. He is the best person for the job when it comes to Test Cricket, and given the start of the first ever World Test Championship, the timing could not have been more ideal for Misbah to take charge of Pakistan's Test Team.

But we also have two World T20 tournaments in the next two years, and for that I fear Misbah is perhaps not the right man to be coaching the team.

We can ignore ODIs for now as that is what all nations seem to be doing for the next two years.

Head Coach is also Chief Selector
Misbah is not only Pakistan's new Head Coach, he is also the new Chief Selector. This is the first time that anyone has been given this dual responsibility and it makes Misbah the most accountable person in Pakistan Cricket.

Not to mention the most Powerful too.

Pakistan, by all means, has become Misbah's team.

Only time will tell whether this dual role works or not, but in my view this structure has more merits than flaws.

Giving Misbah this dual role has taken away the blame game that has plagued Pakistan cricket for ages. Considering the close relationship between Captain and Coach, they will always get the squad that they want - which is great for Pakistan.

Waqar Younis is Back!
Again!? After several failed stints as head coach and bowling coach, Waqar is back as the new bowling coach of Pakistan. Not sure what Azhar Mahmood did wrong, neither sure of why we had to go back to Waqar rather than bringing in someone fresh.

Waqar has not had a good past as a coach. Pakistan has not had a good time with him as coach.

The only positive out of this is that Misbah and Waqar share a good working relationship.

Hopefully this time Waqar can focus on improving Pakistan's pacers and not worry about power struggles.

The New Domestic Cricket Structure
For 3 decades, Imran Khan has been voicing his opinion on how Pakistan's domestic cricket needs to be improved in order to achieve International success.

All these years, no one implemented Imran Khan's suggestions. But now that he is the Prime Minister, he can ensure that his plans are implemented.

The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan's premier first-class domestic competition, featuring 6 regional teams under the new structure kicked off. Imran Khan believed that this format will provide for more quality cricket and will develop better cricketers for international cricket.

I am not too sure that has happened. But what we have seen is a number of tons and big scores by batsmen!

On the opening day, Sami Aslam and Abid Ali cracked unbeaten double centuries. Salman Butt even followed it up with one. Ashfaq Ahmed from KPK has already hit 3 centuries in as many matches, including a 173! International Azhar Ali, Kamran Akmal, and Mohammad Rizwan have both knocked two centuries each. And a number of others have scored tons too including Imam Ul Haq, Shan Masood, Khurram Manzoor, Mohammad Nawaz, Asif Ali, Fawad Alam, Adnan Akmal, and several others.

No bowler has really stood out. Yasir Shah is leading the wicket tally, but he has leaked so many runs resulting in a 40+ average, which at domestic level is quite mediocre. The finger spinners, Zafar Gohar and Bilal Asif have better returns and are a wicket behind Yasir.

Rahat Ali is the only pacer with some decent returns, but I refuse to mention any thing more about him.

While batsmen continue to make merry in the domestic circuit, they have struggled big time against Sri Lanka - particularly in the T20s.

Series vs Sri Lanka
Pakistan's first ODI assignment after the World Cup was a cakewalk. Their main batsmen - Babar, Imam, Fakhar, and Haris - all scored runs. When Abid Ali got an opportunity, he showed why he should be a regular in the ODI XI. And Iftikhar Ahmed, who seems to be the replacement for Shoaib Malik/Mohammad Hafeez, displayed enough potential to get a longer run with the team.

Iftikhar was there at the end in both the games finishing off Pakistan's innings in style.

Pakistan put up a score and defended it, and they also chased one down. Both with quite some ease.

ODIs won 2-0. Job Done. All praise for new support staff and Pakistan who took their ODI winning streak to 7.

Considering this performance, the T20s should have been a walk in the park. After all Pakistan are the #1 T20 team in the World. They have won more T20s and more T20 series than any other team in the past 2-3 years. They have beaten all comers, easily and comprehensively.

Yet, a new look Sri Lanka side has thrashed them in the first two T20s.

Prodigal Sons Return
The T20 series started on the worst possible foot with the inclusion of Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal in the T20 squad.

I ignored it thinking that the presence of Babar, Fakhar, Haris, Asif Ali, Iftikhar, Nawaz, Imad, and the skipper Sarfraz would mean that Shehzad and Akmal will only warm the benches.

But no. They played. They played both T20s. They failed in both T20s.

What else was anyone expecting?

Shehzad and Akmal have been around for 10 years now, having made their International debut in 2009. This is enough time to realize that they will never fulfill the potential of their immense talent at this level. It is time to leave them forever in the domestic structure. It is fine, International cricket is not for them.

Had Pakistan invested this much time and  money in some other batsmen, they would be reaping the benefits by now.

I don't know what Misbah was thinking when including them in the squad and then in the playing XI. I don't know what Sarfraz was thinking when backing them. But at least we all know now that it is game over for them. Forever.

With Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez returning from the CPL and available for future T20 series, there will be no place for Shehzad and Akmal anyway.

Iftikhar is a good talent and he has shown in the 3 innings he has played so far that he is one for the long haul.

I hope Misbah has a better time when selecting and coaching the team for Australia !

It has been 60 hours since the World Cup final ended, and I am still reeling at the result. But I can't keep ranting about luck, whether bad or good, destiny, rules, karma, and all that ... I already had a good rant on Twitter.

Now it is time to take stock of what happened, get over it, and reflect on this ICC World Cup 2019.

Some thoughts, a lot of ramblings, in no particular order ...

The World Cup Overall
What a tournament! Congrats to the ICC on producing one of the best World Cups ever. For a long time I have maintained that my favorite World Cup was 1992. The fact that Pakistan won aside, it was the best format ever used and produced very exciting cricket with every result mattering.

2019 is right up there for me. Not a single dull moment (barring the washed out games with no reserve days). What fabulous entertainment. Every match mattered, every result mattered, every run mattered, every wicket mattered, and at the end even every boundary mattered!

The best!

The Final
England and New Zealand produced the best World Cup Final ever. Perhaps the best ODI match ever.

Kumar Dharmasena
I have no idea how he is among the top 2 umpires in the world. If his stats prove that he is, then he is surely like South Africa of the old, or India of the new, who perform all the time, but choke when it truly counts.

Pathetic performance in the semi final and final.

Chris Gayle
Sad to see such an icon of white ball cricket depart the World Cup stage without setting it on fire. The only time he performed perhaps kicked Pakistan out of the competition.

Shakib Al Hasan
Talk about rising to the occasion. He has forever been the world's number one allrounder in limited overs cricket. He has always performed for his team. But never has he shone like he did in this World Cup. Runs, wickets, he produced it all.

Player of the tournament for me.

India vs England
I have heard so many conspiracies about this one. India did not chase to screw Pakistan. India did not chase to make it easier for England to qualify for the semi finals. MS Dhoni did not chase to screw Pakistan because of his affiliation with the Indian army.

All bullshit in my opinion.

India is not as strong as everyone is making them out to be. Sure Dhoni's tactics seemed questionable but you know what? Even had he tried, India would not have been able to chase down that total! The semi final against New Zealand is proof of that. The entire World Cup is proof of that with only one successful 300+ chase.

Bangladesh
Quite a tournament they had. Their best World Cup to date, but still a long way to go before they become a consistent threat to the leading teams.

Afghanistan
Overrated, overzealous, overconfident, outspoken, underperformers.

Babar Azam
This was a coming of age tournament for him. He is only 24, mind you. He rose to the occasion and performed like Pakistan's most dependable batsman throughout the World Cup. That match winning century against the best bowling attack in the world was for me the innings of the World Cup.

No one else scored a 100 against New Zealand's attack like Babar did. Yes Bairstow did, but Ferguson did not play that match. No one else chased a total against New Zealand the way Babar did. He is a superstar.

ICC Rules
Require a major rethink.

Think about this: Never in the history of ODI cricket has a team been declared a winner after being bowled out in a run chase.

India
The new chokers of World Cricket? Two World Cup Semi Finals lost. Champions Trophy Final lost. World T20 Final lost. World T20 Semi Final lost. All this in the past 5 years.

This is probably outdoing South Africa's chokes!

Virat Kohli
The best batsman in the world, but his scores in the 3 ODI chokes mentioned above: 1, 1, 5. He seems out of depth as captain. Looks like he is just a shadow and Dhoni is doing all the captaining. I feel like he will struggle with captaining the side once Dhoni retires.

Jason Roy
My favorite batsman. I loved every bit of his batting this World Cup. I believe that he makes all the difference to this England team. Without him, they are not the same at all. He scores and England wins.

He failed against Pakistan; England lost.
He failed in the World Cup Final; England just about tied the match.
He did not play against Sri Lanka and Australia; England lost.

In all other games that England won comprehensively, Roy's scores: 54, 153, 66, 60, 85. It is quite remarkable that all of his 9 ODI centuries and 14 out of his 18 ODI fifties have resulted in wins for England.

South Africa
Forget choking, they just failed to arrive this time.

Mohammad Hafeez, MS Dhoni, Hashim Amla
Why didn't they announce their ODI retirements?

Lasith Malinga
Even with that belly he produced some manic fast bowling spells. Champion bowler.

Ben Stokes
What a performer! What a cricketer! This World Cup was a true redemption story for him. Dropped for World Cup 2015, taken apart by Carlos Brathwaite in World T20 Final 2016, failed against Pakistan in CT17 Semi Final, and now Man of the Match in the Final of ICC World Cup 2019.

Turnarounds can be magical! He also took the catch of the World Cup!

Australia
What does one say about a team that reaches the final four stage of a World Cup even with an average team. Eternal Champions.

Shaheen Afridi
Find of the tournament? No. He was found well before the tournament. He had a great start to his international career before he hit a stumbling block in matches leading up to the World Cup. He was quite off in his initial WC matches, but then turned it around like a champ.

He was super in Pakistan's last three matches and showed that he can be a true star for the greens!

Mitchell Starc
Almost 50 wickets in two World Cups. Bowlers have not reached that tally in 4 World Cups! He's superb and probably uses the yorker more effectively than any modern day fast bowler.

Also bowled the ball of the World Cup to Ben Stokes.

Martin Guptill
Must suck to be him right now. Poor guy had a terrible World Cup with the bat. And yet he was there needing to score 2 of the final ball of the World Cup to win it for New Zealand.

The best thing he did all World Cup was a throw that caught Dhoni out of his crease and propelled New Zealand to their second successive World Cup Final. And then in the Final, it was his throw that ... I don't even want to say it!

Sri Lanka
Performed way better than expected.

West Indies
Performed way worse than expected. To think some thought they may win this!

Trent Boult
He may have only heard that cricket can be such a leveler, till he experienced it. He caught a ball inches away from the boundary to help New Zealand beat West Indies - in hindsight that catch got New Zealand into the final four. In the World Cup Final, he caught the ball and stepped on the boundary - that lost NZ the World Cup.

He bowled at a phenomenal economy rate of 4.8 throughout the World Cup. But his last 2 overs of the World Cup went for 15 runs each!

Alex Carey
True find of the World Cup. Another champion cricketer produced by Australia. At the start of the World Cup I questioned why he was Australia's first choice wicket keeper. He answered that quite aptly with the bat on multiple occasions.

His stock rose so significantly that Australia promoted him to #5 in the Semi Final!

Pakistan
What does one say about them that hasn't already been said. Ricky Ponting put it best, it is Pakistan vs Pakistan. But undoubtedly, I reckon this was their best World Cup campaign this century and they were very unlucky not to qualify for the Semi Finals.

England vs Sri Lanka
Was it fixed like Rashid Latif alleged? Who knows. Maybe the ICC, the broadcasters and TV Channels, and ECB colluded to provide the World Cup with some impetus. Or maybe not, but games like this is why this format is the best for a World Cup. Made every match count after this one.

Mohammad Aamir
Another redemption story. Handful of wickets at an average of over 90 in the two years before the World Cup, and ended the World Cup as one of the leading wicket takers. Hopefully this is the start of some magical Aamir years with the ball.

Micheal Vaughan
Loved his tweets throughout the World Cup!

Jofra Archer
Another find of the World Cup. Never before has an England bowler shone like this at a World Cup. Only 24 and he is their leader. So much so that he was given the ball for the Final Super Over too. Superstar in the making.

Edgbaston, Birmingham
I have never experienced a crowd like that ever inside a stadium. I've been to cricket matches all over the world in the past 30 years; Edgbaston for Pakistan vs New Zealand was the absolute best!

Kane Williamson
What a Gentleman. What a Cricketer. What a Captain. What a Batsman. What a Human Being. And he is only 28! I wish he wins a World Cup. He made me question whether all that was luck or captaincy tactics that got New Zealand over the line every single time.

He deserved to lift the World Cup Trophy, and I hope that he lifts one in his career!

Sanjay Manjerekar
What a waste of space. If fan boys are allowed to be commentators, what about me? I hope I never have to listen to his voice ever again!

Lockie Ferguson
The world has a new express fast bowler!

Rishabh Pant
What was the fuss all about really? His List A average is 30. His ODI average is under 30. Why is he an ODI number 4? What was all the hype about?

New Zealand
I don't even know where to start. The Kiwis played with my emotions more than Pakistan did.

At first, I thought they did not deserve to be in the World Cup Semi Finals. I felt they were a below average side, had won against weaker teams, got lucky against average teams, lost to all the strong teams, and got lucky to get a free point against India.

Then, after they beat India in the Semi Final and the way they did it, I was turned. I was a fan. Kane Williamson had completely impressed me with his captaincy and calmness. Now I wanted them to win the World Cup.

And they would have had it not been for some really cruel shit. Forget about the rules and the super over and boundaries. That throw from Guptill ... sigh. How cruel can cricket be.

I was as sad for New Zealand as I have ever been for Pakistan. They did nothing wrong. Played the best cricket possible. Did not lose the Final, yet lost the World Cup. Tragic. Just Tragic!

England
If there is anything such as destiny, this is it. If there was ever a team destined for something, this is it. Congratulations to them for this World Cup win and for inspiring millions through their amazing turnaround story.

Kicked out of World Cup 2015 in the league phase, England planned to become team supreme in white ball cricket. The last 4 years was the build up, and this is their moment to cherish. They have been the world's leading ODI unit for over two years and now they have a World Cup trophy to show for it.

The players would be happy no doubt. But it is really the fans who will be cherishing this win more than anyone. Some of them have waited for 44 years to witness this day!

England finally have a World Cup trophy, but they still cannot say that they have won a World Cup Final!

My World Cup XI
Rohit Sharma, Jason Roy, Kane Williamson, Babar Azam, Shakib Al Hasan, Ben Stokes, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Lockie Ferguson, Jasprit Bumrah, Shaheen Afridi