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 !

The last time Pakistan won the Test, ODI, and T20I series on the same tour was during the 2011-12 season when they defeated Sri Lanka in the UAE, and then Zimbabwe and Bangladesh on tour. It took four years for Pakistan to repeat the feat and notch up a rare successful tour of Sri Lanka, after 9 years, winning a total of 7 international games - 2 Tests, 3 ODIs, and 2 T20Is.

Another rare achievement for Pakistan was winning the three bilateral series under different captains. Pakistan is not accustomed to having different captains for different formats, yet it seemed to be no hindrance to team spirit as Misbah, Azhar Ali, and Afridi led Pakistan's outfits to historical wins across the three formats in Sri Lanka.

One more interesting fact from this tour is that Pakistan sealed each series with a SIX! Misbah launched Jehan Mubarak over long on to complete Pakistan's record chase in the 3rd test; Shoaib Malik hoicked Sriwardana over midwicket in the 4th ODI to take Pakistan to an unassailable 3-1 lead in the ODI series; Imad Wasim smashed Binura Fernando over long on to complete Pakistan's dramatic 1 wicket win in the second T20I.

I wonder if that has ever happened before.

I also wonder when was the last time that Pakistan's batting, bowling, and fielding all fired collectively in a series. Probably not since the 1992 World Cup Final! ;)

THE FIELDING

Before coming to Pakistan's batting and bowling, their fielding deserves a mention.

The way the Pakistanis picked up their fielding on this tour was a revelation. Never before has Pakistan looked like the better fielding unit in any series. Runs were defended and catches were taken, with some so good that it was hard to believe that it was a Pakistani fielder athletically diving across the turf and getting his hands wrapped around the ball.

It was a sight!

Anwar Ali and Mohammad Rizwan have shown that they right up their with the best fielders in the world at the moment.

THE BATTING

The batting on this tour also shone like it hasn't in the recent past.

There was the record chase in the 3rd test; a 300+ total in the 3rd ODI; successful chases of 250+ in the 1st and 4th ODIs; a 175 run total in the 1st T20I; and a record chase of a 170+ target in the 2nd T20I.

Where there was a classic match winning inning from the experienced Younis Khan in the 3rd test, there was also a maiden century in a match winning cause from a novice like Shan Masood. Where there was strengthening of test credentials by Azhar Ali with yet another test hundred, there were monumental knocks by Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed that won Pakistan a match after a familiar batting collapse.

ODI openers, Azhar Ali and Ahmed Shehzad, fired more often than not; and when they didn't the middle order comprising Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed, and Mohammad Rizwan cruised the ship comfortably.

Anwar Ali finally came of age and showed that he has the abilities of being an allrounder in both ODIs and the T20s. Shoaib Malik ensured that his comeback was not a flash in the pan and made his presence count in the middle order in every innings in the ODIs and T20s. Umar Akmal also repaid the faith his T20 captain had in him by showing the world his range of shots and ability in the 1st T20I. Imad Wasim also displayed allround abilities.

And then there was Shahid Afridi, doubted by so many, who led the charge in the second T20 and showed the world that he still has it in him to smash the ball to all parts of the park.

THE BOWLING

While Yasir Shah single handedly destroyed Sri Lanka in the Tests and mesmerized viewers by bringing back the shining art of leg spin to Pakistan's test ranks after half a decade, Imran Khan and Rahat Ali also produced some awe inspiring spells.

Rahat Ali translated his test success to ODIs by displaying wicket taking ability, while Anwar Ali produced economical spells with the new ball and also picked up wickets, which he was failing to do in the past. Imad Wasim showed composure with his left arm spin and was the most difficult bowler to get away.

Both Anwar and Imad are valuable additions to Pakistan's limited overs attack, particularly because of their ability to strengthen the lower order batting.

*               *               *

Rarely does a tour end with Pakistan achieving all the goals it set out to achieve.

Misbah wanted a test series win in Sri Lanka to take Pakistan back to number 3. Azhar wanted an ODI series win to ensure Pakistan a place in the Champions Trophy. He also stated that Pakistan would sweep Sri Lanka 2-0 in the T20s with Afridi wanting a strong showing leading up to his swansong in India next year.

There is much to rejoice about Pakistan's performance on this tour to Sri Lanka. It has been one of their most successful tours in recent history. Their Test and T20 performances resulted in a rise in the rankings where Pakistan now sit pretty at number 3 in both formats, while their ODI performance ensured a place in the Champions Trophy.

With the T20 series shared between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, all eyes are now on the ODI series that begins on 7th June.

Finally!

The game had been played out while I was in mid-air so I had no idea what went down till I checked the scorecard.

321. Brilliant!

Umar Akmal century. Aswesome!

Off only 70 odd deliveries. That's how he plays. Must have been one hell of an innings to watch.

Mohammad Yousuf and Misbah returned to the middle order. Why in the world?

Imran Nazir returned to the international fold. Finally!

Fawad Alam dropped. WHY!?

Rao Iftikhar took 5 wickets. You got to be kidding me!

The series has been lost so this was nothing more than a face-saving win for Pakistan but atleast they opened their account in what has been their worst tour to Sri Lanka in history.

Besides that, it was also good that Pakistan managed to win convincingly.

The biggest plus point though was that Pakistan won on the back of Umar Akmal's innings.

There are very few things more heartening than witnessing a young promising cricketer making his mark in international cricket.

I've been saying for some time now that Umar is Pakistan's future. Pakistan have blooded him at the perfect time and it will do them a lot of good if they continue to persist with him in the middle order.

After this innings, he is surely here to stay.

Now if only Pakistan can ask Misbah to leave his ODI colors and play Fawad Alam consistently in the middle order.

The win might have come too late in the tour, but I do believe that Pakistan is moving in the right direction.

Time is all they need, time is all that I have asked for.

Throughout the test series they strangled Sri Lanka's batsmen; so much so that the Lankans did not get past 300 even once in the 3 tests, till the final innings of the series.

It has been Pakistan's batting that has let them down on more than one occasion on this tour.

They collapsed in heaps in the tests; they couldn't chase an average total in the 1st ODI; and they fell like nine pins in the 2nd ODI.

For the one time that Pakistan's batsmen put up a fight, show some courage and aggression, and knock down a total that should have won them the game...

Their bowlers failed!

I didn't watch the 3rd ODI today but after reading "you really felt they had a chance but some poor field placing, average fielding and indifferent bowling cost them", on Cricinfo's ball-by-ball, I couldn't help but feel helpless!

The one aspect that Pakistan had done well in throughout this tour, the bowling, failed to live up to its potential on the one day that it finally got support from the batting.

I can't even begin to imagine what poor Younis Khan will be going through.

The man who was considered as the one who would take Pakistan cricket out of a crisis, the man who led them to a World Cup title not too long ago, now stands to gain the dubious distinction of going winless on a tour of Sri Lanka.

I highly doubt Pakistan has ever had a worse tour to the island.

Here's the particular excerpt from the post that I'm talking about.

Despite suggesting Yousuf's and Misbah's ouster from the ODI team, I certainly did not expect Younis Khan to actually do that.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Pakistan make the changes I thought they should.

In my view, it was the right decision.

The desired result was not achieved as Pakistan collapsed to 168, but at least the effort to blood young and promising talent at the expense of tried and tested seniors, who keep failing, was there.

Both Fawad Alam and Umar Akmal have done more than enough at the domestic level and A-team tours to command a place in Pakistan's middle order.

Their failure today should be looked at with one eye on the future. One failure should not be their judge; actually even a few failures should not be.

Yousuf and Misbah are not going to be around for too long; this is the best time to provide opportunities to their prospective long term replacements.

Both Fawad and Umar need to be given more chances in the remaining ODIs to prove that they belong at this level.

They are Pakistan's future.

Fawad has already shown what he is capable of in his debut test; while Umar's recent form coupled with a few of his boundaries this morning are enough to suggest the potential he has.

I believe they will come good for Pakistan very soon. For that to happen though, they need to be persisted with.

Play them in the remaining ODIs, take them to the Champions Trophy, give them the confidence, and let them settle into the groove of international cricket.

If Younis Khan is the kind of captain I think he is, then there is no reason why he would not do the above.

Even Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal are part of that when they are not opening.

Then how does a new and upcoming promising batsman like Umar Akmal make his way into the side?

It is not easy but at times tough decisions need to be taken.

The names mentioned above are big ones; most of them senior and experienced cricketers who have served Pakistan for a long time.

But when things are not going right, something has got to give. Pakistan cannot keep hanging on to these tried and tested players just for the sake of seniority.

Misbah's ODI form has been patchy for a long time now; Mohammad Yousuf's brief absence actually gave Pakistan a much better balanced ODI outfit.

Then why is Pakistan hell bent on continuing with these batsmen?

Particularly when someone like Umar Akmal is waiting for his chance.

Umar has been in awesome form and this is the best time to give him a taste of international cricket.

In his last 6 first class and List A games against Australia A and Sri Lanka A, Umar has smashed 4 centuries.

Form like that cannot be ignored; moreover his exuberance and aggression can do Pakistan a lot of good, especially when the current middle order is failing to fire.

Come to think of it, it should not even be such a hard decision to take.

If Younis Khan is thinking 2011 then he should not be thinking of Yousuf and Misbah as a part of those plans. I believe it is time for Yousuf and Misbah to concentrate on test cricket and be told that there was no longer a place for them in the ODI team.

That way Umar Akmal can come into the middle order; as can Shoaib Malik with either one of Nasir Jamshed or Imran Nazir partnering Kamran Akmal at the top.

Pakistan should not repeat the same mistake they did with Fawad Alam by keeping Umar on the bench for two years before giving him a proper chance.

Umar Akmal has got to play tomorrow!

Everything from the chest x-ray at the airport to the customs, the cab ride, and the DLR train ride, have been smooth sailing.

The weather was a bit fickle but not something that made me think "why am I here?".

However, the fact that there was no coverage of the 1st ODI between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, made me think that!

Can you believe that?

I mean this is England, the "home of cricket", and a cricket series is not being covered on TV.

Sure the Ashes are going on and all of England is busy following that, but that does not mean that they ignore all the other cricket being played.

The Ashes are being shown in the UAE and Pakistan and India, then why isn't the Pakistan vs Sri Lanka series being shown here?

With that shock, I was given another when I opened the scorecard of the 1st ODI on Cricinfo.

I was shocked to see that Pakistan had won the toss and chosen to field first.

I was shocked to see that after having Sri Lanka down at 131-6, Pakistan let them get to 232.

I was shocked to see that Muralitharan smashed 32 off only 15 deliveries.

I was shocked to see that Shoaib Malik opened the batting.

So let me understand this; Malik does not open in the tests and a debutant in Fawad Alam is thrown at the deep end. Then when Fawad does well, he is pushed back down the order, while Malik is sent to open.

Does anybody see the logic in this?

And if this was the plan then why have Nasir Jamshed and Imran Nazir in the squad.

The failure of Malik, Yousuf, Younis, and Misbah did not shock me.

What did though was that Umar Gul and Mohammad Aamer put on 62 runs for the 9th wicket in only 43 deliveries!

Come to think of it, it was a match for the tails.

Both Sri Lanka's and Pakistan's last 4 wickets added 101 runs to the total.

When are the batsmen from both sides going to put their hands up to be counted?

It is high time!

For the batsmen to fire and for England to somehow get this series on TV!

The problem I'm talking about is the one regarding the selection of the playing XI for the upcoming ODIs against Sri Lanka.

With the return of the ICL rebels into the international fold, Pakistan's 16 man squad looks very strong on paper.

I believe the squad provides Younis Khan with a lot of options; he and the team management have a lot of thinking to do.

Will it be the specialists, Imran Nazir and Nasir Jamshed? Will it be Kamran Akmal who had a great impact in the position during the World T20? Or will Fawad Alam continue in his new found role?

With Yousuf's return, the middle order seems packed with him, Younis, Misbah, Malik, Afridi, Akmal, Razzaq; will Fawad continue to be ignored?

Will he continue in the lower order where he has batted in ODIs for the last 3 years? Will he be used as a floater? Or will he come up the order where he rediscovered his batting form during the World T20?

With Yousuf out, Pakistan had the luxury to play with 6 bowling options; with Yousuf back, will they revert to using Malik as the 5th bowler? Or will Misbah or Malik make way for Yousuf?

Razzaq has not played an ODI for over two years now; does he still have a place in the team? If specialist openers are used with Malik, Afridi, and Akmal in the lower order then where does Razzaq fit in?

There are just some of the questions that Younis Khan and Co. should be looking to answer.

They better be thinking about it.

I surely am and I have still not been able to figure out what the best XI should be.

I always prefer to have 6 bowling options in ODIs; 5 is too big a risk in my view.

At the same time, I am extremely excited about watching a potentially explosive opening pair in Imran Nazir & Nasir Jamshed.

However, if that happens it would leave only 5 bowling options considering that Younis, Yousuf, Misbah, Malik, Afridi, and Akmal are almost garanteed a spot in the XI.

Unless Younis considers himself as the 6th option, which he should going by the way he bowled in the tests.

3 pacers? Or Saeed Ajmal and 2 pacers? If Ajmal plays then does Razzaq still make the team as the 2nd pacer?

See the problem I'm talking about. I think it has been a while since Pakistan faced so many options with the selection of an XI.

This is the XI I would look to play.

Q's XI: 1. Imran Nazir 2. Nasir Jamshed 3. Shahid Afridi 4. Younis Khan 5. Shoaib Malik 6. Fawad Alam 7. Abdul Razzaq 8. Kamran Akmal 9. Umar Gul 10. Mohammad Aamer 11. Saeed Ajmal.

Though I don't think that will happen. There is no way Younis Khan will drop Yousuf and / or Misbah.

I believe he should.

It has been brought to my notice that you have announced the Pakistan squad for the ODIs against Sri Lanka.

As always, you have surprised me; both pleasantly as well as otherwise.

Firstly, I would like to congratulate you on finally putting Salman Butt out of his misery. You have done yourselves proud and I am sure that the entire country is unanimously happy with this decision of yours.

Even moreso because this brings Imran Nazir back into the fold!

We all just love him, don't we?

Although I feel that he is more of a T20 batsman, but anyone instead of Salman Butt is a welcome change.

You have also done well in maintaining your faith in Nasir Jamshed.

I understand that it is not your fault that he has had several injury problems in recent times; it is clear to me that he is your first choice ODI opener and I am glad to see this continuity.

But where is Ahmed Shehzad?

He had a good debut ODI series against Australia and now he is off the radar and doesn't even find himself a place as a reserve opener?

Why?

But coming back to the good things, I was pleased to see Umar Akmal's name in the 16-man squad that you announced.

That really made me feel good.

I had been talking about Umar's outstanding performances for Pakistan A during their tour to Australia; I had also mentioned that his inclusion in the Pakistan team was not far off.

This time you exceeded my expectations by inducting him in the senior side so quickly.

Great work!

But then where you guys display great decisions, you also display some strange ones.

Why is Rana Naveed back in the team?

When he was dropped two years ago he was clearly out of form and not even close to the kind of bowler he was during that India tour in 2005-06.

His bowling had become wayward, he had lost his swing, he had lost his hair, and he looked more like a club bowler.

So what has changed since then? Why are we going back to him?

Where is Sohail Tanvir? Where is Sohail Khan? Where is Mohammad Talha? Where is Anwar Ali?

Why didn't you guys look to blood a promising, young, upcoming fast bowler instead of Rana?

Overall, however, I believe you have given Younis Khan a very good squad. It is up to him now to find the best XI and take them on to the field.

I feel it will be a difficult task chosing an XI from the squad, but that is something for another post.

Yours Faithfully,

Q.

vs UAE: 6.3-1-22-5
vs Pakistan: 10-0-47-4

ODI Career: 40.3-3-163-12

Shane Warne, Muttiah Muralitharan, Anil Kumble - move over. All your records are going to be broken by this man.

Give him 10 years, and as long as his fingers stay intact, he will break all bowling records - tests and ODIs.