Stani Army

With the Pakistan bowlers getting showered with compliments left right and center – many from those in the know such as Michael Holding and Paul Allott – the England Captain Paul Collingwood has interestingly expressed comments that would not exactly be in agreement with those expressed by the men above.

Confident or plain stupid?

Collingwood was quoted as saying: “I don’t want to go overboard on ‘these guys are the best thing since sliced bread’ – or Wasim Akram, or this, that and the other”, he went on: “I think they have got a lot of talent. But to say they’re the number one bowling attack in the world I would say was over the mark. They have come up in conditions recently where it’s done a fair bit”.

It’s interesting because it comes at around the same time that the Pakistan captain said in an interview to cricinfo that he believes that in Mohammed Aamer and Mohammed Asif, he has the best pace pair in the world. Add Umar Gul to the mix, who as statistics prove, is the best bowler in Twenty20, the form which is harshest on bowlers, then it’s not such a bad pace attack.

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As predicted, Chris Broad the match referee has sided with Australia after Ricky Ponting elbowed Mohammed Aamer on day one of the first Test. In a media release from the ICC, Broad said he has spoken to young Aamer explaining to him to keep out of the batsmen’s ‘personal space’.

Aamer turns away as Ponting puts out his elbow

The media release on the ICC website it states: “this was the second time in two matches that Aamer had made physical contact with a batsman”, which is absolutely incorrect. It is quite clear that Ponting made physical contact with Aamer on this occasion and not the other way around, so to suggest otherwise you would either have to be blind or deliberately biased. Apart from that clear injustice, there was no mention of Broad having a word with Ponting who was let off for elbowing an opponent on the cricket field. The Pakistanis will obviously not do anything about it because of their inferiority complex, and will continue being too bloody nice for their own good. Even a simple statement from Captain Shahid Afridi telling Ponting to act his age would suffice and would show him that he is not a law unto himself.

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As Mohammed Aamer dismissed Ricky Ponting on day one of the first Test at Lord’s, there was a coming together of the two players which may be brushed off as just nothing by some. But, here on Stani Army, it does rile us when the spirit of cricket is not upheld and especially in the MCC Spirit of Cricket series. The manner in which Shane Warne tried to justify Ponting’s actions on commentary was disgraceful but it was to be expected. Had it not been for the camera angle from behind Ponting, we would not have clearly seen Ponting put out his elbow as Aamer ran past. Then Ponting’s got the nerve to complain to the umpire when he walks off? Yet there is the old tactic of influencing the umpire, something which Shane Warne can tell you all about as influencing the umpire was one of his variations along with the leg-break, the top spinner and the flipper.

Ricky Ponting and Shane Watson demonstrate their childishness

Ponting was clearly frustrated at not being able to get bat on to ball as Aamer mesmerized, yet Ponting could learn a great deal from his vice-captain Michael Clarke, who clashed with Aamer in the 2nd Twenty20 but accepted Aamer’s apology with good grace. Whilst Ponting has built himself a certain reputation in cricket, there is a side to him that is not so immendiately obvious. Back in December 2009 when Chris Gayle and Shane Watson had their falling out

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You’d think it was impossible for something negative to come out of Sachin Tendulkar’s brilliant World Record 200 not-out, but it seems to have started slanging matches everywhere. Pakistan versus India, Tendulkar versus Anwar, Tendulkar versus Bradman…Ponting, and the rest. For Tendulkar’s fans, it was proof he’s the greatest, for his critics, proof that he’s just an accumulator of runs.

There is no doubt that these comparisons with other cricketing greats would have been made as the record went but what is the need to bring one great down in the name of the other? Those that do, have to seriously reconsider their adherence to this sport. Certainly, even those with the burden of responsibility such as cricinfo.com, have erred when it comes to not adding fuel to the fire by describing the achievement as having “eclipsed” Saeed Anwar’s 194. They also happened to have ignored Charles Coventry’s 194* in this instance, demonstrating an undercurrent of an India/Pakistan clash of bragging rights.

The fact that so many are turning this into an Indo-Pak battle shows the mindset of many. You would wonder what these people would do if Saeed Anwar wasn’t Pakistani and Sachin Tendulkar wasn’t Indian. No doubt they’d find something to argue about.

Tendulkar’s critics maintained that his record was on a flat track and a small outfield, and Anwar’s was against the big rival Indian, in India. His supporters respond by saying Anwar needed a runner (he was unwell, so this makes it easier?), and that Tendulkar done it against a better bowling attack and remained not out

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The stupidity of Shahid Afridi’s actions was profound, there is no question. As if the two whitewashes hadn’t caused us fans enough embarrassment, Afridi had to compound it by taking a bite out of the ball with as much subtlety as that spectator’s tackle on Khalid Latif. By the way, everyone’s talking about security in Pakistan, what happened here Cricket Australia?

Captains take a bite. Maybe there was something wrong with the Australian food?

Afridi was being touted for captain in the Test and ODI formats and I would not have minded. He made a good case with his recent performances and showed signs of maturity but his actions here have got me wondering if he really has matured. Yes, every team probably does it Shahid, but I doubt they use their teeth and make it so blatantly obvious. He may as well have gone up to umpire Asoka De Silva and asked to use his dentures. And when quizzed on Pakistani television

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Dr Kamran Abbasi has posted his latest article on cricinfo and it has provoked a lot of debate. The article is very critical of Mohammad Yousuf’s captaincy. His articles are usually very balanced yet this, which comes across as an emotional outburst, is a fair bit different from his usual posts. I don’t usually like posting long articles but I felt this was an important issue so do bear with me.

Result! My stock’s risen and I didn't even play!

As Pakistan supporters, we’re all frustrated and upset by the meek manner in which our team has surrendered to an Australian side that runs more on mental toughness than it does cricketing skill. Yet, to blame Mohammad Yousuf’s captaincy for the situation our team currently finds itself in is quite unfair. Dr Abbasi has been an outspoken supporter of Younis Khan as captain in the past and maybe his overly harsh criticism of Yousuf this time has something to do with this.

Yousuf has taken over at a difficult time with very little captaincy experience. We mustn’t forget that it was Younis who chickened out of the tours to New Zealand and Australia. Maybe he knew that staying in the background while Pakistan lose in Australia would make him look a better captain. Sadly, through the eyes of some it has.

It is extremely difficult to set fields or captain when your players cannot do the basics in the field or their job with the bat. A captain is only as good as his players. Until the last innings, Ponting hadn’t done much, he even made the mistake of batting first in the 2nd Test, but he’s soon going to find himself as the winning captain in a 3-0 series whitewash. Why? Because he could rely on his players. Yousuf, on the other hand, had nothing to fall back on. Nobody questioned Yousuf’s captaincy in New Zealand. Nobody questioned Yousuf’s captaincy in the 1st innings of the second Test. The difference was that the players were performing to some degree

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