Pakistan ODI and Test Squads: Striking the right balance

Recently there has been great debate around cricket circles regarding the distinct separation of One-day and Test squads, and several successful teams in international cricket have understood the importance of striking the right balance in each form of the game. The Aussies were the first to adopt this concept with England, South Africa and India following suit.

Unfortunately, Pakistan has never been able to work out the right kind of team to field in the longer version of the game. The comments of Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis at the toss in the first test against South Africa in Durban summed up the entire problem. He said that the Pakistanis were fielding a one-day sort of of squad, to allow the selectors to decide the players to be selected in the World Cup. That was a ridiculous statement to make, to my mind enough chances had been afforded to the players to stake their claims for the World Cup squad in the ODI's before this test series. Had this logic been in force elsewhere, would we have seen Australia dropping Steve Waugh for the final two Ashes tests just to give their one-day players a go? Surely, the most ridiculous move possible.

The first problem needing a solution is that of the all-rounder. In the one-day game a person is considered to be a handy all-rounder if he can chip in with both bat and ball, something Razzaq and Afridi do quite well. However, Test cricket is a game of specialists, and the stubbornness on the part of the team management to keep inducting Razzaq in the team is mind-boggling.

If one takes a look at the Australian side, they go in with six specialist batsmen, a keeper and four strike bowlers. All-rounders of the like of Shane Watson and Ian Harvey are not included because they do not play an effective role in either department.

South Africa similarly drop Klusener, only including Kallis, who can definitely earn his place in the side as a technically solid frontline batsman. The problem with playing Razzaq is that neither he nor the captain are sure of what role he is to play. He bowls very few overs as he is not quick enough to rattle the batsmen, and merely does a containing job when he is brought on. In Test cricket you need to bowl the opposition out twice to win, and containing is not the order of the day.

It was shocking to see Mohammed Zahid left out for the first test after having an excellent warm-up match. With the bat, Razzaq is not competent enough to be classified as a frontline batsman, and is merely there to cover up for the collapse of the top order. If the specialist batsmen cannot cope with the firepower of the opposition bowling one fails to see how the likes of Razzaq are expected to deliver.

The wicket-keeper's position is also of prime importance, and I am glad to see sanity prevail, picking Kamran Akmal as the keeper for test matches, even if it was brought about due to Rashid Latif's retirement. Rashid Latif has been an excellent servant for Pakistan, but one feels his best is behind him. Kamran Akmal is a far better batsman and is almost equally as competent with the gloves. He should also be picked as Pakistan's keeper for the World Cup, as his batting ability lends great balance to the one-day outfit. Moin Khan, in my opinion, will have to be left out, as he has not been playing international cricket for quite a while, and inducting him into such a major event will be a huge risk.

In my opinion the combinations for each format of the game should be as follows:-

The reason that I believe Saeed Anwar should not be inducted for tests is not for any lack of ability but as he is nearing the end of his career its time to blood in new youngsters. However, in the World Cup he is desperately needed for his experience at the top of the order, so he is my certain choice in the ODI line-up.

Shoaib Akhtar, if fit, commands an automatic place in either line-up, but in his absence in South Africa Mohammad Zahid must be inducted in the squad.

The dilemma however remains: who to have as Saeed Anwar's opening partner in the World Cup? Saleem Elahi is the better proposition no doubt, but Pakistan also desperately need the cushion of a sixth bowler in the line-up, in the form of Afridi. Other players being virtual certainties, the management will have to take this tricky decision. Personally, I would prefer to see Shahid Afridi in the squad as he lends the side greater balance, but expecting him to mature by the World Cup, is possibly asking for too much. Such problems of course are part and parcel with Afridi, a match winner one-day, a nonsensical player the next.

Opinions of others may differ from mine, but in my opinion this is the way to go for the Pakistan side in the near future.