Pakistan saw at least two vital and easy dismissals drop out of their hands thanks to shoddy wicket-keeping from Kamran Akmal. Andrew Strauss’s straightforward caught-behind chance in the fifth over could have proved much costlier than it did. The second chance that he missed was one of the easiest stumping opportunities one can recall. Here, Paul Collingwood had walked such a long way down the crease that had Kamran caught the ball in the second attempt, even then he would have been able to knock the bails off. However, it was not to be and so a vital chance to break England’s best partnership came and went. Collingwood was on 48 then and he is still batting on 77 while Pakistan continue their search for a breakthrough.
This is not the first time Kamran Akmal’s ‘keeping has cost Pakistan so heavily. Who doesn’t remember Sydney 2010? Is Kamran’s experience and batting prowess really so important for Pakistan that he cannot be replaced by another ‘keeper? Should he play as a specialist batsman? And if he is replaced then by who?
Pakistan need to find answers to these questions fast or the series will slip out of their hands…
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ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!!
Get rid off Akmal’s Brothers. They both are useless. You can always find better players then them in the country, if PCB spend time to look for. All they do is give 10 – 30 runs, per match and when they out they pretend that they shouldnt be OUT and such a silly faces. They got Omar cause he was Kamran’s brother. I can’t believe that country’s cricket board DON’T put efforts to look for talent and cry about the results. Here is Kamran’s problem, he has small hands cause of his body structure and get grip the ball. You always look for medium build keeper or taller so thier hands will be bigger & coordinate well ball easy. WHY CANT PCS understand this basic observation.
Akmal should be dropped. Even Gul and Amir are becoming more dependable batsmen. As for the rest of the team, Fawad should replace Farhat (better fielder and should be given a chance as a batsman) and Younis should replace Malik and should be moved to 2 down. If they insist on keeping Malik, they should atleast put him somewhere where he can provide support to Azhar Ali and Umer Amin, so he should play at 2 down.
Kamran Akmal should be replaced by some one else i.e best available in the country for test matches
His brother i.e Umar Ukmal should also be replaced by the Younis Khan for test team. Because both think that they are best for all formats of cricket. But both are performing nothing for team in Test Matches now a days. I think presence of a senior batsman like Younis Khan will make the middle Order batting some strength.
SAME OLD FACES, SAME OLD STORIES…
he drop catches in almost every game still he remains in the team, does anybody have any stats regarding avarage catches dropped by him ?
Kamran Akmal Conservative estimates suggest he has dropped at least 15 catches off him (Danish Kaneria) over the last three years as well as missing a handful of stumpings. Michael Hussey was dropped thrice in the Sydney Test on his way to a fighting, unbeaten 73, each time by Akmal off Kaneria. Had he held on to even one, the Test might not be going into a fourth day.
And so it carries on and on…………
The last i read the stats for kamran akmal + danish kaneria, the stats said around 35 wickets had gone down by his wicket keeping. I think Cricinfo highlighted those stats. So well, kaneria would be 290 wickets if not because of our amazing wicket keeper. Imagine, how disheartened he would be due to this yet in a country full of aspiring cricketers we have picked the worst.
nobody has ever been given this many chances but this short man who is short of many talents! Just when team Pakistan seemed to have started to win, this chap began making things worst. He doesn’t deserve to be the wicketkeeper of Pakistan. We have seen great men behind stumps like Moin and Rashid but this man is simply not the kind Pakistan would love to see behind stumps if they want victory. It’s time to call in Sarfaraz for the rest of the matches. What is the point of having him in the side when he is not performing with either bat or gloves?
I think the fielding within the Pakistan team is very poor. For many years we are told the team is concentrating on its catching and other aspects of fielding as part of their practice sessions. However no improvement has been made. Kamran Akmal needs to lose some weight and become leaner. In the next test he should be replaced as he is costing our side lots of runs, the difference between winning and losing. We should rely on a specialist wicket-keeper who makes less runs but makes far fewer mistakes. The other players like Imran Farhat, who dropped a very easy catch at slip also need to work on their fielding. Unfortunately we got carried away by Pakistan winning the 2nd Test against Australia to level the series and were taking about rewards for the players. The management needs to stop giving the players such financial rewards on the basis of one test match and make sure players improve their all round performances for the national side on a long-term basis.
please PCB get rid of kamran akmal . he is not fit for keeper. i would suggest better to drop both
the brother from the test side. i do not understand why kamran akmal not playing as a opening batsman
as before he open the inning.
call both yusuf and yunus immediately to avoid shame defeat in remaining test matches.
Well said the guys whose fault it was they are in the team and Younis is still out…….Yousuf reported the incident and he is also thrown out….what is wrong with the selectors…………they should keep in mind that Young Guns cannot always do it you need some seniors in the team and speciall seniors like Younis & Yousuf………PCB Please thinks once again and bring both back on the side………..this will make the middle order more stronger……Umar & Kamran should only play T20 and one days……..why not give another keeper a try what about Asim Kamal…….
I totally agree, keep Akmal brothers and shoaib malik for T20 and One day format, Pakistan should tru out a young and telented wicket keeper who has temprament for Test cricket and groom him or if possible more than one keeper for Test match.. keep seperate palyers for Test and oneday/T20………otherwise T20/Oneday players will keep playing test as if they need to finish it in few hours…..
Kamran’s keeping not only costs Pakistan additional runs but also dishearten and frustrate our bowlers which in turn relieve pressure on the opposition’s batsmen resulting in more additional runs being scored. His basic function is “wicket keeping”, if he can’t do it he must go! Pakistan need a more competent wicket-keeper.
Moreover, Umar Akmal is not firing either. In his last 7 test innings he has managed to score 83 runs only at about 12 runs per innings. Interestingly, Mohammad Aamir has also scored 83 runs in his last 7 test innings and also took 17 wickets. Umar Akmal is rapidly losing his relevance and credibility as a test batsman.
unfortunately the game of cricket has been so much politicised in pakistan.i believe we can get rid of people like kamran akmal ,imran farhat ,shoaib malik
Ejaz butt an incompetent PCB chairman. he has destroyed careers of younis and yousaf and continues to give chances to shoaib malik and batsmen like imran farhat.
I think Butt should take charge and drop both the brothers in the upcoming tests. Today we get carried away with names, in the Imran Khan era he had talented players like Qassim Omar and Saeed Anwar but they were not part of the playing eleven and still Pakistan won matches.
the problem is that he is not the only one performing poorly. Apart from few seamers in the squad, the spinners, batsmen and the keeper are all not mentally or physically fit at the moment.
earnest efforts are required to groom them or bring in new talent and groom them. I strongly believe the management sitting above have no vision or plan layed out for up lifting the team, their performance is sporadic and their body language tells us alot.
I am an Indian but a keen follower of Pak cricket. I fully agree that wicket keeping is a specialist job and Kamran Akmal does not fit in that category. Over a period of time, it is clear that his keeping is sloppy and unsure. A new keeper should be given a chance to perform. PCB which has made a laughing stock of itself in the entire cricketing fraternity, continues to patronize him. The Chairman is the biggest stumbling block in Pak cricket’s development. No other country’s Board Chairman is present on almost all its matches except Ejaz Butt. He is staying on thanks to his proximity to the current leadership of Pakistan, who car a hoot for Pak Cricket, since they are busy safeguarding their hold on power.
Pak cricket needs a complete overhaul, with people who are accountable for their actions. It is a shame that the selection commitee exists only on name and just endorses the Chairman’s choices. I pray that Pak cricket comes out of this mess at the earliest possible time.
Well said Mr. Mujahed
You can say, what ever you want to. But, nothing will be changed, we will be having this good for nothing Kamran doing the keeping, and we will be, keep losing games from winning positions. If you want a change, then change PCB, then, you will be with out Kamran and Malik.
Youall – Chill
Its time to wish Kamal Akmal happy 2nd life, and welcome new commers like Sarfaraz Ahmed. Kamal can be a backup if needed. Perfect time to bring in Yousef and Younus. They are solid test players and no need to forget Abdr Razzaq.
Ali as one down is a good choice Lets keep him. Play for Pakistan and not for personal pride.
Please get rid of Kamran and his brother atleast from test match team. Also i request Mr Kaneria to give space to new bowlers. But who listen?
Errrr you want to keep Kamran Akmal in the team as a specialist batsman ? When was the last time he made a test 100 ? or even a 50 ? The guy is becoming dead weight now.
If you go through the match summary, his wicket keeping alone cost us 100 runs. Then he got out on a very high score of 0. Thus his overall score if it was to be given is -100. (one catch was caught by him). Now This is a huge sum considering the fact that getting strauss out early would have brought in a player against the seaming ball.
The other facet that needs to be highlighted is the incompetence of our players in understanding UDRS. Now the game is a little technical when it comes to test matches. We lost a player because HE THOUGHT he might have edged it. That is highly strange. When you nick it, you know you did it.
Kaneria before that might have been bowling rubbish but he was getting into his groove and as Shane warne said during the broadcast, that is like putting a nail through a struggling bowler.
Kudos to Muhammad Asif & Muhammad Aamir. The tail has shown more skill in adapting a posture of front foot and back foot block more then the top order. Aamir had faced more balls during the fifty partnership then Sohaib Malik. He is surely turning out to be a true asset for the team.
Akmal’s have to go. We need younis, bring him at 4 or 5 but we need younis khan. We are behind in score, 8 runs are still required to follow on. If weather stays as it does, we might be batting again otherwise this test is now dependant on Rain & england being total goof balls and allowing Asif & Omar Gul to forge a 200 runs partnership. This is Englands game to lose now. Lets pray for RAIN!
I am an oldie and have been living overseas since ’81 so my thoughts on Pakistan Cricket are a little dated. I remember that Imtiaz Ahmed was a great wicket keeper but not a dependable batsman even though he almost scored a century on his last Test Match at Lords. Wasim Bari was another great wicket keeper who kept wickets for Sarfaraz, Asif Masood, Imran, Wasim and Waqar. But Bari was never a batsman.
Wicket keeping is a specialist job. You need a specialist, not a 2 for 1. If he scores a few runs, off and on, that a bonus. His job is to hold the catches and snap up the stumping chances.
Think of Australia’s Wally Grout and England’s Alan Knott. They were all specialist.
Kamal Akmal’s primary job description has to be wicket keeping. If it is not, the PCB is at fault. If it is and Kamal has not been performing at Test level for a while, PCB is at fault for not replacing him.
Why this man is still in the team. Since Sydney Debacle he hasn’t performed as a wicket keeper leave alone his batting which is as fragile as Hrdened glass.
Get rid of this man as soon as possible.
Please drop Kamran from the test side and if he does not improve his keeping from the one day and T 20 sides as well. We need to have a proper keeper at the test level. Wickets come by with a lot of difficulty and a lot of hard work from the bowlers. It is so demoralizing for a bowler to see catches dropped by the wicket keeper. And then shoulders start drooping since stumpings are missed and catches are dropped. I request the PCB to please replace Kamran Akmal as soon as possible to avoid further damage to Pakistan team’s morale.
Yes Kamran Akmal is really bad in keeping wickets and his useless shot yesterday exposes his batting weakness too. He should be shown the door now. However, I totally disagree with people who want Sarfraz Ahmed to be included in the squad. Sarfraz cannot bat at all.
I would suggest to bring back Younis Khan in the squad and he has kept wickets in the past. Else Yasir hameed maybe a good choice to keep wickets too.
I wonder how much he has to do to be kicked out of the team, he has made us lose the Sydney match and again made things difficult here.
i think kamran almal is the best pakistani wicketkeeper batsman
but due to pressure he lost the catch and stumps behind the wicket..
he should b plyed as a opener in test cricket.
Let me get this right, “due to pressure he lost the catch and stumps behind the wicket..he should b plyed as a opener in test cricket.” He can’t handle pressure and you want him to open the innings for Pakistan. Do you know how much pressure the opening batsmen face? Have you ever played Cricket? Have you ever opened the innings for your Village, School, College or City? Give me a break!
The Akmal’s should have been booted out of Pakistan Cricket the day Kamran refused to play for Pakistan unless his brother was included in the team. The Pakistan Cricket Team is not there Jagir!
In which planet do you live?????Kamran is the best. Just tell me, in which match, he did a decent keeping job. He should be shown the door ASAP, other wise we will lose 4-0.
Kamran Akmal should be ashamed of his performance and make way for a younger and better keeper. He shouldnt be the vice captain for least. His missed cost matches for the team. Ijaz Butt should not only take foreign trips, but also keep an eye on the performance of the players. He should not be in the team for his batting performances, because there are tons of talented batsmen in Pakistan. His batting average is not world class. Pakistan has not produced decent batsmen, because no exposure is given to younger players. We should trust our talent and groom deserving players. Kamran Akmal should not be improving his techniques and skills as its too late for him