Why Are Pakistani Cricketers So Mentally Frail?

[Dhondy]

Yes, why? Do you remember the days when their fans used to pass off their no-shows as being down to infighting in the side? Remember how India's win in the jeet lo dil series was attributed to Shoaib akhtar not pulling his weight to slight Inzi and his side? It was of course a deliberate ploy to take away credit from India's superlative performance under Ganguly. Numerous other defeats have been put down to that convenient fallback- "rebuilding". There's always some kind of construction work going on by cowboy selectors in that part of the world. But here is a team, unanimously assembled under a powerful captain, the uniting force Pakistan had been looking for years. Yet, instead of improving, their fortunes have nosedived. No wins, five losses in the last ten Tests. It's the worst record among all major Test playing nations, shared with wooden spooners NZ. What's obvious is that the previous excuses were hogwash to obfuscate the mental frailty of Pakistani cricketers. They simply don't have it where it counts- up in the minds, where matches are won and lost. You have to wonder why? You'd think some of their social strife would make them stronger- just look at the South Africans, who are tough as nails because they have to be street savvy from a very young age. The Sri Lankans themselves come from a war torn country, have had their lives literally on the edge during their last tour of Pakistan, and punch above their weight. What's cooking here?

[Dravid]

its just in their pathetic gutless genes one would think if your team isnt getting to play much cricket, that when you do get to play you would play with your hearts and beards and leave everything out their on the field, but noo... lazy shameless peoplethey are.

[Dhondy]

Is it possible that when you take away the crutches of doping, ball tampering and home umpires, their "self belief" heads for the floor? Quite clearly, a generation of Pakistani fast bowlers have liberally used anabolic steroids to boost their development and heal injuries. They passed on those skills to the juniors, who carried on regardless....until they were caught readhanded. It's a shameful secret the whole world knows about. Some have got away with it, others have been let off by their conniving administrators. The newer bowlers know that no longer can they resort to these "tonics" from Hakims to gain an unfair advantage. Scratching the ball with a nail while pretending to shine it is taboo as well, thanks to Hairgate. Shorn of these crutches, their cricket is literally falling to pieces.

[Sachinism]

They used to? There are still ex-players saying that there are cliques within the team and people are giving their full support to the captain.

[rahuliverpool]

I feel that there is a very simple logic. As long as a person knows that he can just attribute his failure to some poor excuse and more importantly, GET AWAY WITH IT, he is always going to come out as a pure loser. In case of Pakistan, the whole team has that attitude. All these "rebuiliding", "raw talent, give it some time for grooming", " very young side", "no Yousuf" excuses just give the players that extra cushion, a cushion that allows them to commit the same mistake twice and get away with it.

[punjabi_khota]

More like mentally FAIL.:hehe:

[Dhondy]

The other factor which has hit them hard is their fear of defeat. Every pitch in Pakistan now resembles an autobahn. You can drive a tractor on it, you won't raise a blush. This has been primarily prompted by concerns about the ability of the average Pakistani batsman to play the moving ball. Result, when these guys go abroad, even the slightest movement off the pitch causes extreme distress. It's not just the newcomers- you only have to look at the career records of their best players such as Inzi & Yousuf in Australia & SA to appreciate their failings. The policy of play safe at home, relying on reverse swing of the surreptitiously doctored ball to win matches has boomeranged spectacularly.

[Max_Cady]

they need dictatorial leader like imran khan to play proper cricket if there is weak leader,they never win matches b/c the players are only playing for their own place in the side,thats what happeninig rite now its teh leader that sets example on the field and pulls team together so basically paki cricket is screwed unless they get a leader with ballz of steel, example would be some1 like this:

[Sachinism]

Today Younis Khan said to give the players some time, this was directed at the fans and media, but really how long will the selectors keep the same squad? They claim they are in a rebuilding phase every time they lose, but they never stick with the players they pick

[patriot]

To be honest Pakistan cricket has followed the path of Pakistan the country. If you draw a timeline, Pakistan cricket was at it's peak in the 1980's. Thats where Pakistan was probably at its peak as a country. World Champion in 3 sports including Hockey, Squash. This is the time where billions of American dollars of flowed into Pakistan during the Zia ul Haq era when Pak sided with USA to flush out Soviets from Afghanistan. Pakistan films and TV serials , pop music ( Nazia Hassan, Hassan Jehangir) held the sway all over South Asia. Pakistan cricket has nosedived, since the Pakistan the country has come under US threat following 9/11. I can only see things getting worse for Pakistan cricket, because Pakistan the country as it is today, maynot exist 5-10 years from now. I think India too has followed a similar route. We have grown from strength to strenth as a country in the 21st century , super fast economic growth - and this has reflected in our meteoric rise as a cricketing power.

[Malcolm Merlyn]

Is it possible that when you the away the crutches of doping, ball tampering and home umpires, their "self belief" heads for the floor? Quite clearly, a generation of Pakistani fast bowlers have liberally used anabolic steroids to boost their development and heal injuries. They passed on those skills to the juniors, who carried on regardless....until they were caught readhanded. It's a shameful secret the whole world knows about. Some have got away with it, others have been let off by their conniving administrators. The newer bowlers know that no longer can they resort to these "tonics" from Hakims to gain an unfair advantage. Scratching the ball with a nail while pretending to shine it is taboo as well, thanks to Hairgate. Shorn of these crutches, their cricket is literally falling to pieces.

dont agree completely...some like waqar and wasim were really talented....though i knw the had issues with ball tampering.....but still think they wuld be great without it steroids do made some players like asif loook god.......doubt shoaib took them tooo the less said about their umpiring the better....they make NZ umpires look angels......most people will know about shakoor rana and javed......these umpires were a shmae to umpiring faternity

[rahuliverpool]

The other factor which has hit them hard is their fear of defeat. Every pitch in Pakistan now resembles an autobahn. You can drive a tractor on it, you won't raise a blush. This has been primarily prompted by concerns about the ability of the average Pakistani batsman to play the moving ball. Result, when these guys go abroad, even the slightest movement off the pitch causes extreme distress. It's not just the newcomers- you only have to look at the career records of their best players such as Inzi & Yousuf in Australia & SA to appreciate their failings. The policy of play safe at home, relying on reverse swing of the surreptitiously doctored ball to win matches has boomeranged spectacularly.

Nope, IMO it is the lack of it which is the cause of their failure.

[triam]

It is cos there is grouping (err... groping?) within the team according to Inzi bhai

[jf1gp_1]

its just in their pathetic gutless genes one would think if your team isnt getting to play much cricket, that when you do get to play you would play with your hearts and beards and leave everything out their on the field, but noo... lazy shameless peoplethey are.

you know how to rub it in :hysterical::hysterical:

[Ram]

Its extremely hard to comment on their mental toughness on the whole, but I think they lack the discipline and focus that professional sportsmen should have, when they’re playing at the highest level. They’re much like the West Indies team – Extremely talented, but no proper grooming or maturity – which is why both these two teams will shock you one day with their ineptness and awe you the next day with brilliance. But if Pakistan truly and sincerely wants to be a consistent force in international cricket, they have start valuing hard-working, disciplined cricketers over show-boats who sporadically win matches for them every now and then, but otherwise spend the rest of their time indulging in drug abuse and cheap publicity stunts. Sometimes, with the kind of players they have, its hard to make out whether the Pakistani team is a cricket team or some sort of reality television. The change has to come from the top though. The PCB is one messed up cricket board.

[Dhondy]

Is there even a shred of evidence for this "extreme talent?"

[rahuliverpool]

Is there even a shred of evidence for this "extreme talent?"

:dito:

[Ram]

Is there even a shred of evidence for this "extreme talent?"

Players like Umar Gul, Mohammed Yousuf, Younis Khan are some of the best in what they do. Even recently, Pakistan has produced someone like Mohammed Aamir, who at 17, is one of the most impressive young fast bowlers in the world right now. I wouldn’t be surprised even if he goes on to win the ‘ICC Emerging player of the Year award’.

[Dhondy]

Players like Umar Gul' date=' Mohammed Yousuf, Younis Khan are some of the best in what they do. Even recently, Pakistan has produced someone like Mohammed Aamir, who at 17, is one of the most impressive young fast bowlers in the world right now. I wouldn’t be surprised even if he goes on to win the ‘ICC Emerging player of the Year award’.[/quote'] You've clearly fallen for the hype propagated by their deluded fans. Yousuf is among the poorest players of hostile pace bowling among leading players. His averages in Australia & SA are abysmal. If he extreme talent, where would you place the likes Sachin, Ponting, Dravid, Hayden, Kallis and Gilchrist, who are from the same generation? Again, Younis is a subcontinental specialist, albeit slightly better than Yousuf. Huge scores in the subcontinent. Little to show for in the southern hemisphere. Mohammed Amer has promise, but benefitted from the unknown factor in the first Test. His inablity to pick up a single wicket in this Test doesn't bode well at all. Unar Gul is no more an extreme talent than Zaheer Khan, Ishant or Sreesanth. If you are going to use that kind of hyperbole, i'd rather you reserved it for the likes of Steyn & Johnson.

[Malcolm Merlyn]

dr sahab dhondy...........i totally agree regarding younis.....bt i still thnk yousuf is little better......dint he scored cpl centuries in AUS wen he scored 9 centuries in a year