Who will open alongside Salman Butt ?

[Predator_05]

Akmal is gone now, so who will take the vacant opener's spot ? PAK have several options; - Afridi. He opened against India in the '05 series with great success. Still, very hit and miss - Pathan owns him, so it's difficult to conceive of Afridi making runs at the top of the order. Viable option nonetheless, given the lack of alternatives - Hamid. A classy opener on his day, but another big-time fisher man. He tries to drive every ball he faces and has a limited repartoire of strokes. Like Afridi, he has scored a few runs against India in the past, but to play him they might have to drop a middle order batsman. Unlikely, but it's worth a shot - The u19 newbie. Know nothing about him, but Pakistan's "unknowns" tend to do well against India - Malik. So can he finally stop being a p ussy and assume the responsibility of leading his team by setting the right example ? It's highly unlikely, but he is one of the few batsmen who the Indian bowlers will always struggle to dismiss when set. He is due a few good innings after all these failures, so who knows - Ramiz Raja. He was an opener, so why not ? Pull him out of retirement and make him open ! That way, i won't have to put with his sh*tty commentary, particularly all those faggoty observations he makes about Dhoni's "package".

[bharat297]

Is Imran Nazir fit? I suspect he may open

[Holysmoke]

[Ram]

Imran Nazir it will be.

[MundaPakistani]

I don't see how they can fit Imran Nazir in the team. If Nazir comes in then they will have to drop Misbah. My choice is Younis Khan.

[Ram]

I don't see how they can fit Imran Nazir in the team. If Nazir comes in then they will have to drop Misbah. My choice is Younis Khan.

Rehman will go. One of the few reasons why Pakistan has been competitive is having YK and Mo Yo in the middle order. Nazir Butt YK Mo Yo Malik Misbah Afridi Keeper Tanveer Akhtar Gul

[Holysmoke]

^ You expect Afridi and Malik to bowl out full 10 overs each ?

[Ram]

^ You expect Afridi and Malik to bowl out full 10 overs each ?

Have to... no option. Its not like Rehman bowled brilliantly or something. Pakistan's best bet is for their opening bowlers to pick up early wickets when Ind bats, their back up spinners will look more menacing then. If that doesnt happen, irrespective of whether they play a specialist spinner or not , they will all get hammered. Akmal's drop off Ganguly was the key moment of the match for me. It allowed Ind to get off to flying start, gave leeway for Gambhir-Yuvi to string in a decent partnership and finally for Dhoni to come in when the zip in the pitch had died down. It doesnt matter how many bowlers they play, pakistan's chances depend heavily on Gul-Akhtar.

[MundaPakistani]

I think we got our answer! http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=80180 KANPUR, India: Pakistan on Sunday requested for a wicket-keeper after Kamran Akmal was ruled out of the one-day series against India after injuring his hand during the third one-dayer here at the Green Park on Sunday. A Pakistan team official said that Akmal’s injury will take some time to heal which is why a request has been sent to the national selection committee to pick a new wicket-keeper for the rest of the series. The official said that Kamran Akmal will meanwhile stay with the team. There are chances that the selectors will choose young wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed as Akmal’s replacement. Sarfraz is widely tipped to replace Akmal in the national senior team after a successful stint with the national junior team. Meanwhile, it is expected that Yasir Hameed will play in the fourth ODI at Gwalior and keep wicket also. —KH

[Guest Hiten.]

I think we got our answer! http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=80180 KANPUR, India: Pakistan on Sunday requested for a wicket-keeper after Kamran Akmal was ruled out of the one-day series against India after injuring his hand during the third one-dayer here at the Green Park on Sunday. A Pakistan team official said that Akmal’s injury will take some time to heal which is why a request has been sent to the national selection committee to pick a new wicket-keeper for the rest of the series. The official said that Kamran Akmal will meanwhile stay with the team. There are chances that the selectors will choose young wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed as Akmal’s replacement. Sarfraz is widely tipped to replace Akmal in the national senior team after a successful stint with the national junior team. Meanwhile, it is expected that Yasir Hameed will play in the fourth ODI at Gwalior and keep wicket also. —KH

Oh right....yasir's a part time WK .... forgot

[ali0786]

why are they taking chances with Hameed's keeping ? they should let the new guy keep wickets.

[MundaPakistani]

why are they taking chances with Hameed's keeping ? they should let the new guy keep wickets.

he is still in PAK and won't get to IND until the 5th ODI.

[Dravid]

Malik will/should open...come on puss step up,team needs u:rolleyes:

[Guest Hiten.]

Yasir hameed looks to be the best contender to me for the opening slot.

[Predator_05]

LMFAO. They are replacing Akmal with HAMID ?? Big mistake. This will play right into India's hands. What makes the Pakistanis think that replacing one sh*tty keeper with another will help them beat India ? Hamid is a makeshift keeper at best - he is not going to be any more reliable than Akmal was. He certainly won't pull off catches like the one Akmal did yesterday to get rid of Tendulkar.

[Cricketics]

this hameed guy always score against India.. remember in 04 scored lot of runz.. letz hope he doesn't do the same.. regarding opener.. i think afridi might continue to open for them if hameed doesn't play

[living]

Maybe Akmal is really injured?

[ali0786]

I think Hameed should play, and Younis Khan should keep wickets.