From: 9063iyerm@vms.csd.mu.edu (Murali Iyer)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: In Miandad's Defense
Date: 18 Dec 1992 19:31:17 GMT
Organization: Marquette University - Computer Services
Reply-To: 9063iyerm@vms.csd.mu.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: vmsa.csd.mu.edu

In article <1992Dec18.174849.25504@mcc.com>, haque@.mcc.com (Kashif Haque) writes:
>After reading one of the comments posted on rsc about Miandad's unsportsmen like
>conduct, i felt compelled to write some words in Miandad's defense.  There is no 
>doubt that he is the greatest fighter Pakistan cricket has ever seen.  One can
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

There are many contemporary players from other countries who vouch for this.
Javed Miandad is undoubtedly a gutsy, talented, intelligent player. 

IMHO, the failure of the team in the last 1-day need not be considered as a
foreboding of things to come. I'd rather consider this an aberration and let
the team get on with the game. 


>
>One thing i would say, Miandad is a great fighter but he is not a great leader. 
>Perhaps Imran was right, the captain of the team should be a person who is best 
>suitable for it.  He saw in Wasim that which he didn't see in Miandad, both fighter 
>and leadership qualities.

It'd've been pretty tough to overlook Miandad credentials and appoint Wasim
Akram as captain. Also, Miandad led the team extremely well in England. the
results speak for themselves. And SAN who was there with the team for a couple
of tests did not report any major lapses in Javed's captaincy. I believe SAN
would have noticed and reported if there was anything amiss.

>Pakistan team, with the exception of two or three big names is pretty young and 
>lacks the temperament needed for such level of cricket. I remember a comment 
>made by Richard Hadlee during a world cup match betweenPakistan and New Zealand, 
>he said "what makes Pakistan team so fascinating towatch is that you don't know 
>what to expect from them.  Sometimes they are yelling at each other in the field 
>and at other they times smile, hug and embrace each other".  

This was exactly what Gavaskar had written about the team. He too wondered
about the bickering and yelling at each other that went on, but he credited
Imran with the control he exercised when it came to performance and delivery.
Perhaps this -- the impression of authority -- is what Javed needs more of at
times when things are not going well for the team. 

>Pakistan team is a bunch of rugged fighters, What's missing is a catalyst that
>brings out the best in all of them. 

You are right on the first count, and perhaps we should give the team a little
more time to come to terms with themselves and the situation.

None of these should take away the credit from Australia, South Africa and West
Indies. They have all been coming up fighting, and it is all the more
remarkable they are winning so far. South Africa faced the general impression
that since they are new to the scene, somehow they are less equipped to take on
the established teams. Australia lost the World Cup quite badly, and did not do
too well in Sri Lanka, and had to prove that they had it in them to deliver.

West Indies, as everybody knows, are rebuilding after a massive loss of blood.
Except for the victory against South Africa in the one-off test, nothing had
gone right for Richie Richardson and his men. RR had a lot to prove, and he is
slowly but surely getting there. West Indies may not have a Marshall in the
ranks, but they surely have batsmen capable of emulating Richards and
Greenidge. And the bowlers have shown that they can deliver, too. So, the next
few seasons are going to see a lot of rebuilding and renewal going on in many
teams. India will have to start this process only after the RSA tour, if the
next two tests do not go according to Azza'a script. However, if they do, Azza
will have gotten a fresh lease of life for the England team's tour of India. 

So, we are going to see some of these teams reaching their peak performances
only in the coming years. Pakistan may see the exit of Miandad(only due to
advancing age and diminishing faulties) and the emergence of Wasim Akram as a
leader even as the process of renewal goes on. Border may give way to Taylor,
but Richie richardson is only just beginning. 

I have rambled on, getting sidetracked to different issues. So what's new?

>
>Happy Holidays
>KJH - a die hard cricket fan
                  ^^^^^^^^^^^
                       |
The net could do with more of these. :--)

-Murali

p.s: I guess I did not heed Samir's advice to keep my posts down to a fairly
manageable length. :--)


Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket