Caught At Silly Point

How Karachi tape-ball cricket gave us Abrar Ahmed. Excellent story on the rise of Abrar from @ahsannagi espncricinfo.com/story/abrar-ah…

Pakistan Super League is just too easy for Sikandar Raza Butt. He owns this league. There's a reason why Lahore Qalandars hype and cherish Sikandar so much. He's a divine gift for them. There was considerable noise that Lahore's success in initially securing the title goes to Rashid Khan solely. But Sikandar made sure that noise remained confined to only one season. He's Lahore's undisputed MVP.

@RayhamUnplugged this is old news I think

🚨 MASSIVE DEAL BY HYDERABAD KINGSMEN 🚨 - Wisden has been announced as the title sponsor of Hyderabad Kingsmen.

If it's gonna be true, then it'll be a tragic exit of a potential superstar who could have accomplished a lot but was never sure what he was doing. When you examine Kushal's career, you see a lot of his potential hints; you just say this guy has potential to do some extraordinary stuff, but then in reality he remains the one who doesn't achieve much, in fact crossing the thin line of being average. Unfortunately, he'd just be another example of underachieving cricketers of this era.

A thread of PSL Matchup sheet for each team (Bold indicates sample size less than 50 balls) 1) Hyderabad Kingsmen

I know you'd like it because I'm not going into that more runs and more wickets thing... for me the impact should be higher so based on that. Fakhar (key contributor winning his team championship thrice) Shaheen (hands down) faheem (no other option as good) this is bit tough for me (I'd give it to Shaheen

@atsillypoint Hey wassup... I was actually thinking about asking you this... Who's greatest PSL's Batter Bowler AR Cricketer

The what of?????

I'm afraid that this is one of the worst managed PSL seasons ever. I also feel this is one of the most unexciting tournaments in the history. And all this isn't because players are underperforming or team owners not acting professionally. nope. It's all on PCB and the way they managed to schedule all these things. No one knows what is happening at what time. it was like it's some family league But this is nothing new from PCB. we are familiar with what they do and who they are. so our expectations are always lower. so anyways this is Pakistan league and sole Pakistan brand that has potential to put Pakistan cricket on right path both financially and strategically. so we'll have to support it, watch it, cherish it despite unconvincingly. So here's welcome to PSL with a wounded heart. The hope is that our wounds Will not worsen at least.

Why are New Zealand still selecting Tom Latham in T20Is... even on their second-string side? Doesn't make sense to me. It's like Pakistan selecting Imam or Saud in T20. Aren't there superior players emerging from their domestic setup? Please enlighten me with the hidden logic if there is any.

Being senior doesn't mean you have a free dinner every day. Muhammad Rizwan shouldn't escape with what he's doing these days in ODI. If the wickets fall, he puts immense pressure by playing excessively slow. But if wickets fall before 15 overs and when it comes down to actually staying on the wicket, he surrenders and throws it away. It's destroying our combinations. He either needs to transform his approach or change his number, and if not, maybe change his spot because we can't experiment much.

Anyone watching the game can genuinely tell that Haris Rauf has poured his heart out with the old ball. He has secured a wicket now, but if he had remained wicketless, this would have been easily the finest spell in the series that was wicketless. Variations, blistering pace, exploiting the surface. He might have not shattered the bridge but certainly weakened it.

I'm genuinely saddened by the fact that Pat Cummins hasn't received as much credit for the World Cup final as he truly deserves. Almost every post you see about that game focuses on Head, Head, and more Head. Maybe, just occasionally, there's a mention of "Alpha Cummins" or his "silencing statement." Nah, bruh, that feels a bit unjust. I have to say this because it's been weighing on my mind for numerous days, especially since this comparison and related stuff started surfacing on my timeline more. There's excessive emphasis on Head being the main guy. That game was Cummins' game. His decision at the toss, his plans, but especially his bowling. I'm not here to fight, and I'd admit that Head's praise is well-deserved. But Cummins should also be celebrated more. Look, the last 60-70 runs Head scored were, in some ways, what economists would call "rent." Australia didn't need those runs. With 100 on the board, they'd still have won comfortably with batting remaining in the tank. Head's big score is why everyone puts him front and center, but even a 70 would've been sufficient. What Cummins did, though, was extraordinary. Different field settings for different batters. Placing the right men in the optimal spots. Cutting off boundaries. Sneaking in part-timers when India was just trying to stabilize. Targeting other batters apart from Kohli. India was outsmarted in terms of tactics and strategies, both on and off the field. That alone is remarkably impressive, even before you consider his bowling. Relentless, deck-hitting bowling, especially with the old ball. Pure dedication on every single delivery—hardly any loose balls. He deserves the world for what he executed that day. This is the same guy who faced a barrage of criticism before and during the middle of the tournament. That's how authentic leaders step up when their team needs them. The legend of Patrick James Cummins.

India is the best T20 team in the world. That's why they are winning. That's it. Appreciate the talent, the resources, the brand of cricket they are playing. Don't satisfy your soul by saying baseless stuff every day that Abhishek is a slogger, Surya is washed, etc. We have to understand this quote from Moneyball and relate it as "There are good teams and then there are bad teams and there's fifty feet of crap and then there's us." India is that good team. We are that "us" after that fifty feet of crap. We can't copy them. We have to understand what we can do within our reach to be a competitive side.

Jasprit Bumrah is a rare example of exceptional skills paired with tactical genius. He's like a data analyst of his own phenomenal bowling prowess. He knows precisely what the conditions demand, the optimal weapon to deploy, and how to unlock his full potential. Ian Bishop once said that he'd undoubtedly want to knight Jasprit Bumrah with a fast bowling PhD. He's just that brilliant at expressing himself and conveying his point across. What I admire most about Bumrah is his adaptability. The man can transform into almost anything, be it a spinner, a swing bowler, a (HTD) bowler, a seam bowler, or even a master of dipping slower balls. He's got every fast bowling weapon up his sleeve, and he's got the intelligence to match. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up being counted among the top three cricketers India has ever produced.

Players like Finn Allen would rarely be labeled as relentless run-machines. They'd never be called paragons of consistency. They'd never be called trendsetters. But when they fire, they fire spectacularly. When it's their day, they transform the entire trajectory of the match. That's why New Zealand kept backing Finn Allen despite his initial struggle. Once he started taking off, he delivered them victories. Finn Allen is the ultimate definition of intent. Intent merchant of the highest order. He might not produce towering scores, but he'd ensure his innings is full of flair and impact.

Would someone impose a fine on Aqib for the horrible selection for the Bangladesh series? Or are we just used to blaming players for everything and not these so-called cricketing icons who rarely get it right? I'm so done with this team literally. Is there any concept of resting players? And why the hell are you going with only two specialist spinners on Bangladesh pitches? Saad Masood is a promising player but on what basis is he being picked? Hassan Nawaz has an average over 50 in ODI and did well in the Windies, why's he not there? Pathetic planning... please stop playing cricket.

Delighted for this man. From his interviews, from his behavior, it always seemed that he wanted to acquire the franchise genuinely for the passion of cricket, not just for the promotional stuff. Stallions owners were behaving immaturely from day 1. This man played a bit of cricket and he has plans for the advancement of cricket in South Punjab. PSL truly needed a dedicated owner like him. Also Mubarak to all South Punjab people. Your janoob ki pehchan is back.

Among all of the current Windies attack, Motie is a genuinely likeable character and a rapidly evolving spinner. He has been bowling exceptionally well since his debut but was off in a few phases. This tournament, he has been relentlessly carrying the Windies attack. The most extraordinary thing about him is control, and the most admirable feature is that he's a legitimate bowler in T20 who can sometimes explode with the bat too.

Before this match, there was news that Farhan might be dropped for today's game. He is probably the only Pakistani batter whose flaws are scrutinized more than his performance. And it might be a beneficial thing, because we over-hype players excessively. However, we need to ensure that the ratio of failure is aligning with our criticism. Farhan needs to be appreciated for his outings. Now if Farhan had been dismissed in the middle overs, there's no guarantee for what might have happened. But chances are Pakistan would have botched the whole innings. He is consistent. He needs substantial improvement still, but the confidence and the dedication are definitely there

Be brutally honest. Now name me a player from the Pakistan side who could replicate an exactly similar innings of Ishan Kishan on a similar track against quality bowling.... Oops.. error. Ok, let's expand this out to the entire domestic circuit of Pakistan cricket and try again... Still exceedingly hard to find one. You can talk extensively about combinations and approaches and mindset blah, blah...but there's a single thing we will all agree on: there's a massive available talent gap between both teams. Our players don't possess that ability that Indian players own. We need to acknowledge that. For example, take the first over yesterday by Hardik, where he dismissed Farhan. If the same over had been bowled to an Indian batter, the runs would have exceeded.