Cricinfo - Blogs - Pak Spin - Twenty20 selection: Reasons unknown?

Posted by: Khalid Arif Siddiqui, Jeddah - Saudi Arabia at August 8, 2007 12:16 AM

Abbasi Sahib, I think the team sellected for the 20/20 is fairly good except of course the sellection of Misbah ul Haq. At 33 he cannot be termed as a youngster as such his being in team is really mind boggling.

As regards Yousuf, well he really is a great batsman but I doubt if he could have been productive in this instant brand of cricket. Resting him is a good decession and may be beneficial for Yousuf.

Abbasi sahib, you mentioned that Razzak can be a hurricane......I think you ought to re phrase this and write it as "Razzak was a hurricane" and i bet many would have gladly agreed with you. We as Pakistanis tend to live in the past and I agree that Razzak was an asset in the pakistani out fits till recently. His form and his attitude in his recent outings has been terrible, he must realize this and bow out graciously.

Let us all wish our team the best of luck.

Rgds..............pakigreen

Who makes these selections?
Misbah, what's he going to do, except that he could be a replacement for Akmal behind the wickets?
So unfair to Yousuf. And Razzaq was ideal for 20/20. Ridiculous.

Abbasi Sahab, I marvel at your naiveté. The reasons are as obvious as the daylight. Mohammad Yousuf's career ended with that royal six million rupee bounty that the General Sahab paid him when he broke Viv Richards' record. Since then, he has only grown more hair in his beard than he has scored runs. He should be thanking his lucky stars that it won't be a bullet in his behind that will end his career. The only thing that can stand in the way of General Sahab's "enlightened moderation" is General Sahab himself.

The only thing that can save Mohammad Yousuf's career is an Abbasi-style reverse gear, or should I say a U-turn? Bring on the scissors, or better yet, get a high profile naii (Tariq Amin anyone?), get Geo TV to cover the event, and get that long black broom styled into a pretty little goatee. In this renewed circumcision of a ceremony he should announce that he's been born... yet again. He should release videos on youtube showing himself singing Indian songs and smoking a bhara hua soota. That is the only way he can salvage his career unless, of course, he gets married with a UK citizen and in about seven years time England will eagerly recruit him!!!

I understand why Mr. Abbassi wanted to keep this thread short and brief. However, the grief and sorrow that has been inflicted by the PCB selectors on the psyche of Mohammad Yousuf may not be short or brief or momentarily but the scars are gonna remain there forever, after all he is he best batsman of the team at the moment treating him with such disrespect is definitely gonna hurt him. To give him some comfort and to make him feel better Osman Samiuddin has dedicated a whole column and based on the analogy of a Rose, he quoted Ricky Ponting that: "a good batsman, is a good batsman, is a good batsman, be it over five days, 50 overs or 20." True, "I am agree" :-)

Like Mr. Abbassi says, and we all know that last year Mohammad Yousuf broke the world record of Viv Richards by scoring most centuries and most test runs in one calender year. Its hardly eight months of his achieving this feat and they are treating him so shabbily and with such disrespect by discarding him from the team for the twenty20 world cup. Mr. Sallu-uddin has the audacity and the cheekiness to defend his "Sallu" action. Was he speaking with tongue in cheek? Its so weird of him when he said: "This is not the end of his career, let me assure everyone, we haven't treated him with any disrespect by dropping him and he is a great asset to the Pakistan team. It shouldn't be made into an issue of pride, because we haven't dropped him as such." He is trying to sugar coat his words by saying that he hasn't dropped him, but excluded him! By saying this Salahuddin has dropped a load of cow dung behind him and that is why he is appearing so confused! Mr. Salahuddin is now playing the same tune which the pied piper wants him to play, when he was not in the selection committee on such occasions he would scream like a city crier, make a big hue and cry and write in the local newspapers that the PCB is doing total injustice and what not. That is only to get personal attention from the people through his cheap journalism. Now, when the real testing time came he failed and trying to cover up the mess.

The shock that most people have got is not just about dropping or excluding Mohammad Yousuf, it is also about his replacement Misbah ul Haq who is such a big failure. They brought him in Yousuf's place based on a few good knocks in the domestic circuit? Every person reaches to his level of incompetence and Misbah ul Haq's level of incompetence is International cricket, he is a total failure at the International level. He can only play and score at domestic level, we all know what his achievements are at the International level and he is not that young either, in fact he is a few months older than Mohammad Yousuf and as Osman Samiuddin says, he is as fresh as last month's pizza." LOL ... thats a good one!

Another silly inclusion in the team is Abdul Rahman, before the world cup when Pakistan was in SA, they played him the 4th ODI and he bowled two overs and gave away 27 runs. As a batsman he is hopeless he played 18 balls and scored a DUCK. In a twenty20 format he is certainly and definitely NOT needed. If the idea behind his and Misbah's inclusion is only to keep them on sidelines then they should have taken some other youngsters for this job, perhaps they would have learned something by being there in the thick and thin of the dressing room atmosphere and watching their seniors from the ropes. Obviously the PCB couldn't have done that with Mohammad Yousuf in the team that he sits there on the sidelines or bring them drinks or gloves! Across the border BCCI has also done something similar by appointing Dhoni as the Captain instead of Yuvraj Singh. Lets see how these boys play against Ricky Ponting's men.

"a player who often promises much in domestic cricket but fails to look the part on the international arena",
You have iterated my words so again I will request you guys to vow for quality domestic setup instead of raising voice for some individuals otherwise you will get hurted time & again.
So to maintain your as well as ours interest for the game vow for system.

I am extremely disappointed by this selection. Even a child knows that main weakness in Pakistan team is batting. After Inzi we had only one world class batsman in M.Yousaf and he was not selected. I could not believe my eyes when i saw the team. After dropping our number one batsman they dropped 20/20 specialist Razzaq. 3-4 overs of deceptive medium pace and 5-10 overs of hard hitting at the end is the best part of Rzzak's game. God bless Pakistan team and I wish that Yousaf and Razzaq will not get too discouraged to make the mistake of joining ICL.

I will also keep it short, PCB management and Selection Committee should be taken to Cleaners

WOW . PCB is playing by putting the gun on the shoulders of Karachi selectors as they do in the past and our innocent karachi selectors just for fame do this. I think Muhammad Yousuf at any cause should be in team and even if they want to drop him he should be replace by someone who can be our future cricketer not 33 years old Misbah-ul-Haq. Khurram Manzoor, Khalid Latif, Faisal Iqbal, Asim Kamal, Shahid Yousuf any two of them should be in team in place of Salman Butt ( didnt deserve to be in team on 20/20) and Muhammad Yousuf( should be in team but if have to).

The announcement of Twenty20 team is bizarre because the selectors are in position to explain some of the most important questions. Razzaq is out and so Mohammad Yousuf but we have Younis Khan and Misbahul Haque. It is ridiculous. The Doctors prescription is going to ruin some of the great cricketers. If you are a good cricketer you can fit into any form of game. The twenty20 game is not for youngster but for the experienced players. I can cite an example here while I was watching one of the game 20/20 in this season in England. The match was going out of control and when Mustaque Ahmad and Saqlain came into picture and bowled superb spell of spin bowling and they were about of win the match so, any form of game is all about maturity and experience.

i was naive to think that after pcb hires paid selectors, there would no longer be any stupid slecetions. But i was wrong....
May be its time to stop watching the pakistan team altogether!!

Selectors decision is shocking ,I cant believe they are choosing Misbah Ul Haq for Moyo,the best player in the world and he is not selected .
I don't understand if Razaq cant play 20 twenty then which sort of cricket he is going to play .well if he chooses to play Indian cricket League then selectors should be responsible for that .
These selector got no sense .useless and waste of time and waste of money .

Yousuf's exclusion from the 20-twenty WC squad is a surprise for everone. Whats worst is his replacement. Yousuf's presence in the team sends a strong signal to the opposition and creats a psycological pressure which increases chance of winning. Why would a batsman of such calibre be dropped specially when he is at the peak of his career.
Time will tell how much will this decision of the selectors going to cost to Pakistan.

i totally agree wid u..i think tht the selection committees lost it..the third selection i oppose is of ifthikar anjum...like cmon.. hes the worst bowler pakistans ever had. i think najaf shah or even sami would be a better choice

Hopeless... is the word best suited to PCB Selectors and Administration. Actually now they are making grounds to omit Inzamam by bringing this nincompoop Misbah, if he performs then I think Inzy Bhai is a goner (I hope not). By taking such stupid steps these imbeciles destroy the morale of a person and then when he doesn't perform - who gets the blame???
The other blunder they made was to insert Yasir Arafat, he is also a tried and tested failure, Sami would've been better.
In the end for the sake of Pakistan and Shoaib Malik's so called "young" team, I wish them all the very best.

Salaam, I couldnt agree more with Mr Abbasi's comment. What are the Pakistan Cricket Board upto? I'm forever baffled and dejected when the PCB make these unsound decisions. Maybe there are not any thoughtful members on the board. A decision to replace Misbah Ul Haq for Mohammed Yousuf borders on the ridiculous. Whilst I can understand the decision to get rid of Abdul Razzaq, I still believe he has the pedigree to succeed in this brand of cricket. This seemed tailor made for his abilities. Maybe get rid of Razzaq from the Test Match and One Day Arena, but he should have his day in this 20/20 WC. I am a keen, avid and loyal Pakistan fan, but sometimes I wonder why. Can I just add, we dont have a world class batsman going into this tournament. Mohammed Yousuf was our main and dependable batsman where everyone could play around him. Yousuf is and can be a calming influence.I do not feel Younis Khan is adept at playing 20/20, though his fielding will be an asset. Inshallah, I wish Pakistan the best and hope they get far and possibly win the tournament. Pakistan are known for their unpredictability and as Geoff Lawson stated, this could be their strength. Only time will tell. Allah Hafiz, Mohson Hussain

absolutely right sir!!! m really shocked, furious and dejected and feel very sorry for the ommission of two of the gr8 legendary players pakistan has ever produced....it is beyond imagination that Mohamad yousuf( the star of last year) is no more a part of pakistan team.well i would ask the selectors that
1.on what basis younis khan is there in the squad.that man is busy playing county cricket for yokshire, isnt present in pakistan.

2.well world cup is going to take place in south africa where in the recent tour mohammad yousf was the top scorer( 2 fifties, 1 hundred) ,besides all other expalnations he doesnt need to prove his past records.how can he be left???????????

3.the selectors have given priority to yasir arafat on abdul razzaq.well i am afraid i would say something extremely bad about the selectors now....even a lay man who doesnt know the little aspects of game like my honourable selectors know cant think of a pakistan team heading for 20 20 world cup without the most destructive late order batsman....well i dont remember any innigns of yasir arafat that could earn him a place in thw world cup squad...

4.respected selectors, for ur kind information misbah ul haq isnt near to danish kaneria in the field.....from where have u picked misbah

may god help pakistan

Exactly true kamran!
Although the PCB chairman professes complete dissociation from selection matters, this seems like a step to root out anyone with Inzamam-like thinking style from the team. Yousuf compansates all shortcomings with his batting, and Misbah , I can say is no more than a "More of a benefit than a doubt" kind of inclusion in the team. Abdur Razzaq, if he has not been performing has more probability of performing in the next match he is chosen to play. "Sifaarish" and corruption seem to keep deeply rooted in our Selection committees matters, as there is "NO OTHER REASON" this can be justified. Imagine Australia dropping Ponting and Andrew Symonds from their twenty squad in favour of a Greg Blewett and a Dan Cullen. Outrageous!

The reason for exlusion of Yousaf is baseless in the first place, both Younis and Hafeez have much lower averages and strike rates in shorter version of the game, even then they are preferred over the legendry yousaf. Even in the game of 20 overs, we have seen a side can easily collapse if you put all the strike players in. There has to be stabilizing decent player in the team. For sure, its going to backfire on Pakistan.

I really surprised with Yousuf omitted from the Twenty20 squad,
Were the selectors really serious about younger legs, a new spirit and all that, then any of Khurram Manzoor, Khalid Latif or Shahid Yousuf - all of whom impressed in spurts during the practice matches - made more sensible replacements. Even if they had not impressed, at least the selectors could have shielded themselves behind the mantra of giving youth its day..Think about it

Sir - I agree Yousuf is the best Pakistani batsmen, in league of selected few like Hanif, Javed and Inzi. However, I would like to consider this as a rest and maybe trying to give chance to different combinations. I think Yousuf is valuable for our team in 5-days and 1-days, and we should save him for that top class cricket. To me 20-20 is not the real cricket anyways and I can live with my best batsmen enjoying some vacations. As for Razzaq, there is only so many all rounders you could have on the team, with Afridi, Hafiz and now Yasir Arafat (who bats on harder and seamier pitches in England), I dont see room for another "specialist" all rounder. WE have others like Rao and Shoaib who can be considered bowling and batting allrounders respectively. Razzaq is still usefull for one-days and 5-days when the conditions are right. Unfortunately his bowling is cannon fodder to the likes of worlds good batsmen and mind you each team has got 2 to 3 top hitters. Razzaq's bowling will be useless in 20-20 setup. His batting can be useful if he is given a couple of overs to block first. Hence on Razzaq, they have gotten it right but Yousuf, it is a 50/50 decision and for 20-20 I am not too bothered about who is being selected from within the squad of 20 players that we have. But please drop Kamran Akmal and replace him with some good wicket keeper who can maybe bat 80% of Kamran. We just cant afford 2 dropped catches every innings and countless byes given to the opposite team. If you are a bad wicket keeper, you batting score actually starts at some negative number. Like in SA, Akmal "won" us a match by his batting scoring a 50, but what about the dropped catches in the previous innings that resulted in 100 extra runs to score ??? I am baffled at this deafening silence from you and other commentators on our wicket keeping conundrum !!!

The stupidity of the Pakistani Selection Committee if it can be called that, knows absolutely no bounds. To drop one of the world's leading players, a player who has touched ehights which haven't been touched in 3 decades for mediocre domestic bashers is beyond stupidity.

As for leaving out Razzaq, Razzaq could have played solely as a power striker in the top 4 and any questions of how effective he would have been would be nullified. Only Afridi can hit a ball more cleanly than Razzaq perhaps not as often. 20-20 generally requires that, ball striking from the off, with someone rotating the strike for about 3 overs in the middle.

I've given up hope on Pakistan, we have the most corrupt politicians, we have the most cricket administrators, the PCB and everythign to do with it isa complete and utter disgrace.

i am not sure if dropping yousuf was the right decision.like osman samiuddin says;a good batsman is a good batsman-in any version of the game.

one selection that has baffled me the most is abdul rehman;the left arm spinner.why would you want 5 spinners in your squad-afridi,hafeez,malik,fawwad alam and abdur rehman.
plus rehman's batting is not that great and his fielding too isnt that impressive.
they couldve easily fitted in yousuf instead of rehman.
i feel razzaq should be dropped from the team for some time so that he gets his hunger back.

Killers of careers? Please. Enough with the melodrama. Mohammad Yousuf's career is in no jeopardy because was excluded from the Twenty20 Pakistan side. To even suggest otherwise borders on the insane.

Since when did players become objects of such reverence that they cannot be dropped if their style of play does not suit a particular format?

It is true that Yousuf is a great player - however, that record of Viv Richard's he broke? That was in Test cricket. Hardly the kind of slogfest that a Twenty20 game is designed to be. Why would Pakistan want to send out its aging star batsman to a tournament that has little true meaning, and not save him for a grueling season coming up soon enough? This is especially so considering that, as Waqar Younis once pointed out, if you're going to get Yousuf out, you have to get him early. One would think his only chink in his armor would be devastating in a Twenty20 game, the nervous twenties are not really an option.

Further, Twenty20 is a game where more than one skill is required. Yousuf is a one trick pony, no matter how impressive that trick may be. He is hardly a great fielder and he cannot bowl. So, when it came down to choosing between him and Younis Khan, Khan with his aggression and good slip work one out for the one spot that was put aside for a specialist batsman.

Ah, you say, why replace him with Misbah-ul-Haq then? Misbah-ul-Haq is not being brought into the side as an orthodox batsman. He's being called in to hit the ball. Bash him all you want, but he has played 13 Twenty20 games, In those 13 games, he has scored 345 runs with a century, and two fifties to his name. His strike rate for those innings was 133.2, his average as near 50. Mohammad Yousuf, by the way, has played 9 games in this format, averaging only 19. It is curious that neither you nor Mr. Samiuddin actually mentioned that fact in your articles.

I'm not a big fan of the PCB and I don't even know who the selectors are. However, I can see that given the the totality of the circumstances before them, why they chose to make the decision that they did. Reasonable minds can differ, and you may think that they're making a mistake - to moan about it like it is the end of the world, and to imply that no rational person could have made this decision is just irresponsible journalism, in my opinion.

I think you should write a special 2 part article on teh failures of pak selectors - one that drives teh needle into them and shows them to be the inept paagals we know them to be.

Now anyone that foolishly thought things would be beter (such as yourself Kam) is faced with a reality that many should have known. Change at the top is neded for any progress.

A special piece about Mohammad Yousuf - Selectors: If you have a problem with a muslim in the team then go hang yourself butameez kom! Yousuf - please join th eICL and sho wthese foosl whatthey are missing, they are stupid enough to thenm double the amount teh ICL offer you. that is probably the only place we can indeed see a proper pakistan team - if a millionare sports investor puts one together!! Yousuf is the man, for campaign enquiries please call 0092 42 583....

I Completely agree with u. The most important thing to note here is the batting style of Mohammad Yousaf. He is not of the category of Geff Boycott or Shoaib Mohammad. He is a modern day free flowing batsmen, that can bat according to the situation , so if there is some hitting required he can do that.(Strike rate of almost 75). I admit his fielding is not that great but its not that bad that we kick him out of the team. I will call it a blunder by the selectors.

I guess the entire cricketing fraternity is baffled by the decision to omit 2 performing senior players from the 20/20 squad. I presume they are just as unpredictable as our current military regime of buffoons running the show. A great saying says "Bandar key haath mey machis do gey to saare jungle to aag laga dey gaa".

Well, what do you expect from incompetent board. As I said months ago, do not expect anything from the board whose chairman is the boss because he is a very good friend of General Musharraf. Just look at the root cause of the issue as the General used to say!!!!!!!!!

i am baffled by this selection.... ok they have dropped Yousuf ... but why was he replaced with Misbah ...who is older than Yousuf .... mind boggles.... if they had picked Shahid Yousuf or Khalid Latif or any other younger batsman i would have said they had picked someone for the future... what is the future as far as Misbah is concerned NONE what so ever..... when Misbah was played 3 years back he failed horribly and internationl bowlers found him out very quickly of his flowed technique and he was a sure cheap wicket for them .....This is a backward step taken by Pakistan selectors..... but i am not at all surprised about it.......

Well dropping Yousuf does not make a big difference because this format does not suit him, regarding razzaq ommision thats perfect, but PCB should have taken proper and aggressive replacement of yousuf as Misbah is not the right choice, they could have gone for younger who could last in coming in series also. You can not justify the places on the basis of past performance both these guys are not suitable even younus should have been rested. Anyways best of luch pakis...

Couldn't agree more. To leave out a player of Mohammed Yusuf's class and pedigree is - to put it mildly - baffling. This decision will only warm the cockles of opposition teams and more specifically, their bowlers. This says as much about Mohammad Yusuf's class, as it sadly does about the Pakistani selectors.

Its Simple:
Nasim Ashraf is An A** Hole.
Selectors are Dummy and its one man show like the whole senario of Pakisan. His Inclusion make absloutely no sense as he have never performed in International Circuit. Although people who have performed on intl circuit have been dropped (Asim kamal is one prime example). Coming back to Yousf and Razzi. How can you drop those guys who have been great to pak cricket for so long. fielding is never our strongest part?? then why sacrifise two players for that reason only. I think razzi is good enough player just to bat in the middle then misbah and i cant say anything about Yousuf coz we all know about his class. Suddenly the selection criteria is the warm games in Pakistan not the performances of last 5 years.

Questions have to be asked about big mo's exclusion. razzaq is a average cricketer barrig the last 5 overs hitting that is acceptable but keeping one of the worlds best players out that is just plain ignorance. Remind me again despite his constant failures in limited overs cricket why younis khan is still in the team? and 20 20? your having a laugh.

Why is it that we Pakistanis always have to prove that we are smarter and better, specially better than the people incharge. I am a regular reader of tis column and am baffled at your comments.

Why is dropping of Mohammad Yousuf such a big shock. It is no secret that he is not a good fielder. And he is not getting any fitter or better at fielding. Maybe by resting him, the selectors are really resting him for the big season coming ahead.
Why ae we so heel bent on critisizing the administration in each and every move they make. This does no good for the team or the player.
I am a very very big fan of Yousuf and have not sen Misbah play too often and being from Karachi and having played with some of the guys, I dfinitely would have loved to see Faisal Iqbal in the team. But yet I am not dejecting Misbah's inclusion. Why do we have to be so pessimist and remind each other of Misbah's failures at international level in the past. Why not look at his success in the domestic season and hope he will perform. Pointing out his failures will only put added pressure on him, pressure that he does not need. If I am not mistaken, Attapatu's career did not start too well either. I think in his first six test innings he had five ducks and a single. Had the selectors always kept those figures in mind he would never have got another chance, but yet he went onto captain Sri Lanka.
Yes Misbah is not young, but maybe the selectors are eyeing the seires against S.Africa, India and Australia. With such a packed season, Misbah might be part of the selectors plans if Yousuf or Younis get injured. Misbah has a lot of experience and at his age is mature enough to carry the middle order if needed. Now will he be able to do it or not, only time will tell.
What good would Yousuf have done in the 20/20. Big performances there would have done is confidence no good but if Misbah gets a chance and does well in the shorter version of the game maybe it might do him a world of good in the series to come, if needed.
It seems that every one is ready to critisize the selectors, administrators, chairman.... who so ever it might be. Why not back them and hope for the best.
I once read a saying "A pessimist sees a difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees an opportunity in every difficulty." Why cant we as a nation become optimists?

Mr Kamran, you have time and again hit the nail on the head. I'm confused about Mr Younis Khan's inclusion and Yousuf and Razzak's exclusion. selectors pls justify. kamran pls comment

The reasons are simple :
Ther is really no talent in Pakistan. The only people who claim to have a lot talent is the
Pakistani people and no one else says the same. The facts also prove it. If there is talent,where are the results.
In simple words ,the talent lies in the imagination of the peoples mind and not in relaity.

The only time Pakistan had talent was for a period 5-6 years when Imran,wasim and akram were at the peak but even during that period except for few sensational victores between a string of losses ,Pakistan cricket has nothing to show.We all know how much rain helped Pakistan in 1992 or the real finalists that year were either SA and NZ with Eng.We Aussies have won 3 worldcups in a row and have steamrolled every opposition in that period and not won world cups with help of rain.
only,
Pakistan played great in Sharjah which was tailormade like subcontinental pitches and hence the subcontinent teams have a win ratio. Besides till neutral umpiring was introduced,Pakistan had a great record at Sharjah. Neutral umpires came in to the picture and voila the Loss ratio increased,. See cricinfo statisitics.The moment Neutral umpires came into picture,we started winiing more frequently in Sharjah, is a fact proven by statisitic

It is a proven fact that the subcontinent teams come to Australia,England,SA and are ususaly beaten balck and blue with a occasional consolation win. Please see statisitc for Pakistan,India,SL tours to these countries and you have real picture in front of you.

I have always read articles posted on major subcontinental newspaers before a tour to Australia ,for last few years.
The trend is as follows

Pakistanis create a lot of hoopla hooo in their newspapers on how strong their bowling attack is and how they will shred us apart. Eventually what happens our so-called-medicore-bowlers by Pakistani media, win matches for us. Our batters hit the bowlers confidence so hard that they come down to earth and realise they are medicore.(Exception bieng Akram).

The Indians in similar fashion ,gloat over their batsman and our bowlers dent their averages and confidence when they tour.THe only exception bieng in last Indian tour where the batters played brilliantly and upto the expectation.Anf from what we are seeing ,even though their bowling is not hyped by media,it is performing and getting wickets atleast nowdays.

The simple fact is teams dont becomes champions ,because the people ignore facts and in their mental subconcious they think they are Champs. To be branded champions ,you need to prove it to world again and again and again like we did 3 times in a row World cup at differnt corners of world and reaching the finals too in 1996.

Wake up dreamers.Accept reality. The pain will be lesser.

Who hires these guys by the way ???? Are these guys like brain dead or something??? I have never been this disgusted in my entire life !!! I am boycotting the 20-Twenty world cup as far as Pakistani cricket team is concerned. I wish I could bitch slap some sense into the heads of these selectors. I better stop typing before I really start cursing them. May GOD help us ALL !!!
Rizwan, Houston, Tx

Reason is MADNESS !! cant you understand such a simple reason?

Razzaq is basically a Twenty20 man and he is not selected.....I just can not believe this madness.

I certainly feel that Pakistan Selection board has sent wrong signals by sidelining one of the most talent world class cricketer Mohammad Yousuf. If one has to select World XI, I would expect him to be a part of even that team....I would imagine in South Africa, this mistake would cost Pakistan cricket dearly.

BIG BLUNDER!!!!! Another bad decison by the PCB.I have seen yousuf playing very big shots, he had proved that he can score runs at any pace without compromising his classy touch.remember he is the future of pakistan cricket for atleast 4 to 5 years.

Hi,
What a blunder from PCB. How can even they think of dropping their far far best batsman and replaced him by a proven failure like Misbah.

Our selectors should think about the conditions in south Africa as over there you need a good technique to score runs and we have a history of our allrounders and batsman failing there so how can they seclect only three batsman i.e Salman,Younis and Misbah.

May Allah give our selectors some logic .....

Regards
Waseem

Rergards

As usual the pakistani selectors re-invent the wheel when they say things, "like new era promised merit and transparency". What a load of Cods-wallop. I would like to vent my frustrationon, however i am sure that my post would then be censured.

i always have felt that Imran should play a big role in pakistan cricket. he's the man. the current Pakistan selectors don't see class just as indian selectors fail to see class in the form of vvs laxman. Can you imagine a player of laxman's class not playing in the last world cup?

Each time, anywhere in the world when selectors announce a team there are few surprises. Fortunately this time, there are not many but one and 1/2. Where, unfortunately one has to be none other than class act Mohammad Yousaf. I would call Razzaq’s omission ½ as his is a surprise but no surprise

Well Kamran they have thrown out of the team an "untouchable"(Yousuf) and the inept bunch of selectors is saying they are "resting" him. The story of gross mismanagement by PCB of the national "resource" continues; who is Misbah related to? Why are such blatantly ignominious decisions condoned by Mr. Ashraf. Wake up Sir.
Malik Saeed Toronto Canada

There's no doubt about Mohammad Yousuf, a great batsman. Why he and Abdul Razzaq are omitted, no reason. I would like to ask that question to Mr. chief selector, and we all should take stand for them. Thankyou.

I am so annoyed and disappointed with this decision to drop Yousuf that i am ready to go to streets and protest against it. What the hell are they thinking,
i seriously object to 2 inculsions
1. Misbaul haq
2. Younis Khan.

I would just like to know who's "parchee" (source) Misbah just got hold of?
He is older than Muhammad Yousuf !!!!
He hasnt been in the team for 3 years...

Yet he suddenly gets the central contract... and not only that... he actually gets into the 20/20 squad ahead of MoYo!!!

No offence guys but... his inclusion might be part of the political deals that are happening in Pakistan. (that was a joke :D)

Alas, we still have not learnt how to handle assets... Once again merit has been hit out of the ground like Barry Bond's record-breaking 756th Home Run... when will we learn ?!?!?

As an outsider I can only say I'm stunned that Yousuf isn't in the Twenty20 squad. Yousuf might not be a Viv Richards but who is? He is undeniably a top class player and Osman's already said how purple was that patch he's just come off.

Maybe Pakistan's selectors are convinced this squad will win the Twenty20 world championship and they don't need Yousuf.

That's either massive confidence or massive arrogance.

The logic behind the omittion of M.Yousof and Razzaq has become an ambiguous dilemma, and stretching it toward any direction does not pave the way for any sort of positive spark.
The selectors have cited, M. yousouf will be reserved for upcoming series,
This is totally anti-common sense, because it means that TWC has no importance, and is wasted; this is something that Indian selectors also seem to be of the same point of view as their paksiani counterparts.
But fact of the moment is that cricket in its either form on international level is of great significance and these sort of events organized by ICC and participated by its members should be given extraordinary attention and care.
And if the reason of axing is their disability to perform well in TWC then it is even worse and baseless, because if a player like M. Yousof does not have the ability to swing his arms and perish the ball over the boundaries, then there is no batesman in Pakistan.
He is a classic batesman who can turn it around with his classical drives and well placed powerful shots.
As far as Razaq is concerned, he has proven his ability on the ground, with the sort of ability he has to perish any bowling attack, and win the matches on his individual performances.

The Pakistani selectors have to look to the future. Razzaq and Yousuf lack 100% commitment in the field. Okay Razzaq is a wicket to wicket bowler but at his pace he will leak runs like Thames Water's leaking pipes? Plentiful? 20Twenty is only 120 balls, M Yousuf take 20-30 balls to warm up, different style of cricket all together. From what I have read of Fawad and co, they will have a spring in their step which pakistani miss. Let's build for the future. Pak could by in May against the Sri Lankans without Inzi and Khan, but still won the series, the Sri Lankans in my humble opinion despite playing a weakend line up would of still struggled at full strengh.

As an unashamedly fanatical pakistan cricket lover, I would like to make 2 comments. Firstly, it is high time that Razzaq was left out of the team. His performance in the field and whilst bowling has been below internationally acceptable standards for some time now. On occasions, it appears like he feels his place in the team is guaranteed, and he treats it like a 9-5 job, completely devoid of any passion. His batting is now also failing, so this is a fair decision by the selectors. However, I am utterly baffled by Yusuf's exclusion. He would probably make any world eleven, and although he is not always the quickest scorer, even in twenty over matches you do need players with stickability in the middle order, so that the dashers can thrash out at the other end. And I am sure he didn't need a break - he hasn't played since June! The selectors, I am pretty sure, will regret this particular decision.

I guess Pakistan cricket selectors have gone total nuts. How can you leave out your best batsman and best finisher. Ridiculous selection once again.

Regards.
Ruchit.

Please find below e-mail address for cheif justice of pakistan. Please send him e-mail and ask him for somoto action on this stupid selection. Please do it as soon before its too late.Also pass this to as many people as you can.
cjpakistan@yahoo.com.
Please ask him to take action.

Zameer

Let's not get pent up about the exclusion of Yousuf and Razzaq!It is only a 20 overs tournament and the real games are the Test+ODI against South Africa!A rest might be the best for both players though i think Yousuf has not been treated according to his status.

Kamran I share your bewilderment. You, however, are better informed than most and I am surprised you are not at least giving us a hypothesis about why you think Yousuf is being treated like this?

Is it completely unrelated to his recently acquired religious enthusiasm and his closeness to Inzy?

To be frank, Yousuf and Razzak should have been automatic choice for the Twenty20 World Cup. Razzak is a destroyer in shorter version of game and Yousuf is a class for any version of cricket. I am afraid Pakistani cricket will never come out of political correctness and this will cause sufferings in coming years. I hope Geoff Lawson will make some difference here. BTW, I am not a Pakistani but follows pakistan cricket.

Whole nation is in shock, Misbah is miles behind Yusuf in batting and as a fielder also is no better than him. I am unable to understand selectors reasons for omitting him. I would like to ask two question from selectors:
1) If they want to rest him and keep him fresh for future series then why the hell he was part of the 20/20 practice matches in such hot and humid conditions. Take an example of Shoaib Akhtar what happened to him during one of the matches.
2) If selectors want to deploy young blood in the team, in that case Misbah has no place since much more talented and younger players than Misbah are waiting for an opportunity to prove their talent and credentials

ithink the look was the criteria as simple as that. crazy selectors

killers of careers, that's a touch harch is it not. in saying that, yousuf being dropped is a surprise, though a few surprises were expected. misbah's selection seems disboliqal on the face of it, tough he did score heavily in the recent domestic season- especially in the T20 championship.

there are 7 changes in this squad from the one sent to the world cup, so where careers have been killed , some have also been given another chance...yasir rafat, misbah et al.

rarely has a paksitan team been selected without a touch of controversy and this team is no different.

t20 cricket is a new thing, let the youngsters have a chance. Yousuf is a certainity in the test and one day side. lets be honest here, T20 isn't the cricket he grew up planning to play, neither did others, but yousuf's style of play is most suggestive of his distance from the T20 way of things.

this seems a high risk startegy, a failure like we recently had in the world cup 2007 could spell the end of the present administration, but a good run could spell the start of a new dawn.

exciting times i tell thee

Chairman PCB has come from USA with only one point agenda i.e. destroy the cricket in the country and demotivate the legends to that extent that they consider to leave the field. Since his appointment, Pakistan cricket is in jeopardy. Champion's Trophy, Doping issue, World Cup 2007, Bob Woolmer, Coach, Shoaib Akhtar, Inzamam, ICL and now Yousuf and Razzak - all these happened in the short span of current chairman. How could you prefer Misbah over naturally talented players like Inzamam and Yousuf. Razzaq is considered to be one of the lethat final overs batsman, who could destroy any bowling attack with his immense powered hitting. He could be the match winning player in such form of cricket. Such decisions create disappointment among the legends. Who will accept the responsibility for downfall of cricket in Pakistan?

Why I am always vocal to quality domestic setup, because I don't want to be so vulnerable that someone's single bad decision would disheart me upto the extent you are in.
I want a quality domestic setup which would give us tens' of Mohammad Yousaf's if not hundreds'. Then Whichever Yousaf is selected I won't lose the hope.
Just have a look at hockey, lack of astrotroughs resulted in a below average team from unbeatbles'.
Same thing would happen to cricket if domestic setup is not improved.

Nothing new with the dropping of a in-form batsman & instead picking an 'old has been', the pakistan selectors & board have been doing this over the last few years. Until PCB run professionally with accountability like a business this will continue endlessly.

The reasons for Pakistan's bad performanc in Icc World cup 2007(westindies) was the exit of big and experienced players like Shoib akhtar,Razzak and Asif.
And in this case Pakistan again missing some big names like Yousuf and Razzak it.Pakistan certainly will miss class of Yousuf in the middle order.
Players like Misbah included in the team who will be under immense pressure while making his comeback.
Lets pray for Team Pakistan to do well in Championship

live on TV yesterday, the chief selector told the media that Mohd Yousuf "is a world class batsman but we are trying new ideas and looking to some of the youngsters" what nonsense a team never drops its best batsman! I do not want to start a conspiracy theory but it seems anybody who prays namaz and has a beard in the Pakistan team is going to have a serious witch hunt against them and be marginalised for future selection.
This also evidence that Inzamam ul Haq one of my heroes of pakistan cricket will never set foot on a cricket field representing pakistan again!!!
We seem to have a habit and a knack of treating our champion players with contempt! Nothing new then!

I will disagree with you on Mohammad Yousaf, I think his exclusion have some reasons behind.
1. He broke that viv's record in test cricket which is no way closer to 20twenty.
2. He is not a hard hitting batsman who can make a quick fifty in 20 25 balls.
3. His fielding is not up to the standards of 20twenty cricket.
4. If you think he can play an anchor role, then there is already Younis, whose fielding is much better than yousaf.
5. If you compare the team selection with India and England, you can easliy observe that its not only Pakistan.
6. One reason could be his mother who is in hospital I think.

As far as razzaq is concerned, I think his chance in the team was fifty fifty.

The selectors have done a good job and a brave one. One thing is for sure that the did not defend themselves as one would like but the reasons are obvious. Both the players missing are poor fielders. By now they should know that they would fail to be part of the Pakistan limited over side if they keep on fielding the way they have.
Misbah ul haq's last innings is a half century against the mighty Australians which includes a couple of sixes off Warne. They is no doubt that this guy can bat and is a good finisher and even at his age fit enough to play for Pakistan. Probably he made the mistake of giving his real age to the cricket board (believe me he looks a lot younger than most of our 26 year olds).

i am speechless. when i read the news i felt like punching my laptop. in terms of administration and selection the pcb is on the level of wicb and zcu. more importantly i would like to say that shoaib malik has shown himself to be what younis khan didnt want to be. A dummy captain that has no power and brain of his own. Step up and resign malik.

I'm really baffled by the selectors' argument that both Yousuf and Razzaq needed a break. Just how much international cricket are we playing these days to warrant a break? Infact,their first game in the Twenty20 Championship will be their first in almost four months. You simply can't cast out such immensely experienced players especially when playing in South Africa. If the selectors wanted to do any experimentation, they should have waited till the Asia Cup next year since that tournament will be played on Pakistani pitches on which our domestic players flourish. Come Twenty20 Championship and see how much Pakistan is going to miss the solidity of Yousuf in the middle, especially since Inzamam is no longer around, and the slogs of Razzaq in the end. That's the difference between matches lost and win.

And of course Chief Jester Naseem does it again. Pakistan cricket is headed for diaster, unparalled even in its not-so-chequered history. Few people will question that without Yousef and Inzi, we have the worst batting line up in international cricket with the possible exceptions of Bangladesh. What is more, people like Shoiab Mallik, salmn Butt, etc would not make it to any internal 11 save pakistan; Salman Butt would not quality for 3rd grade league cricket in Australia. We're headed for diaster not only in the Twenty20 but also in the subsequent tests later this year. There is no aternative to Inzi and Yousef. NONE! So somebody kick Naseem back to the medical profession please and force some sanity upon the selection committee.

Kamran Bhai, this is an attempt by the PCB to "de-islamacise" the Pakistan Cricket Team. There is no cricketing reason for keeping Yusuf out - He is a steadying influence in the middle order, and is a very effectice "nudger and nurdler" which is something that will be needed in the Twenty20 competition. You cannot always blast an overful of boundaries and you always need to keep the scoreboard ticking over - something that Yusuf excels at. I think this is a major loss for pakistan and i don't know what the ramification of this will be, especially since he hasn't signed his PCB contract and there is an offer from the ICL, allegedly. It is ironic that the ICL, in a Hindu country, does not have any problems with Yusuf and his observance of his religion, whilst Pakistan(a muslim country)or rather the PCB (run by pakistani's) appears to have issues with his observance of religion. Very strange and sorry state of affairs.

I am in complete shock! What on earth is the PCB doing to Pakistani cricket? It is complete lunacy leaving out your best batsmen on grounds which are as unclear to us they are to the PCB selection committee. This current crop of Administrators from the PCB has done nothing but cause humiliation and mistrust within the team and internationally.

Under Nasim Ashraf Pakistani cricket has seen some of the worst decision making I can think of, I honestly don’t believe I could have made worst decision if I tried. Here are just a few that come to mind:

1. The doping scandal. Banning and reinstating Asif and Shoaib making the PCB look like a bunch of cowboys.

2. Making Salmaan Butt the Vice Captain even though he can’t hold a permanent position in the team, this in turn has probably isolated him from the more senior players.

3. The hiring of Lawson, ok fair enough he still has a lot of time to prove me wrong but was wrong with Watmore? Who has proved himself everywhere time and time again.

4. This amazing belief that Islam was the reason for there downfall in the world cup.

5. The treatment of Inzamam, who has been a true hero for Pakistan since 1992.

This list is could go on and on! (please add to it)

Could it be that the PCB are determined to rid the team of any strong or established members who will challenge there authority and are over compensating for there supposed mistakes with Inzamam and Bob?

Who are they answerable to?

I would just like to congratulate the PCB on behalf of all the opposing 2020 bowlers who will sleep that much better knowing that there is no Yousuf and Razzaq to worry about!

Pakistan selectors for lack of better word destructors once again lived up their image of irrational influence by "sfarash" have axed a batsman of the calibre of Yousuf. Who the hell is Misbah -- never heard of him in international arena. Is he related to some bigwig!!

mr. abbasi

has ur logic gone out the window? its for Yousufs own good to miss this championship!! yousufs fielding wil never make up for his batting in this game!! if he drops dhoni and dhoni goes onto make a big score, wel im sorry but he cant bat as quickly as dhoni so he cant make it up. His running between the wicket is horrible, if 5 of our players get runout wel goodluck winning this thing. As long as misbah is fit he is better than yousuf!! nobody is asking misbah to make a hundred, this is 20-20 not a test match!! and my friend misbah isnt coming into the test team he is only coming into a 20-20 team!!

as for all the records, well they mean nothing in this form of the game!! especially since u talk abt test matches, well what do test matches have to do with 20-20!! Are england taking vaughan although he is a better fielder! Do you think sri lanka would take attapatu?

Razzaq did have a case, but this is a serious wake up call, his batting cannot be of any use unless he improves his bowling!! he needs to bowl well otherwise his career is pretty much over!! Razzaq cant pick up singles and doubles when he bats what use would he be in our batting line up!!

Hopefully Razzaq will improve his bowling and yousuf will take this as a break before the SA series and the hectic tours following that!!

I just don't understand what has gone into the Pakistani selectors head? Mohammad Yousuf is the new tycoon of cricket and since Inzamam's gone you need at least 1 guy to hold together the middle order due to the vulnerable top order batsmen. And guess who is the replacement a 33 year old fart and the selectors justify by saying that they have brought fresh legs in. Abdul Razzaq- How can anyone forget he hit 5 4's to McGrath in Australia and Razzaq and Afridi are sort of guys who can single-handedly change the momentum of the game in the matter of 5 overs. So, all I can say about the Pakistani selectors is that I am sick of them. Although I am not a Pakistani, I've always liked Pakistan and favored them through their ups and downs. But these sort of political drama makes people lose their faith in Pakistan cricket and make them hopeless.
I am afraid that Pakistani cricket is gonna get rid of Yousuf and Razzaq just like South Africa got rid of Klusener who was the best. I think then I would have to start supporting Kenya or Canada or Nepal in cricket cuz at least I believe they treasure real talent and handle cricket and politics separately.

This is the reason why the pakistan board and selectors are the laughing stock of the cricket world. Basically they are a disgrace, joke. I feel like crying. Their should be some sort of accountability. They way stars are treated is comical, dont they realise class is permanent form is temporary. Mohammad Yousuf would get in any side in any form of cricket. Hate jumping on bandwaggons however the way Inzamam was treated considering what he has achieved a joke. Any way would rather have a hasbeen then a never was. Pakistan journalists have to put pressure on the board that they can not treat players and fans like this. Dont they realise a strong board will result in a strong team.

I agree with Kamran here and i am as irritated as him with PCB selection committee's "TOO MUCH BRAINY" ideas, sometimes too much logical thinking brings out the most illogical and bad decisions as well.
I think the board is trying to justify its "Question Mark" decision of giving a central contract to Misbah Ul Haq by selecting him rather than Yousaf which is another "QM" decision. Needless to say Misbah himself is no Jhonty Rhodes in the field as fielding was the main reason given by PCB for dropping Yousaf.
After Inzamam, the backbone of Pakistan's batting whether Test or ODI is mainly dependant on Yousaf, players with such talent and responsiblity demands confidence and this decision will definitely dent it.
In my view a bad fielder has no place in ODI or Test as well so if Yousaf is so bad, then PCB should be bold enough to drop him in these two formats as well.
What good is fielding if Pakistan batting musters up less than 120 runs or even much lesser in the 20 20 matches. Yousaf is not a good fielder, i agree but he is not bad either, Also with a 105 batting strike rate in 20 20 and abt 80 in ODI i would pick him any day for this format.

Reasons are quite obvious. Its his fielding prowess, lack of it of course, that decided his fate.

this should be called Punjab Cricket Club rather then pakistan cricket team - RAO IFTIKHAR IN PLACE OF SAMI - MISBAH in place of FAISAL IQBAL or ASIM KAMAL - what a joke - HYPOCRITES

Pakistan cricket has always been frustrating for the fans. Some of the decisions the selectors make are so mind boggling and we often think that who is selecting these kind of selectors. They seem normal people but for some reason when they become selectors, something happens to them. I can't even understand their logic. Had they used a new talent to replace Mohammad Yousuf, that was Very understandable...but they have replaced him with even an older person?!?!? Do they take out names out of a big hat? Razzak SHOULD have been selected just because he is a big hitter. Out of 3 regular games....he is bound to click in one of them and we all know that when he clicks...the other teams weep.
Man...I seriously think that my 5 year old kid has a better logic, than these so called selectors of Pakistan Cricket. This is pathetic.

Dejection seems to be a strong word for someone who is dropped for an event that even the Australians are not taking very seriously. Firstly I do not think this is the end of Yousuf's career. Being dropped for a twenty 20 event does not translate into a big deal in my opinion. If the selectors felt that they needed specialists for this event then so be it. England has left out some of their best batsmen in their squad but I do not hear a lot of criticism in their selection. I think the squad is balanced with a bunch of all round players which is what you need for an event like this.

Pakistan lives up to its reputation as a country whose selector's main focus seems to be to kill careers.

I am baffled with the policies of selection. First Asim Kamal vanishes then Misbah-ul-Haq from no where emerges; what a mockery! I can confidently place my bet on saying that there is no one atleast in our part of the world who have such a late order hitting capability as do Razzaq. He has been a prolific servent of Pakistan and often bailed them out of jail on his own brilliance. He is still young and to exclude him in 20Twenty format is a crime and absurd. Mohammad Yousuf on the other hand has been ill-treated on the bases of the World Cup performace. It's like forcing to fall from a hero to zero. I really feel sorry as our cricket is in dire straits; following a pattern of squash and hockey!

I think i differ with Kamran on this one.There is no doubt in my mind that Yousuf is the best batsman we have got in the current team,with Inzamam well in his twilight.Howver Twenty20 is a totally different form of the game and for me yousuf doesnt exactly fit in to the scheme of things.India too left out there top 3 i.e. Dravid,Ganguly & Tendulkar.I think the selectors have got it right here.As for Misbah-ul-Haq's selection like every one i too am baffled to say the least!!!
cheers..

Pakistan Cricket Board like its sister and brother organizations is poorly run, mismanaged and an autocratic institution. Far from being a democratically elected body it is composed of appointed officials, who remain in office at the whim and caprice of his majesty (The patron in Chief). I could not agree less with you Kamran and with Osman Samiuddin.... whose side are the selectors on? They are out to ruin careers and destroy Pakistan Cricket and any chances it may have of winning matches at competitions.

Pakistan Cricket is so much poorer failing to recognize the value of players like Yousuf who ranks among the top batsmen in the circuit and Razzak whose batting at the bottom can still change the complexion of a game.

The idiotic brokers of powers in the military are ruining every national institution by posting incompetent people at important posts. The PCB and the selection committee has risked alienating the only batsman in the country to appease their cronies. Why Misbah ul Haq and why Junaid Zia??

I couldn’t have voiced it better myself, Kamran. However, the question that’s whizzing through my mind is whether Nasim Ashraf and his sycophants are accountable to anyone in this country? As evident from their infuriatingly baseless selection policies, this administration is incredibly proficient at fostering irrational and needless controversies. I personally feel, a selector should be someone who has played a substantial number of games for Pakistan so that the credibility of the person at least, is a non issue. What we have here is that Sallu( And why the hell is Fakhre Alam always buttering him up in Bolay Kia bat hay) and Salim Jaffer, both with minimal exposure at the international level, are hardly credible and competent selectors with colossal doubts over their integrity and authority. Correspondingly, absurd selection policies ranging from preferring Misbah Ul Haq over Asim Kamal in the contracted list of players to dropping Yousuf for Misbah in the squad for the Twenty20 world cup are merely inevitable. What is even more vexing is to hear these idiots justify their selection policies by resorting to the clichéd ‘It’s high time we give the youngsters a chance’ rhetoric. Misbah, not only by virtue of his unsatisfactory experiences at the international level, but also by the age factor, completely contradicts this justification of the selectors. Also, As Osman Samiuddin, appropriately points out in his article, if the logic behind his inclusion was the need for a player who could play the anchor role and carry the team around him, which sane person on this planet would prefer Misbah to do that job or play that role over Yousuf (the most consistent batsmen for us in the recent years) ? To say that Misbah has an impressive average in the ‘domestic’ twenty20 games, which he actually does (49.34), is unfortunately not enough for him to merit a place over YOUSUF. This is Yousuf that we are talking about, not Imran Farhat. Yousuf, the highest ranked Pakistan player in the official ICC rankings, the man who shattered all batting records in the previous calendar year and perhaps, the only current Pakistani player who could walk into any world class team without any question asked is dropped for Misbah? In hindsight, Nasim Ashraf and his goons have hijacked Pakistan cricket and there is nothing we can do about it. Blah.

p.s On a side note, im looking forward to what Mr. Euceph, Javed Khan and the other regulars have to say about this lack of transparency and common sense in all cricketing issues under the reign of Nasim Ashraf.

Very well said Kamran. Infact Pakistan has made a biggest mistake by not including M Youssaf. Selectors have infact shot in their feet by ignoring the best batsman of the year 2006 and deprived off spectators of not watching him in action. Misba a failure in the past and will always fail in future as well as he does not have what it takes to compete at the internaional level. If for some reasons he has to be included in the team, it could have been at the expense of any other player not at the best batsman. Pakistan would have been a real force has Youssaf been included becuase he is well capable of staying at the crease and guide others to play strokes around him. Now we got no stable player who can fullfill that role. I just dont understand what is happening, God must save Pakistani cricket but God also helps those who want to help themselves. I m not sure with pakistan at the moment.

Mr. Abbasi, you call Misbah-ul-Haq "an old has been" I beg to differ sir, Misbah-ul-Haq is what would better be termed as a "never was"

Success in Pakistani domestic cricket has never been a benchmark for success in internationals. I don't have a clue what the PCB selectors are smoking!

Selectors coming from Pakistan's Cricket Administration, by traditon, have been tragically myopic for which talented Pakistani cricket team, time and again, suffer the consequences. This time around, despite our hopes to the contrary, we see no exception. Among their other misdirected actions, we also see the same pattern of sacrificing the class and experienced at the altar of inexperience and "fresh".
These so-called selectors have actually added a new item to their senseless world of ineptitude: irreligiosity. They seem to have a pathological hatred of the religious,and it is no wonder that they are hell-bent on destroying the great Inzam and now Yusuf.
Heaven help us!!!

what a great decision by some stupid selectors who know nothing about test and odi cricket,how can they understand 20 20 cricket..outclass batsman is out and 3rd class selectors are in for playing with prolific players'careers..Mohammad Yousaf,outstanding player,not selected for a worldcup team for pakistan then what about younis khan,,how is he eligible for 20 20,when yousuf is not eligible?selectors should
be asked about it.i guess they are doing all this to show mr.Bush their ROSHAN KHYALI AND NO DAARHI...no inzi,no rana naveed,no yousuf,no asim kamal,everything is so clear.i wish 2 see this ROSHAN KHYAL team being involved in even worst results in 20 20 worldcup than westindies'worldcup2007..aameen

When there is always the talk of looking ahead in cricket after every selection it is surprising that the wise selectors invest in Ajit agarkar instead of Sreesant. Atleast being with the team would do a world of good to the Youngsters confidence. God knows how Agarkar manages to hang on in every team. It is not only with this set of selectors. He's been the literal blue eyed boy of all the selector panels.

Mohammad Yousuf got booted out from the Pak team because he was bringing relegion into cricket.

After Inzamam, there has been is a purge to remove players who brings religion into the Pakistan's cricket and disrupt the normal way a team prepares themselves for major games.

I applaud the PCA for a bold and couragious move.
I have said this before that relgion should be in one's heart not ostentatious displayed in front of millions people watching all over the world.

Inzamam, Yousuf and co made the Pakistani team looked like fumdamentalist mullahs. Not a good image for the national team in the current political climate.

Players who are picked for Pakistan should focus solely on cricket, thats what they have been paid to do not preach relgion otherwise a conflict of interest arise whence affect the team's performance e.g. the debacle way the Pak team was ousted out of last World cup.

Although I am sad to see Yousuf left out, let's face it, 20/20 is a slogger's game and Yousuf is a classicist, probably not suited to such cricket. In fact playing 20/20 may actually harm his skills at Test cricket. let the youngsters get a chance. The result of the tournament is mostly about lucky slogging. Misbah is a mystery. Perhaps he can hit a long ball in a short innings. Razzaq is a lazy player and has no future in Pakistan cricket.
It has become a certainty for the Pakistan selectors to be maligned but perhaps in this case they are not far off the mark. Look at the England selection which on paper looks as crazy as Pakistan's.

I am tired of pakistan cricket. I was a big fan of the team, but the silly board which always takes wrong decision really gets on my nerves now. How in the world can they drop Razzaq for 20-20 cricket. We all know how destructive he can be. Well as far as yusuf is concerned, i think they want to decrease his growing clout on the team. The selection committee is filled with crooks i say.

There can be no justification for leaving M yousaf out of the team and including a failed international player like misbah in his place. You need a consistent solid batsman to hold the innings while others can use the short hanlde. Yousaf and Inzimam probably are the best for that. Leaving them both out for one reason or other is simple unjustifiable. The team morale decreases once everyone knows that the best are not out there and this is what exactly happened in last world cup and Pakistan made a disgrceful exit. When best openers were omitted and poor selction let to teams demise. Why cant we learn from our mistakes.

Add one more question to it, Kamran.

What about Younis Khan's inclusion (specially when he was hinting at retiring from One Day cricket a few months ago and played only two Twenty-20 matches for Yorkshire this season).

Are the selectors really clear about why they did what they did?!?!? Can any selector really let us know as to the EXACT reason why Yousuf was omitted?? Its totally illogical to take 15 "young" ppl and not 14 "young" and 1 "old" i.e. if criterion for old is number of international matches a person has played and NOT his age!!!!!!

I hate to say this but I’ll because I am hurt by the exclusion of Yousaf in particular and Razzaq in general. Pakistan lost its chance to get to the semis by not having these players. Trust me, may be they will save the shame full exit from towent20 world cup (like the one they had in 2007 world cup) but wont go farther than that. I don’t even want to compare the player who was replaced by Yousaf, only feel pity for him, this poor guy has been put to such a great situation that he’s not capable of. The selectors are out of their minds, there must be something going fishy in pcb (permanent chaotic board). Look who are giving their selection views and being consulted, Shoib Malik n Salman Butt, who’s total (runs, centuries, matches played) in between not even the half of Yousaf total, forget about the stature and class. I can sense the religious factor might have played a role also in case of Yousaf exclusion. Yousaf is an automatic selection he doesn’t need this below par selection stooges.