The quiet signs of change in Pakistan's bowling strategy by RSBL

How open are we really to change? The entire human endeavour seems accented to carefully curating each day so that it mirrors yesterday and tomorrow. Sleep at the same time, wake up at the same time, go to more or less the same places, eat more or less the same food, listen to more or less the same music, be more or less with the same people. Routine is the real opium of the masses, that which keeps humans from destroying each other and the planet (and one day, we must continue to believe, this great theorem will be proven true).

On Thursday, Pakistan will walk into the Sheikh Zayed stadium and it will feel much as it has the last nine times they have walked into this venue for a Test. It is now home, now fortress. The stands will be empty and the immediate surrounds barren, and that sense of solitude, of diligently beavering towards a goal away from the eyes of the world - a sense that has helped them no end, by the way - will remain. Even the last few days of practice have progressed, more or less, as they always did, as if it's no big deal that they are elite athletes preparing for elite battle - no team's humanness, that they are not all that different to you and I, is as visible as Pakistan's.

Except, way out there somewhere, there's this low rumble gathering, maybe ominous, maybe not. It's the sound of change. The two men, in whose opposing personalities a pure essence of Pakistan was accidentally distilled - the unmoved ice of Misbah-ul-Haq meeting the moving lava of Younis Khan - are no longer here. Expect that rumble to grow louder. Eventually for sure, not right now necessarily.

RSBL & Windies dot matrix struggles to keep up with the times

Much has been made of the return of Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels to West Indies' one-day side but, while they give the batting line-up a stronger appearance, there is one aspect in which they don't improve the team: running between the wickets.

Neither of them are keen to put their body on the line to scurry up and down the 22 yards to put pressure on opposition fielders. At Old Trafford, Gayle reached the point of barely walking singles. Initially there appeared to be an injury - he was heard on the stump microphone complaining about a hamstring strain - although he fielded during England's chase and the West Indies camp said there was no fitness issue.

Samuels struggled for his timing, as did most of West Indies' batsmen barring Gayle and his early boundary collection, but rather than trying to drop and run a little more, it was either attempt to hit the ball the hard or defend it. Samuels eventually fell for 17 off 46 deliveries, 31 of which were dot balls.
In T20, the block-or-bash method has not hindered West Indies, the immense power in the batting order - over a short duration - means they can overcome dot balls by clearing the boundary. But in the 50-over game, an innings such as Gayle's 37 off 27 balls from a top-order batsman has less chance of defining a game, a point that was explored in greater detail in this feature.

Overall, there were 142 dot balls in West Indies' 42 overs at Old Trafford - 56.34% of the innings - something pinpointed by captain Jason Holder and Toby Radford, the batting coach, after the match. That, in fact, is a slightly better mark than their figure since the 2015 World Cup, a period in which they have averaged 59.84% of dot balls in an ODI innings. Only Hong Kong, Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea and UAE are below them in one-day internationals during the period.

"It's the way Chris has always played, he's a destructive batter and if you have him in for a period of time you can have a matchwinning score," Radford said. "He'll always play the way he does and Marlon plays a bit like that as well.

"What you tend to find when you come to England is that you have big boundaries and they look to push twos into the outfield, then try to limit our boundary hitting. It's the same when we travel around the world. It's something we talk about all the time and as a team we have to adapt, make sure we are pushing the fielders. Those ones and twos add up by the end. We have to find a way to get those singles, but sometimes you have to give credit to how a side bowls against you."

Gayle and Samuels are not for changing at this stage of their careers but it isn't just about the runs they themselves are missing out on, but the impact it has on the other batsmen. Anyone batting with them has to be aware how much to push the running, and it hasn't escaped England's attention that the run out is a likely source of a wicket. Gayle went that way in the T20 and could have been found short at Old Trafford as well.

"He doesn't run that well between the wickets, so maybe we can stop the singles and make him hit boundaries," Liam Plunkett said after the T20.

There could hardly be a bigger contrast than with England's approach. They have the lowest dot-ball percentage since the 2015 World Cup (49.48) and the partnership between Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root in Manchester was a lesson in how to milk the bowling. Bairstow faced just one dot ball more than Samuels in an innings that was 51 deliveries longer.

"Jonny is very quick between the wickets, always putting fielders and bowlers under pressure and it makes it a lot easier batting with him when there's someone so quick to run the runs with you," Root said. "I thought that was one thing he did really well, he picked up every single and really challenged the guys on the rope, getting the twos and threes when we could.

"It's such an important part of one-day cricket to try and scrape every run. It's so frustrating as a bowler when you feel like you are bowling good deliveries but the batsmen scratch a single, then when you miss your mark it goes for four. Instead of going at four-an-over you end up going at seven, eight or nine an over."

"It's the genetics," Bairstow said, "it's me being me. It's something I've grown up with up. If there's two to be had I'll try to come back. It's an asset to be quick between the wickets, like someone who can scoop or hit you straight down the ground. It's the intensity we want to play at as a side…if you are chasing a higher score and able to get the ones and twos and score a boundary an over, all of a sudden you are scoring plenty without taking too many risks."

There are many reasons why West Indies have failed to automatically qualify for the 2019 World Cup. Some require longer-term solutions, but there are other things the players can do immediately to try and improve their one-day fortunes. Getting a shift on between the wickets is one of them.

Evolving Babar cherishes scoring runs in front of home crowd News by RSBL

Babar, subsequently, made his international debut in an ODI in May 2015 in Lahore against Zimbabwe - a rarity because Babar's rise was during Pakistan's isolation as an international venue due to security concerns. He then smashed a hat-trick of hundreds against West Indies in the UAE, and became the joint fastest to 1000 ODI runs, equalling Viv Richards, Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott and Quinton De Kock.

Top-flight cricket returned to Pakistan on Tuesday night and Babar marked it with an exquisite 86 off 52 balls, in front of his home crowd. He missed a maiden T20 hundred, but provided great entertainment with 10 fours and two sixes - the highlight being a trademark pull through square leg off Morne Morkel. He followed it with attractive drives off Ben Cutting and a skillful jab through midwicket.

Babar's Test returns - he averages only 27.25 - haven't been as productive as his limited-overs returns, but the selectors have trust in him, largely because of his unflappable temperament, which came to the fore in Lahore. Babar cherished scoring runs in front of his home crowd and said it was "something special".

"It's obviously difficult to play your own home series away from home because playing at home is relatively easy for us," he said. "It's mainly because we grew up playing at our home venues, attuned with the conditions and with the crowd support it's more enjoyable. It helps a lot also playing in front of a crowd that loves cricket and loves you and performing make us more special. We unfortunately have been deprived of playing at home regularly [sic] while every team around the world enjoys the privilege of playing at their home. I did play one game earlier against Zimbabwe at home and it also gives you immense pleasure to play at your home ground."

Babar's match-winning knock against a diverse and robust World XI team highlighted his evolution as a limited-overs batsman. He is strong in defence, picks his shots smartly, and knows when to accelerate. With Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq retiring Pakistan cricket seemed to be in a crisis, but Babar has given hope. He is only 22 and seems set to carry the batting for a long time, like Younis and Misbah had done.

Why aren't there any Indians in the World XI? asked by Raju Kothari

Back when I edited slightly complicated news stories, journalistic habit would kick in and present me with a question: What if someone landed from Mars and read this story? Would it adequately explain the scene on the ground? That question helped ensure context, cut out superfluous details, and ensured the edited story went out with its important bits in appropriate places.

In this age of instant news and live-blogging, the question has become a little irrelevant, but suddenly it popped up again when the ICC announced the World XI to take part in the three-match Independence Cup in Lahore this week. If someone landed from Mars and looked at the list - five South Africans, three Australians, two West Indians, one each from Bangladesh, England, New Zealand and Sri Lanka, and a Zimbabwean coach - that Martian would have no idea that the game's biggest elephant is missing from the room.

Today the picture on the ground is this: cricket's biggest, richest and most powerful country is not present at a we-are-the-world kind of gathering in Lahore this week. "The nations that play cricket," said Bangladeshi batsman Tamim Iqbal, excited to be part of the World XI team, "are one big family. We have to come forward to help restore international cricket in Pakistan." Everyone except the family's wealthiest son, who today is found suddenly far removed.

World XI coach Andy Flower was asked why there was no Indian in his XI, and his answer generally spoke about the tightness of the Indian team's calendar and how it would have taken too much time to sort out the issues around getting an Indian or two over. However, it is not as if there is a shortage of Indian players available to be part of global attention-grabbing cricket this week. In two words: Yuvraj Singh.

As an Indian cricket fan for nearly 40 years and a journalist for more than half of those, my first reaction when the World XI was announced was, "How can India not be a part of this?" However, despite the Indian-cricket-shaped hole in the World XI, the world is doing fine; Lahore is abuzz. The loss is Indian cricket's, its stature in the world game is now that of a cash machine: necessary, functional, but that's about it.

West Indies swing low, but finish their day on a high RSBL

Some days it doesn't matter what you do.

You can wake up after your best ever sleep, look in the mirror and realise you've lost five pounds, accidentally rub against a lucky rabbit's foot and find a fifty pound note in your pocket. The stars can be in alignment, the moon in your house and the sun shining on your back.

Sometimes you can prepare as best you can, mentally and physically, focus on your processes and kick the laurels from underneath you.

Some days you can do all of the right things and it counts for nothing.

At Edgbaston, West Indies were bowled out for 168 and 137. In their first innings at Lord's they were all out for 123. But while they managed fewer runs in their most recent outing, it didn't spark the same sense of calamity as did their batting capitulation in the first Test. Perhaps there was still a lingering and softening glow remaining from their Headingley victory. Or perhaps a realisation that, today, they simply came up against some outstanding swing bowling in the sort of conditions that would have seriously tested the most resolute batsman's defence.

The ball may have been red but there were similarities to Edgbaston. There, the Windies struggled against a moving ball under artificial lights and for much of the first day of this final Test the lights were required at a gloomy Lord's.

Kraigg Brathwaite and Kyle Hope were victims of the new ball leaving them under the expert guidance of James Anderson as he hunted down the last few wickets needed to reach his teasing milestone - he was so difficult to play, it probably cost him the elusive 500th wicket. Could they have left better? Opening batsmen nick off to good outswingers. Such is the nature of the game at this level.

Shai Hope did the early hard work, was patient and looked set; he could arguably have played Toby Roland-Jones better and perhaps have avoided the thin edge. But there will be far worse shots and poorer innings than this.

RSBL Saeed Ajmal to represent Faisalabad in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy

Saeed Ajmal, who last played first-class cricket in 2015, has been picked up by Faisalabad Region for the upcoming Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan's premier domestic tournament. As many as eight regional teams selected their squads, with eight players out of 20 selected through the draft process for the very first time in the history of Pakistan cricket. A total of 12 players, including two emerging players, were selected through the traditional process of picking players from their own senior inter-districts.

A list of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy teams

Regional: Lahore Blues, Lahore Whites, Karachi Whites, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Faisalabad, FATA, Peshawar
Department: WAPDA, HBL, UBL, SSGC, SNGPL, NBP, KRL, PTV

Ajmal, 39, last played for Pakistan in Bangladesh in 2015 after remodelling his bowling action, which was declared illegal by the ICC in September 2014. He struggled to maintain his performances ever since, and is yet to play for Pakistan since that ill-fated Bangladesh tour, which saw Pakistan lose all three ODIs and the solitary T20I. His personal performances on that tour were also a sharp diversion from his high standards before being sanctioned. They included figures that read 10-0-74-0 in the first ODI, the worst of his career.
He earmarked the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in 2016 as a stepping stone from which he would make a national comeback, but was never able to establish himself as an automatic selection for his franchise, Islamabad United.
The method to pick players via a draft was a radical change this year, but then again, Pakistan's domestic cricket has been the subject of an overhaul almost every second year for the past decade. The format remains intact for the second year running, with 16 teams (eight regional and eight departments), but the selection process was tweaked in spite of strong objections raised by Karachi, the largest cricket association in the country.
The move initially came under heavy criticism, leading to the board to agree to a compromise of the balance of players picked through the draft. The PCB had initially intended for 12 players to be selected through a draft system, leaving regions to pick only eight players from their districts. Facing pressure from cricket quarters within the country, the PCB found a middle ground by allowing associations to pick 60% of players through more conventional routes from their respective regions.
Eight players were picked through a draft and 10 through the usual selection process, with two set to be emerging players from the region's Under-19 circuit. The model, according to the PCB, was introduced to counter the problem of selections not based on merit, making it more competitive when competing with departmental teams, who can field much stronger players. The PCB wished to enhance the competitiveness of regional sides who have struggled to compete against department sides in the QEA; historically, when regional and department sides have been grouped together in the tournament, the latter have fielded the better players, enabled by greater financial resources at their disposal.

Bangladesh bowlers off the mark while building pressure by Raju Kothari

It would be harsh to expect a bowling attack to replicate a strong performance - against a side ranked five places above them - from the previous game, so the Bangladesh side eking out seven wickets on the third day in Chittagong can still be rated as a decent performance. Mustafizur Rahman and Mehedy Hasan finished the day on three wickets each while Shakib Al Hasan turned up with a tidy performance.

Taijul Islam had his moment too, but all four frontline bowlers would still be expected to be more consistent with tighter lines, better lengths, better field plans and avoid the inclination towards finding the money shot from the batsmen too often, to pick wickets.

Shakib was neat in his 30 overs in the first innings this time, ensuring the right-handed batsmen played most of his deliveries. Ashton Agar got a really good one from Shakib that turned a long way and hit the stumps. When he tried a similar length for Warner, it didn't yield the same result as the more accomplished batsman seemed to pick the ball early.

Mehidy bowled 60 out of 67 balls around the wicket to Warner, keeping him quiet but there was probably too much hope on a delivery on the stumps keeping low and nailing him. That didn't happen as the batsman was far too aware and was seeing the ball till the last moment.

Taijul was also underused in this innings, perhaps because Mushfiqur Rahim felt that he was leaking runs far too quickly while the other two spinners were doing the opposite. To the left-handers, he was also trying hard to bowl the one that skids through or breaks through their defences. Against right-handers, there were a few times he strayed down the leg side and was too full at times.

Mustafizur bowled at a fair clip on the third day and was finding his groove at times, but again, the focus seemed to waver. By his own admission, he bowled four good balls in an over and two went "here and there".

Perhaps, the bowling attack was also taken aback by Warner's reticence to bat at a much slower pace; he was comfortable picking a lot of singles. Peter Handscomb, meanwhile, was allowed to play far too many times towards mid-on and midwicket. It did not always happen with success but the pace of the pitch or the lack of responsiveness didn't help the bowlers. At the end of the second day, Nasir Hossain had mentioned that the ball wasn't turning when it pitched in line with the stumps, and was only deviating off the rough.