Saeed Ajmal’s suspension is nothing less than a body blow to the aspirations of the national cricket team and its millions of followers in Pakistan and around the world, especially keeping in mind the next year’s World Cup. the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is considering the possibilities in the aftermath of the decision and might not file an appeal against the findings of the bio-mechanics lab in Brisbane simply due to the complexities of the procedure.
If the appeal is turned down, Ajmal faces the prospects of a one-year ban which might mean curtains on his international career. The obvious course ahead is for Ajmal to re-model his action which seems a daunting task at the age of 36 with the off-spinner having delivered countless balls with the tainted action for many years. The PCB and the team management, on the other hand, need to find replacements for the magician immediately, but it seems that there is a dearth of quality slow bowlers in the domestic arena. Pakistan has at present a limited talent base to choose from and there isn’t a single off-spinner with a clear action — staking claims for replacing Ajmal.
The domestic system and the surfeit of cricket academies, including the ones run by the PCB, have not delivered quality spinners for a long time now and as a consequence the national team is set to suffer. One can’t help but bemoan the rigidity of the recent team managements as well, since the ban on Danish Kaneria, Pakistan has relied on Ajmal and Abdul Rehman only.
Zulfiqar Babar and Raza Hasan were not given proper exposure at the international level even when they proved their worth in the handful of opportunities offered to them. Ajmal featured in every Test Pakistan played under Misbah’s captaincy since he took over the mantle in 2010, and now with the formidable Australians to tackle in two Tests next month, Misbah and the team have a potentially hazardous task at hand, will they respond to the task?
Published in The Express Tribune, September 11th, 2014.
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It is a mistake of team management. They must always prepare backup players for every position. they should try to make a group of atleast 3 players for every position / role and keep on selecting them on rotatory policy to give them all international exposure and let the team management to chose from them. This practice not only make players to give their 100% every time but you can also allow the players rest to rest, you will also get backup for situations like this as well as in case of health issues of the players.